Purpose

Due to challenges for project
delivery the council has needed to formally close the Highways
Infrastructure project from the Thanet Regeneration
Programme.
 
The grant funding allocation of
£3,955,264 will need to be reallocated, and it was proposed
that this is to a Ramsgate contingency within the Thanet
Regeneration Programme. A decision will be required at a later date
to distribute the funds across individual projects within the
agreed Regeneration projects in Ramsgate.
 
As the Accountable Body for the
projects within the Local Regeneration Fund, the council is the
ultimate decision maker.

Decision

Cabinet agreed the following
recommendations:
 
1. 
To note the new funding flexibility that allows the
council to make changes to existing projects without seeking prior
approval from the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local
Government, including the ability to cancel a project and invest in
existing or new projects;
 
2. 
The formal closure of the Highways Infrastructure
Project;
 
3. 
That £3,955,264 is reallocated to a Ramsgate
wide Thanet Regeneration Programme contingency fund, to be
allocated to any of the already agreed projects as required with
the agreement of the Chief Executive in consultation with the
Leader of the Council.

Reasons for the decision

In the summer the council
paused all design and development works for the Highways
Infrastructure project due to challenges in formalising and
approving the technical requirements and considerations for the
scheme with Kent County Council (KCC). The Highways Infrastructure
project had been designed up to RIBA Stage 4 and the project
delivery team was unable to progress to RIBA Stage 5, which is
implementation. Thanet District and Kent County Councils have been
in negotiation on the challenges relating to gaining approval for
the scheme and without being able to move forward with delivery,
Thanet District Council has had to make the decision to close the
project down.

Alternative options considered

Three alternatives were
considered, including:

The project could be
delivered ‘piece-meal,’ however, this would incur
re-design costs, consultation and section 278 approval through KCC
- all of which are considerably constrained and unlikely to be
achieved by March 2027. This would mean that further costs are
spent on a scheme at risk of it being delivered within the funder
timescale and also does not provide security for the other schemes
within the portfolio. Thanet District Council would also need to
underwrite the revenue costs of having resources to manage the
traffic flow when the tunnel is shut. This option was not
recommended.
An alternative option
would be to do nothing, this would result in reduced delivery of
these grant-funded schemes and the necessity to return
£3,955,264 of grant funding to MHCLG. This option was not
recommended.
The funding could be
re-allocated differently - Members could decide to alter the
reallocation of funding across the projects, or across the whole
programme, including the Margate schemes. However, this would not
optimise the delivery of the programme outputs and outcomes in
Ramsgate, and Cabinet has agreed to keep the funding in the town it
was awarded to. This option was not recommended.