Present:

Cllr D E Cracknell (Town Mayor)
Cllr N J Chard (Deputy Mayor)
Cllr P Chambers
Cllr Mrs B A Charlton
Cllr N R G Clarke
Cllr D R Cole
Cllr C Ford
Cllr N W Light
Cllr W S Rippon-Swaine
Cllr Mrs V A Sullivan
Cllr B H Terry
Cllr M H Thierry
Cllr N Wood

In Attendance:

Terry Simpson, Town Clerk
Jo Stannard, Deputy Town Clerk

C/4432 Absence

Apologies for absence were received from Cllr M F J Daly.

C/4433 Declarations of Interest

Cllr Mrs Charlton declared a personal and prejudicial interest in agenda item 4, as she is an employee of the Furlong Centre.

C/4434 Exclusion of Public and Press

RESOLVED: That under section 100 (A) of the Local Government Act 1972, the public and press be excluded from the meeting for the following items of business on the grounds that they involve the likely disclosure of exempt information. (Annex `A').

Cllr Mrs Charlton left the room.

C/4435 Old Town Hall

Members had previously received a presentation from a developer regarding proposals for use of the Old Town Hall and the opportunity for the Town Council to acquire a community facility, Council chamber and offices.

Cllr Rippon-Swaine believed that there would be no advantage to the Council in entering into negotiations for the acquisition of the building, as it was a considerable building and a considerable sum of money, which would increase the Council's debt. The Council would also be taking on additional accommodation that it did not require and additional workload.

Members felt that more information was required in order to determine whether or not to proceed with investigations and Cllr Clarke suggested that there was a need to create a business plan to look at the sustainability of the concept.

It was therefore proposed to carry out further investigations into the acquisition, including details of capital and revenue costs.

Cllr Thierry asked for a recorded vote, the results of which were as follows:

6 in favour: Cllrs Chambers, Clarke, Ford, Light, Terry and Mrs Wood

5 against: Cllrs Chard, Cole, Rippon-Swaine, Mrs Sullivan, and Thierry

Cllr Cracknell abstained from voting.

RESOLVED: That further investigations be carried out into the possible acquisition of the Old Town Hall, including details of capital and revenue costs.

Cllr Mrs Charlton returned to the meeting.

C/4436 Ellingham and Ringwood Rugby Club

Members considered the Town Clerk's briefing note (Annex `B') on the proposed rugby club development at Ringwood Junior School, a Hampshire County Council (HCC) report on the position of the lease (Annex `C') and discussions they had had previously at an informal meeting.

The Town Clerk referred members to paragraphs 3.4, 4.3, 4.4 and 4.5 of the HCC report, which related to usage, rent and HCC control, all of which could have an adverse effect on the Town Council's original intentions for the use of the building.

Members felt that they were no longer able to support the scheme for the following reasons:

Development at Long Lane had now commenced and the Council's vision of a Centre for Excellence was coming closer to being realised.

Developers' contributions should be used to support this scheme.

The terms of the lease meant that a community facility on this site would be compromised by the terms and restrictions now proposed by the County Council and the likely restrictions to be included in the planning permission.

The Council had not received final designs or a business plan with details of costings from the Rugby Club.

RESOLVED: That the Council withdraw in entirety from the scheme on the Ringwood Junior School site and retain funds from developers' contributions for the scheme at Long Lane, which represents a better long-term solution for the needs of the town.