Mill Green Mill - Trust Lease (Forward Plan Reference FP1029)
Exempt report of the Chief Executive on the existing Lease for the Council’s water mill at Mill Green in favour of the Trustees of the Mill Green Water Mill Restoration Fund.
Additional documents:
Decision:
Cabinet noted the contents of the report and instructed officers to arrange for the voluntary surrender of the lease with the Trust, subject to the implications set out in the report and that such surrender is consistent with the Heads of Terms of Surrender shown in Appendix A.
Minutes:
Exempt report of the Chief Executive on the existing Lease for the Council’s water mill at Mill Green in favour of the Trustees of the Mill Green Water Mill Restoration Fund.
(1) The Decision Taken
RESOLVED:
(unanimous)
Cabinet noted the contents of the report and instructed officers to arrange for the voluntary surrender of the lease with the Trust, subject to the implications set out in the report and that such surrender is consistent with the Heads of Terms of Surrender shown in Appendix A.
(2) Reasons for the Decision
Successive leases between the Council and the Trust date back to 1979 which served a purpose when the Mill was being restored and in raining funds for it. The current lease commenced in December 2000 with a term of 21 years, so it expires in December 2021.
The terms of the lease, which gave responsibility for the operation of the Mill Green Mill to the Trust, has not been observed for many years. The Trust does not have any active involvement in the operation of the Mill at all.
Since site admission charges were first introduced in 2011, no donations have been collected on behalf of the Mill Trust to financially support its operation. All costs have been met directly by the Council.
The Mill Trust had asked to be relieved of its responsibilities under the lease and the legal, financial and risk implications to the Council in agreeing to the request have been set out in the report. Proposed heads of terms for the surrender were also appended here.
In arranging for current members of the trust to surrender their interest and responsibility for the Mill, it will not be necessary to establish the full status and whereabouts of those individuals who signed the current lease twenty years ago.
While the lease does expire in December 2021, a surrender will ensure there is both clarity and a clean break for both parties. Officers will be able to progress the subject to Cabinet approval.