Documents before last night’s Audit committee of Sandwell Council showed the authority incapable of organising the proverbial in a brewery. Certainly, not in its lavatories.
Few will be unfamiliar with “Bog-gate”, the long running saga in which it is claimed 3 redundant public lavatories were sold at undervalue to a mate of Cllr. Mahboob Hussain.
It turns out that after all the dispute over whether they were sold for the right price (and the cost of obtaining valuations from the District Valuer and from Savilles, who usually deal with more up-market properties), a remedy has lain unused in the council’s hands.
The history of the sales shows the council as incapable of managing its business, ineffective in enforcing its rights and practically advertising itself as willing dupe for any prowling shyster.
It was a condition of sale that the lavatory block in Wednesbury was not to be demolished. It was thought to be of some architectural significance to the town.
The buyer quickly sold on that property and the new owner applied to the council for planning permission to demolish the block and build apartments.
Because of the term banning demolition in the original sale agreement, it might have been expected that the application stood the chance of a snowflake in hell. But not with this council. Permission was granted on the understanding that the ground floor was to rebuilt as near as possible to its existing form.
Whether the worthies on that committee envisaged one door to the new flats being marked “Ladies” and the other “Gents” is unclear. But also unclear was the “understanding” about rebuilding. Too vague to be enforceable and thus worthless.
With the other two lavatory blocks, it was a condition of sale that, within 6 months, the buyer should apply for planning permission for a new use or demolish the buildings.
If he didn’t knock them down, the council could and would bill him the cost.
Another clause of the sale contract gave the council an even more drastic remedy.
If no planning application was made and the two lavatories where not demolished, the council could serve notice to take back ownership. All the council had to do was to refund the purchase price of those units less the council’s legal and demolition costs.
Yesterday, the Audit committee was told these conditions have not been meet.
So the answer’s simple Sandwell.
Serve the notice, recover ownership of the remaining two blocks then sell ‘em by public auction.
That way we shall all know if they were sold on the cheap and, if they were, the good folks of Sandwell might recoup some of the loss on the original deal. And it might serve to warn off predatory speculators and any friends that they may have on or at Sandwell council.