Delighted Council Announce Civic Centre Completion from Police Station Sale

Kenilworth Police Station

At a Warwick District Council meeting last night at Leamington Town Hall (20 April 2011) details were given making a Kenilworth Public Service Centre or Kenilworth Civic Centre a reality. The District Council have put in a successful bid to buy Kenilworth Police Station with the purchase expected to complete by 5 May 2011.

Planning permission will be submitted by 26 April 2011 - all going well, the new Kenilworth Civic Centre could be open by July 2011. The building will be home to Kenilworth Town Council, Jeremy Wright MP, PCT and the Kenilworth Police Safer Neighbourhoods Team. Further plans will also include building a new theatre on the land between Kenilworth Library and the Police Station.

Update as 1.15pm 21 April11 Statement from Councillor Michael Doody that reads:

'I know that you will be interested in the progress we are making to deliver the first stage of the Kenilworth Public Service Centre project.

A price for the purchase of the Police Station has been agreed with the Police Authority and we are working to achieve completion of purchase by the 5th May.  

Discussions with the Police also include provision of a lease back on some of the property for the Safer Neighbourhood Team.   

Kenilworth Town Council has agreed in principle but subject to a number of matters of detail that they will move to the new premises probably by the end of July 2011.  We expect the MP to move over a similar time scale.

Discussions with the County Council and the PCT on the other pieces of land continue but are not essential to the relocation of the Town Council and the vacation on the Wilton House site.

A planning application seeking the change of use of the Police Station building has been submitted with the hope that it can be determined by the end of May 2011.

The planning application for the redevelopment of the Wilton House site is on the agenda for the Planning Committee of the 26th April 2011.  If agreed, this will then see a scheme providing extra care housing and a new senior citizens club be built over the next year.

Using the new SCAPE framework for contractors, officers have arranged for Mansell to visit the site to agree a scope of works (which don’t need planning permission) with the intention that once the completion is achieved we will be in a position to start works immediately afterwards to make the building suitable for occupation by the Town Council, the MP and the Police and Senior Citizens Club.

With a fair wind behind us we ought to be able to see the new premises open for business by the end of July 2011.  After that we will then focus on the second and bigger phase which we know even all being well but going through the procurement process it could take 3 years to start on site.

At the end of this project the Council can be proud of all of the work on the Town Centre since it started in 2005, that in partnership with other public agencies and the private sector it has helped the fortunes of Kenilworth Town Centre to have been moved forward very firmly into top gear with a projected £100 million investment secured and in the region of 300 jobs created, according to officers best and current estimates.'