Letter from the Planning law Practice: Cityheart Limited
Dear Chief Executive,
As you know, I am advising the Bishop's Stortford & Sawbridgeworth Labour Party in relation to the Old River Lane redevelopment scheme.
The Council's website reports that the Council has appointed Cityheart Ltd as the developer for the main Old River Lane site.
Can you please therefor confirm the following:
Has the District Council entered into a formal contract with Cityheart Ltd in relation to the development of the Old River Lane site?
If so, does the contract commit the parties to a particular form of development?
If so, does the contracted scheme include an Arts Theatre or a multi-screen cinema or any other form of cultural facility?
Has the District Council secured any formal funding commitment from the Hertfordshire LEP?
Does that funding commitment require the ORL scheme to contain any specific elements and, if so, what?
Is the LEP's funding offer subject to any absolute time constraint by which work on the Arts Theatre or whatever cultural facility replaces the Theatre has to start, failing which further funding will not be available?
has any request been made to the LEP for an extension to the funding commitment deadline? If so, what was the LEP's response?
This letter comprises a formal request for information under the terms of the Freedom of Information Act.
As before, my clients are not at the moment seeking the disclosure of any financial information which could properly be described as commercially confidential and whose disclosure is not required in the public interest. It follows that a blanket refusal to respond to this request on the grounds of the commercial confidentially exception cannot be justified.
Yours sincerely,
Peter Brady
Solicitor
The Planning Law Practice