BRIDGEND County Borough Council has been left a toxic legacy by the former Bridgend Urban District Council in the form of the lease it signed more than 40 years ago for Bridgend’s indoor market - according to Regional Senedd member Altaf Hussain.
The full extent of the liability BCBC now has for putting right the RAAC concrete found in the roof of the market hall has been disclosed to Welsh Conservative Dr Hussain in an answer from the council to his Freedom of Information request.
The council revealed that the lease on the market that the council has with an overseas investment company means that the council is liable for all repairs to the hall. The lease was signed by Bridgend Urban District Council in 1972 and was for 99 years. There are still 47 years to go and there are no break clauses.
The council also pays rent of £132,470 a year and at the moment is receiving no rental income from stall holders as the market remains closed until whatever repairs are needed can be carried out which the council will have to fully fund.
The owners of the Rhiw Shopping Centre, which includes the market, are a company based in the British Virgin Islands called Creative Assets Global Ltd.
The council has set up an alternative Market Hall for some stall holders in an empty unit at the Centre. The council undertook all the costs of setting up the stalls and initially was charging no rent to the stall holders. Others have found their own alternative premises including Peter Wood who now has a butchers shop also in the Rhiw Centre. The council may also face compensation claims from stallholders who were unable to trade for some weeks.
Dr Hussain said that what had happened was not the fault of the current administration at BCBC. He said: “You have to wonder why the old Bridgend UDC would have signed a lease for almost a hundred years at such disadvantageous terms, making the council taxpayers liable for all repairs and maintenance while paying a steep rent which is regularly reviewed. The next review is in 2035.
“It would be fair to say that this lease has left the council, and all of us who pay council tax in Bridgend, stuffed. We have no idea what the cost will be of repairing the roof and we also have no idea if stall holders who have moved out will want to go back into the market. Many of them told me that they wanted to stay in their new premises.
“This calls into question the entire financial basis upon which the market is run. The council is still paying rent for a building that is unusable and will remain liable for almost fifty years.
“Again, I stress that what is happening is not the fault of anyone working for the council or who is currently elected to the council. The people who agreed to this deal are long gone but they have left a toxic legacy for their successors to deal with.”
