Torbay Council scales back Castle Circus project

Torbay Council has announced it plans to scale back elements of its £36m Castle Circus Regeneration Project in light of government cuts to local authorities.The Business Hub will now be removed from the project and taken forward as a stand-alone project with the private sector. This will ensure that any financial risks to the council are reduced whilst still helping to regenerate the area.

The Community Hub elements, including the cafe and community meeting rooms, will be put on hold. Further work will continue on business cases for this part of the project and work may still go ahead if the council is confident that the proposals represent good value for money.

The other element of the scheme, a civic hub, bringing 17 council offices into one building, will go ahead as planned.

Cabinet Member for Regeneration, Councillor Chris Lewis said: "In simple terms the recent budget announcement means that like local authorities across the country we will have to find savings of around 25 percent over the next four years.

"This has posed a huge challenge for us and it is therefore only right that we look at the level of borrowing required for this project against the long-term, financial benefits that delivering such a project could bring."

Cllr Lewis added: "These decisions are absolutely the right thing to do in this current economic climate. It makes good business sense to reduce the number of buildings that we currently occupy. Inevitably some work will be involved in order to create as many spaces as possible within Tor Hill House, Town Hall and Electric House, however, the considerable long-term savings will far outweigh any initial costs.

"We would still like to deliver the community elements of the project in the future but will only do so if there is a robust business case that supports the proposals."