Plans to sell land next to Hertfordshire’s County Hall have been backed by a meeting of the resources and performance cabinet panel.
The 312-hectare Leahoe House site – which includes Leahoe House and gardens, tennis courts, allotments and flats – has been earmarked for possible residential development.
On Tuesday (April 16) the cabinet panel backed plans for the site to be declared surplus and for Cala Homes to be identified as the preferred bidder to acquire the site.
A final decision is now set to be taken by the council’s cabinet on Thursday (April 18).
At Tuesday’s meeting, director of property Sass Pledger said that the site – which is designated as ‘residential’ – had always been deemed separate from the rest of the County Hall site.
She said the county council had no offices on the site and no operational requirement for it – with all but one dwelling already vacant.
When the council revealed plans to market the site last year, it was stressed that any future development would need to include the sympathetic restoration of Leahoe House and a highly sustainable approach.
Should the council’s cabinet back the move, agreement on the terms of the sale – including price – would be made by the council’s executive director of resources, in consultation with the executive member.
According to the resources and performance cabinet panel report, any sale would also be subject to the developer obtaining planning consent.
