TAMESIDE Council has revised the terms for which it will buy land that will form part of the controversial Godley Green Garden Village development.
The scheme to build 2,150 properties on green belt land has caused huge reactions from those both for and against.
Now the authority has had to change the terms on which some of the area will be bought following a change of mind by the current owner – it will now include extra land.
An executive decision notice from Nick Fenwick, interim assistant director of Place, says it has been made ‘to enter into an option agreement to acquire land within the Godley Green Garden Village development on revised terms.’
It adds: “The option obliges the grantor to sell to the option owner, on the terms contained in the option agreement, which in turn facilitates the development subject to a viable planning permission being received.
“Revised terms required approval following the grantor reconsidering their approach to the option term and offering to include additional land.”
Tameside Council has already spelled out that if they do not develop Godley Green, someone else will and that theirs is the best option.
And not agreeing to the new terms could see the current landowner decide to not sell, delaying the scheme.
It adds: “External advisors have confirmed that the revised terms represent the best deal achievable and gives a sufficient timescale to implement the scheme on the grantor’s land, having regard to likely timescales for other permissions to be achieved.
“In addition, external advisors confirm that not agreeing to the revised terms would put the scheme at significant risk by reducing land availability as the council would not have the option to acquire the grantors land thereby reducing developable acreage.”
Tameside Council has received a grant of more than £9 million from Homes England to develop Godley Green.
However, five landowners must agree to sell to them, otherwise a compulsory purchase order will be sought.
A soft marketing scheme was carried out between December and March to understand the development market’s view of the project and to get commercial feedback.
Now as a result, Tameside Council say: “Greater clarity and focus has been provided by the market on how Godley Green is perceived as a development opportunity.”