Rundown Brentwood community hall is centre of ownership row

A RUNDOWN hall is at the centre of a new battle between the council and the community.

Accusations of land theft have been hurled at the Tory administration at Brentwood Borough Council after it demanded an unconditional surrender of the lease for Hutton Community Centre.

The dispute also follows a decision by the council to spend £165,000 on renovating the Harrison Close venue with the intention of opening it up to community groups.

However, the former tenant, Hutton Community Association, which has not paid ground rent since March 2012 according to the council, says the council forced it out of a centre that was built by public subscription in the 1970s.

The row has also seen councillors exchange verbal blows in the chamber, with claims of a cover-up resulting in leader Louise McKinlay suspending a public policy, projects and resources meeting.

A heated meeting on Wednesday, March 13, came to an abrupt end after Liberal Democrat leader David Kendall was refused an opportunity to discuss the matter.

Mrs McKinlay said the item did not fit the criteria of "urgent business" as proposed by Mr Kendall.

Conservative councillor Chris Hossack, ward member for Hutton East, accused councillors Kendall and Brentwood First councillor Russell Quirk of using the issue as a political football before Mrs McKinlay departed the chamber.

Hutton Community Association member Andrea Bowers said instead of being able to draw on the substantial experience and financial clout of the Essex Boys and Girls Clubs the council instead insisted it relinquished the lease to put in its own clubs of choice.

The EBGC is an organisation that supports more than 100 youth clubs across Essex and east London, including Brentwood and Billericay.

Ms Bowers said: "It was our building, we built it, we maintained it. In short the council have stolen it from us. This is land theft."

Brian Partridge, the corporate director of strategy at Brentwood Borough Council, told Andrea in an e-mail on November 2 last year that the council was requesting an unconditional surrender of the lease by November 9.

He wrote: "If this does not occur then the council will take formal action to recover the lease on the basis of the association's failure to keep the building in repair in accordance with its obligations and non-payment of ground rent since March 2012.

"We had hoped to be able to resolve this matter amicably, without the need for formal action, but it now appears that this will not happen and that formal action by the council will be required."

Ms Bowers believes the building has been unfairly taken into the hands of the council.

The existing Hutton Community Centre Association, which closed the centre following lack of funding, told the council they were looking to secure its long-term future but was told no funding was available.

It closed amid infighting between the Brentwood Youth Project and Hutton community representatives claiming a stake in the hall's operation.

The dispute came to a head in February 2009 when, armed with a solicitor's letter, friends and a police escort, former Brentwood Youth Project manager Barry Bowers stormed into the centre and removed thousands of pounds of items, including two plasma TVs, eight sofas, seven coffee tables, ten radiators, bar stools, memorabilia, pictures and carpets.

The Hutton Community Association was formed in the wake of the incident and approached Essex Boys and Girls clubs for support.

Mrs Bowers said: "The council refused to extend the lease of EGBC and said it had plans for the centre itself.

"The Boys and Girls club option would have represented a marvellous opportunity to bring a community facility to the area for lots of different clubs.

"It would have offered funding to secure the future of the building without having to use tax payers' cash.

"We sat down to transfer the lease but the council wasn't looking to hand over. It doesn't work, I feel there are going to be two main groups which will tear the club apart again.

"If you can't take on board mistakes, you are extremely arrogant.

"Primarily this is for the community – it's the residents of Hutton who are going to be losing out here."

LOUISE McKinlay, leader of Brentwood Borough Council, said: "The club became the responsibility of the borough council during local government reorganisation. We want to invest this money to make a community hub for everyone.

"The Hutton Community Association had a lease but they had to surrender that lease because they did not meet the repair criteria and if they are not going to meet the we are going to demand the lease back.

"It is not their club and we are not going to be prepared to have a gun held to our heads over it.

"We had discussions with the Essex Boys and Girls Clubs and what transpired is that the money wasn't actually there.

"Everyone is really passionate about the centre they want to see it being used for the benefit of all, not to have it just sit there in the derelict state that it currently is. As for David Kendall, this has to come back to the relevant panel. It is about following the proper process.

"As for Keith Parker there were no rules broken – it was all done properly. He put a tender in for the work, won it and was awarded the contract."

LIB DEM leader David Kendall said: "When it was proposed that £165,000 should be allocated from the capital programme to refurbish the Hutton Community Centre at the budget setting meeting on February 12, I asked for the matter to be deferred to a committee or panel for a proper discussion by members, so that all the details could be properly considered. My request was turned down by the Tories.

He also raised questions about the successful £12,000 bid from Conservative councillor Keith Parker's firm to erect the fencing around the building.

He added: "The fact that I asked for a deferral did not mean that The Liberal Democrat group was against any investment in the centre. We simply wanted to try and ensure that past mistakes were not repeated and that there were proper checks and balances in place in terms of how the money was spent and how the work was done.

"If £165,000 of the borough council's money is being spent on a community centre then all the members of the borough council had a right to know the relevant points and be given an opportunity to discuss them at a panel and committee meeting."