Crystal Palace pub and Fordland’s care home first to be considered in York

The York Council is to consider next week the first applications from community groups who want to be given the right to bid to buy what they regarded as community use buildings.

The buildings being considered are the Crystal Palace pub in Holgate and the Fordland’s Elderly Persons Home in Fulford.

Government legislation now requires Councils to maintain a list of “assets of community value”.

The purpose behind these provisions is to ensure that property (land and building) assets which are currently used to the benefit of the local communities are not disposed of without the local community being given a fair opportunity to bid for these assets when they are put on the open market. This right is not simply to accommodate ‘public assets’ but also private assets, the test is whether such assets are viewed as ‘assets of community value’.

These assets therefore could be currently owned by the public, private or voluntary sector.

The nomination for the Crystal Palace pub comes from the cooperative that took over its running a few months ago. Their application is supported by officials.

The Fordland’s application comes from the Fulford Parish Council who want to run the building as an interpretation centre. It is redundant under the Councils elderly person’s modernisation plans. Officials are recommending that the building is not added to the list.

Admission to the list means that the community group will be able to submit a bid for the properties as and when they come onto the market. There is no guarantee that their bid will be the highest or that t would be accepted by the owners..

Some building owners have criticised the scheme as it potentially could delay, by up to 6 months, regeneration schemes .