Sefton Council's controversial Bootle Strand Shopping Centre is expected to cost council tax payers £1.5 million a year in losses for the foreseeable future

That's the shocking news revealed in a report from officers to councillors who are currently considering the budget for next year.

Lib Dem leader, Cllr John Pugh, says the controversial £33 million purchase of the Strand Shopping Centre in Bootle was always a case of speculation - which has now gone bad.

"Lib Dem councillors warned from the very start that this was a high risk venture and we have sadly being proved correct" said Cllr Pugh.

"Sefton Council has already lost millions of pounds on the capital value of the shopping centre, as the professional valuation has plummeted," continued Cllr Pugh.

"Now we see massive losses of £1.5 million in revenue each year, and this can only come from one place, which is is out of the pockets of council tax payers."

Lib Dem councillor, Simon Shaw also voiced his concerns: "From the very start we warned that this was a dangerous case of property speculation 'on the rates'."

"I have nothing against Labour councillors engaging in property speculation with their own money. The problem here is that they were speculating with other people's money, namely the ordinary council tax payers."

"That was simply wrong, and we warned the controlling Labour Group of the risks from the very beginning. Unfortunately they didn't listen."

I'm sure the profit from Sefton Counci's wholly-owned company to manage the operations at Crosby Lakeside Adventure Centre will cover this loss.

Only the foolish believed it would be any different.

Sefton can't even organise waste bin collections on Bank holidays so why would anyone expect them to have the intellectual capacity to engage in property development.

Originally Posted by local

Only the foolish believed it would be any different.

Sefton can't even organise waste bin collections on Bank holidays so why would anyone expect them to have the intellectual capacity to engage in property development.

Bin collections carry on as normal in Sefton on Bank Holiday Mondays.

Originally Posted by roving-eye

Sefton Council's controversial Bootle Strand Shopping Centre is expected to cost council tax payers £1.5 million a year in losses for the foreseeable future

That's the shocking news revealed in a report from officers to councillors who are currently considering the budget for next year.

Lib Dem leader, Cllr John Pugh, says the controversial £33 million purchase of the Strand Shopping Centre in Bootle was always a case of speculation - which has now gone bad.

"Lib Dem councillors warned from the very start that this was a high risk venture and we have sadly being proved correct" said Cllr Pugh.

"Sefton Council has already lost millions of pounds on the capital value of the shopping centre, as the professional valuation has plummeted," continued Cllr Pugh.

"Now we see massive losses of £1.5 million in revenue each year, and this can only come from one place, which is is out of the pockets of council tax payers."

Lib Dem councillor, Simon Shaw also voiced his concerns:

"From the very start we warned that this was a dangerous case of property speculation 'on the rates'."

"I have nothing against Labour councillors engaging in property speculation with their own money. The problem here is that they were speculating with other people's money, namely the ordinary council tax payers."

"That was simply wrong, and we warned the controlling Labour Group of the risks from the very beginning. Unfortunately they didn't listen."

When the takeover was first proposed, there were a huge number of objections from the local public - it was known that the Strand was a white elephant and with the changing retail trade it was a complete non runner. The only way the Strand can be made good now is to demolish it to save any further losses. It would be better to revert the area back into private housing, or to have a few small shops with living accommodation above - tastefully built so that the whole area can be improved, not the cheap concrete buildings so commonly installed in the area.

The Labour Council are neither speculators nor business people. They are Public Services workers. When any business proposals need to be introduced on Merseyside, the council should not only inform the public but should also ask for the views of the public - not by issuing biased survey questionnaires, but by asking for open views. Then most importantly - listen and act on those views. This would be a far wiser move that would prevent unnecessary expense.

The Marxist Councillors responsible for using tax payers money to fund this white elephant should face criminal charges.

Originally Posted by justbecause

The Marxist Councillors responsible for using tax payers money to fund this white elephant should face criminal charges.

If they have breached their own Governance protocols they yet do so. So why is it that so many Snr Execs at Sefton are apparently 'suspended', if this is true was one them about to 'blow the whistle on this and possibly 'other' property development contracts?

This is what happens when councils make political decisions, thinking it some how over rides economics.

A forecasted loss of £1.5m for the current year seems a bit different to "massive losses of £1.5 million in revenue each year"

https://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/news...ecast-19804182

Originally Posted by local

Sefton can't even organise waste bin collections on Bank holidays .

Why should they? It's a holiday.

Originally Posted by Alikado

Bin collections carry on as normal in Sefton on Bank Holiday Mondays.

Don't let minor facts get in the way of a good rant.

Originally Posted by Ceam

Don't let minor facts get in the way of a good rant.

Oh how quickly you forget the overflowing bins on our summer bank holidays, rubbish piled around them because some Dullard in the council can't schedule a few more emptyings.


It appears I have poked a few awake.

Originally Posted by local

Oh how quickly you forget the overflowing bins on our summer bank holidays, rubbish piled around them because some Dullard in the council can't schedule a few more emptyings.


It appears I have poked a few awake.

How much extra rubbish do you generate on the 1 summer bank holiday we have each year? Most people are out on that day enjoying themselves. Try it yourself this year.

This article states that the loss is to continue for the foreseeable future but what Sefton actually said was that it was budgeted only for this year due to covid. Every shopping centre is suffering at present due to the lack of footfall. Next year may be completely different

Originally Posted by onehorsetown2

This article states that the loss is to continue for the foreseeable future but what Sefton actually said was that it was budgeted only for this year due to covid. Every shopping centre is suffering at present due to the lack of footfall. Next year may be completely different

That's the Lib Dems twisting things to suit their own agenda.
The council report they are referring to makes clear that the £1.5m loss is forecasted for this year. This year being the only foreseeable one at the moment. Of course the Lib Dems have twisted that to make it sound as if it will be £1.5m every year for years to come.
There are significant regeneration plans for the Strand. The vacant post office is being demolished to make way for canalside development of restaurants, cafes etc with the intent of increasing future revenue.