22.03.19
Essex council announces £1bn construction deal
An Essex council has announced a £1bn contract in a joint venture to regenerate council sites and deliver new homes and commercial facilities.
Brentwood Borough Council has named Morgan Sindall as its partner for the Limited Liability Partnership (LLP), with a 50:50 ownership split between the council and the major local government contractor.
The £1bn contract will see the contractor deliver new housing, commercial space and leisure facilities across the region for the next 30 years.
The joint venture is still subject to full council approval, but the authority’s leader Louise McKinlay declared it “the largest and most significant project Brentwood Borough Council has even undertaken.”
She said: “‘The partnership will allow us to make use of council land to build the vital homes and facilities our community needs. At a time of ongoing time squeezed local government funding, the profits raised will help to protect against making cuts to frontline services.
“Our residents will, over the coming months and years, be able to see a real change that will build on our heritage and create a town of the future for generations to come.”
The council said Morgan Sindall were selected after a rigorous and competitive tender process after 15 organisations applied to become the joint venture partner.
The long-term regeneration will see new homes, public spaces, commercial and leisure facilities built, and will “completely transform Brentwood for future generations.”
John Morgan, chief executive of Morgan Sindall, said: “We are very pleased to have been selected by Brentwood Borough Council as its preferred JV partner.
“It underscores Morgan Sindall Investments’ position as a leading local authority JV development partner and builds on the excellent work that we have achieved in Bournemouth and Slough.”