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A plan to sell off a former St Helier care home left empty for six years for just under £1.8m has been put "on hold" after the buyer pulled out.
Parishioners were due to vote on the sale of Westmount Road-based St Helier House at a meeting this week.
The Parish-owned property was put on the market last month for residential or commercial development with bids of more than £1.75m invited.
After its elderly residents moved out for safety reasons following the Grenfell tragedy in 2017, private developers sought to acquire the site two years later, but the sale fell through and parishioners agreed for Andium to buy the site for £2.9m for development into housing and a new building for Westmount Day Nursery. However, those plans were not progressed.
On Wednesday this week, Constable Simon Crowcroft and the parish's Procureurs du Bien Public – who are responsible for safeguarding St Helier's funds – were due to formally propose that St Helier accepts a bid on the seven-storey building of £1,775,000.
However, the Parish announced this morning that the matter had been removed from the agenda because the prospective buyer had withdrawn from the process.
Pictured: St Helier House has been vacant since late 2017.
“Following an independently managed tender process, the Parish’s Procureurs du Bien Public and I selected a preferred purchaser for St Helier House, but regrettably this bid has now been withdrawn and therefore can no longer be considered," Constable Simon Crowcroft said.
New proposals are now due be brought to a Parish Assembly before the end of 2024.
Parishioners will, however, still be asked to decide whether the parish should buy a former garage on the outskirts of town.
The Parish said 25-27 Vauxhall Street – formerly the AEA Tostevin building – "has been identified as a long-term operational base for the Parish's Street Cleansing Team".
Constable Crowcroft and the Procureurs have recommended that the property be bought by the parish for £1,230,000 plus legal fees and stamp duty, and that a further £250,000 be spent on refurbishing the ground floor.
Parishioners will also vote on a proposal to accept a gift of developed land around Cyril Le Marquand Court, which has been offered for use as extensions to the Parish footways on Providence Street, Charles Street and Ann Street.
The Parish Assembly meeting will be held at 19:00 in the Town Hall. Residents wishing to attend can register HERE.
Parishioners to vote on £1.8m care home bid
Ex-care home invites bids upwards of £1.75m as social housing plan falters (August 2024)
Parishioners give green light to St Helier House negotiations (2021)
Parishioners to vote on £2.9m St Helier House sale to Andium (2021)
Flammable cladding sparks St Helier home closure (2017)
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