6:00pm Monday 15th March 2010
By James Calnan
HOMES, restaurants, shops and offices could be developed by the company which has bought Colchester’s Angel Court for £2million.
The High Street flagship building, built for £3.7million in 1988 by Colchester Council, has been sold to local developer City & Country Group, which specialises in renovation projects.
As part of the deal, the council is to lease back its Customer Service Centre and the CCTV Monitoring Centre.
The firm has yet to reveal detailed plans for exactly how it wants to regenerate the building.
But it is believed the ground floor, fronting on to the High Street and West Stockwell Street, could be used for restaurants or shops.
And the remainder of the building, currently occupied by council officers who are moving to Rowan House, could be used for homes or offices.
Tim Sargeant, City & Country Group chief executive, said: “We are very excited about the opportunities that exist with regards to the site and we are pleased we have been able to work with the council so it can continue to provide much-needed, high-quality services to the local community.
“We are looking forward to restoring the buildings and delivering an attractive, long-term and viable solution for this high-profile location that will be attractive to owner occupiers as well as those seeking to rent good-quality premises in Colchester.”
Paul Smith, councillor responsible for resources, said the deal meant backroom staff would no longer be working in costly town centre offices, but residents would still be able to get help from staff in the town centre.
He said the deal had placed no major restrictions on how City & Country develops the site, but that planning permission for changes would be required.
He said: “Certainly, I think it will regenerate the area.
“It may well be that it will perhaps break the ground floor areas up into separate shop units. In the space above it, they have got commercial use, so there is scope for renovating it.
“There are some quite impressive views from the top floor.”
John Spice, of Bidwells, which acted as property adviser to the council, said: “As the cornerstone for the regeneration of Colchester High Street, Angel Court presented an exciting opportunity to a wide variety of purchasers.
“We are thrilled that, despite the current economic climate, we were able to bring the sale to a successful completion.”
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