The following question was received from Mr Stephen Dart and answered by The Leader:

Question: Is the £2.75 million Council funding agreed by the Cabinet in March 2023 for the Brickfields redevelopment a one off capital payment or an annual revenue payment?

Response: Firstly, I think it’s worth reminding ourselves about the context of this decision and the scale of investment that it is helping to unlock. We recently concluded the agreements and then did a media release about it a couple of weeks ago.

It is a £21m investment in Brickfields that will not only transform the Brickfields site, but will transform opportunities for the Devonport community, for sport in the City and also our professional sports clubs.

This project is the result of an amazing and long-term partnership between the Council, Plymouth Argyle, the Argyle Community Trust, Plymouth Albion, Devonport Community Leisure Ltd and existing users of the site.

This deal is about massive investment in new facilities and making the most of the Brickfields site. It is clearly also a significant inward investment - in particular from Argyle who are investing £18m across the club and the community trust. But for me this deal is about ambition for our communities, it is about better health outcomes for the people of Devonport and it is also about better access to facilities for our local residents.

The entire complex will be reconfigured and upgraded creating some of the finest outdoor sports facilities in the South West. The new community hub will deliver outcomes that residents and stakeholders have told us they want to see ( including dedicated space for young people and youth service provision/ education and employment programmes/ wellbeing services / soft play and an affordable gym).

The question we’ve received from Mr Dart asks whether the Council’s funding is a one-off capital payment or an annual revenue payment. This is a one-off commitment for a maximum of £2.75m. The majority of this is capital funding that helps to support the costs of delivering the project. Some of it will be paid to Argyle to support the costs associated with delivering the new infrastructure required at Brickfields. A significant amount of the funding has been earmarked to support the ongoing provision of hockey in the city, as well as the relocation of the petanque rink to a suitable location nearby. Some of the funding will be provided to Devonport Community Leisure Ltd to support their ongoing role in the community and the oversight of the Brickfields project. And there is also an allowance for ongoing maintenance of the athletics track, which as you may know we invested in very recently as well. In fact, aside from all of the other benefits that I’ve already mentioned, this project will actually help the Council achieve some revenue savings as outlined in the original report that went to Cabinet. I would like to thank Councillor Mark Coker for the time he has spent in the last few months getting the deal over the line and played an incredibly important brokering role between the aspirations of the project and the aspirations of the local community.

The following question was received from Alderman George Wheeler and answered by Councillor Mark Coker (Cabinet Member for Strategic Planning and Transport):

Question: Thanks for your reply to my previous question indicating that the St Budeaux bus shelters would not be replaced imminently. Could the unused bus shelter at the top of Penrose Road, owned by Tamar Crossings, be re-sited to the square to help passengers over the coming winter?

Response: Thank you Alderman Wheeler for your question.

It has been estimated that the suggested relocation would cost the council approximately £12,000 and would take between 10-14 weeks to relocate the shelter to allow for necessary conditions, utility ground and ground checks, as well as a possible need for a temporary traffic regulation order for which there is no budget provision. The transforming cities funds in St Budeaux Square is scheduled to start in quarter three of 2023/24, which would be before any temporary relocation could be undertaken. The relocation would also delay the commencement of this scheme, leading to further abortive costs. The relocation of the shelter from Penrose Road to St Budeaux Square is, therefore, not practical or good value for money and would therefore not be taken forward. Instead, the city council will focus on delivering the transforming cities funds scheme for this area which includes the provision of two brand new clear channel shelters.