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A decision made (05/09/2007) regarding: Town Park Project - Capital Budget Transfers.

Subject:	Town Park Project – Capital Budget Transfers
Decision Reference:	MD-PE-2007-0216	Exempt clause(s):
Type of Report (oral or written):	Written	Person Giving Report (if oral):		N/A
Telephone or e-mail Meeting?	N/A	Report File ref:
Written Report Title:	Town Park Project – Capital Budget Transfers	Written report – Author:		Ellen Littlechild – Finance Director.
Decision(s): The Minister decided to approve the following budget transfer (and associated expenditure) to a new capital Head of Expenditure in the Transport and Technical Services Department: £300,000 from Planning and Environment (Business Unit IXB009)
Reason(s) for decision: To provide the Transport and Technical Services Department with the budget to undertake the Town Park project.
Resource Implications: N/A
Action required: The Finance Director: to request the Minister for the Treasury and Resources Department to approve the capital transfer referred to in this report.
Signature: (Minister)			Date of Decision:

Town Park Project - Capital Budget Transfers.

PLANNING AND ENVIRONMENT

TOWN PARK PROJECT – BUDGET TRANSFER

Purpose of the Report

The purpose of this report is to seek the Minister for Planning and Environment’s approval to a budget transfers and request the approval of the Minister for Treasury and Resources to this transfer.

Background

The (then) Planning and Environment Committee was charged, in 1997, with developing proposals for a park on the site of the Gas Place/Talman car parks adjacent to Bath Street, St. Helier.

That Committee produced a report to the States dated March 2000 (presented 11 April 2000), recommending a scheme that incorporated a park across the whole site (1.3 hectares) with a three storey underground car park (826 spaces).

The cost of the proposed scheme was originally estimated to be £23.18 million at November 1999 prices. Funding of £15 million was to be made available from the Jersey Car Parking – Trading Fund for an equivalent above ground multi-storey car park and the report assumed that ‘the Millennium Fund’ would meet the remaining £8.18 million (at November 1999 prices).

The preferred option was further developed by the project steering group, with the eventual outturn cost estimate reaching some £30 million. The Millennium Fund included a sum of £1.225 million for the Park element of the project and no further funding source was available to meet this shortfall. With no identified funding route to meet this funding shortfall, the project stalled.

The project has been resurrected on the basis of dealing with the remediation of the site and development of a park as a core project. Replacement car parking is to be provided off site and funded from the Jersey Car Parking - Trading Account.

The project is to be managed by the Transport and Technical Services Department and a project group is in place.

Approval to transfer allocated capital budgets ('Heads of Expenditure') lies with the Minister for Treasury and Resources not the States as a whole (see extract from Financial Direction 3.6 below):

Transfers between capital heads of expenditure

Approval of non-contentious transfers of up to £100,000 is delegated to the Treasurer of the States, or in his absence another person nominated by the Treasurer of the States.

All other transfers between existing capital heads of expenditure require the approval of the Minister for Treasury and Resources.

Transfers to new capital heads of expenditure require the approval of the Council of Ministers and the Minister for Treasury and Resources.

Discussion

Budgets allocated for the project currently site in a number of Departments and it is intended to bring these together under a new capital Head of Expenditure under Transport and Technical Services. To achieve this, the following budget transfer (and transfer of associated expenditure) is required from the Planning and Environment Department:

£300,000 (spend to date £300,967.87) from Planning and Environment (Business Unit IXB009) to the Transport and Technical Services Department

The impact of these budget transfers and future allocations is as follows:

Source	Budget	Expenditure	Balance Available
Chief Minister’s.	£925,000	£7,642	£917,358
Planning & Environment	£300,000	£300,968	-£968
Property Holdings	£493,201	£199,953	£293,248
Capital Reserve	£400,000	-	£400,000
2009 Capital Allocation	£2,000,000	-	£2,000,000
2011 Capital Allocation	£500,000		£500,000
Total Available	£4,618,201	£508,563	£4,109,638

Estimated costs for the remediation works and development of the park are being prepared to present to the Council of Ministers at its meeting in October.

Recommendation

That the Minister approves the following budget transfers (and associated expenditure) to a new capital Head of Expenditure in the Transport and Technical Services Department:

£300,000 from Planning and Environment (Business Unit IXB009)

Reason (s) for Decision

To provide the Transport and Technical Services Department with the budget to undertake the Town Park project.

Action Required

The Finance Director:

to request the Minister for the Treasury and Resources Department to approve the capital transfer as referred to in this report.

Written by:	Ellen Littlechild, Finance Director
Approved by:	Director of Planning
Attachment: