Opposition Lib Dem councillors have expressed concern at the news that the Far East Consortium (FEC) have sold Hornsey Town Hall to the Cayman Islands-based AMTD Group overnight and what it means for the future of the project. Writing just over a week ago in the Ham & High, the Labour Leader of the Council, Peray Ahmet, had given her assurance that talk of a sale was “purely speculative,” indicating that the council were unaware of the sale.
Haringey Council sold the town hall on a long lease nearly a decade ago, overruling Lib Dem opposition, in order for the historic building to be redeveloped as a hotel and housing, for just £3.5 million. At the time, FEC’s viability study into the sale of the site which included land to the rear of the town hall which has since been developed into 146 private flats, indicated that the town hall alone would be worth £27 million upon completion of the restoration works.
However, FEC have now sold the building for £47 million – a £20 million increase on their projected value from 2017, without having yet completed the community spaces they were supposed to be creating. This projected value was one of the key reasons that just 11 social housing units were provided on the site with FEC citing viability as to why they could not add more.
It is estimated that the combined value of the private flats and associated private assets on the former Hornsey Library car park to the rear of the Town Hall which was included as part of the £3.5million sale is now valued at well over £100 million.
The sale has taken place without any engagement with the local community.
Councillor Luke Cawley-Harrison, ward councillor for Crouch End, where the building is located, said:
“The confirmed figures for this sale are a huge embarrassment for Haringey Council who sold off this iconic building, and premium land to the rear for a paltry £3.5 million less than 10 years ago. Labour councillors promoted it as a great deal at the time – whilst Lib Dem Opposition councillors and local residents fought it knowing the opposite was true – and they have been proved right. FEC have cashed in mightily on what was a prized public asset, and so far the residents of Haringey have nothing to show for it.
“It is also deeply concerning that FEC have seemingly completed this sale without any awareness from Haringey Council and the Labour Leadership, who only recently claimed: “Hornsey Town Hall hasn’t been sold”, and despite industry insiders sharing news of the impending sale in December, with this being brought to the attention of the council.
“FEC, who have overrun the development by a number of years now, and have had a history of poor communication and a total lack of engagement with the community during the development, must explain themselves and exactly what is going on with the future of this building, and the council must also spell out how this appears to have happened without their knowledge and hold the new owners to account in delivering the community and arts centre everyone was promised. The community in Hornsey and Crouch End needs reassurance from all parties involved about the future of this historic building.”
