Agenda item

A tour of Hunstanton Heritage Gardens had been conducted before the meeting.  The Panel was provided with a presentation on the Hunstanton Heritage Gardens, as attached.  The following points were highlighted:

·        The project was complex and involved a lot of sub-contractors.

·        The children’s play area had been well received and had increased footfall in the area.

·        The Bronze Henry Le Strange statue had now been installed.

·        The Butterfly Shelters had been restored at the Heritage Lottery Funds request.  Work to the shelters would be finished shortly along with landscaping and pathways.  Frosted glass panels and railway posters would also be installed to the shelters.

·        There was a three year activity programme to go alongside the Capital Works to run to 2019.  Lots of different activities had been planned to encourage residents and visitors to become involved in the Gardens.  The Activity Programme would be monitored and feedback would be provided to the Heritage Lottery Fund.  A further visitor survey would be conducted in 2018 to determine if footfall in the area and visitor satisfaction had increased.

·        Work was slightly behind schedule and this was because of vandalism, weather and additional restoration works which had been required.  Works were scheduled to be completed within the next few weeks.

·        Project costs were included in the presentation.

The Chairman thanked the Regeneration Programmes Manager and Regeneration Project Officer for the tour and presentation and invited questions and comments from the Panel, as summarised below.

In response to a question from Baron Chenery of Horsbrugh, the Panel was informed that the Henry Le Strange Statue was hollow Bronze.  Contributions for the statue had been received from local donations, Le Strange Estate, Heritage Lottery Fund and the Borough Council.

The Portfolio Holder for Culture, Heritage and Health, Councillor Nockolds explained that the project had been complex and although some residents would have preferred the project to be carried out in phases, she felt that it was important to get it all done in one season.  Councillor Nockolds commented that the Gardens looked good, would last for many years, be well maintained and would be a real benefit for residents and visitors.  She thanked the officers involved in the project for their hard work.

The Executive Director explained that without the funding from the Heritage Lottery Fund it was likely that the Council would have had to fund comprehensive maintenance and capital works of this scale to the Gardens in the future.

The Portfolio Holder for Culture, Heritage and Health, Councillor Nockolds commented that the Activities Coordinator had worked hard and engaged with visitors and residents.  She had also worked to bring the Soap Box Derby back into Hunstanton.

Councillor Howland referred to the costs for professional fees.  The Regeneration Programmes Manager explained that the costs included a range of specialist skills including landscape architects, conservation architects, quantity surveyor and structural engineers.  It was a team of around eight people and their support staff and was less than 10% of the overall capital cost of the works.  She explained that a requirement of the Heritage Lottery Funding was to demonstrate that a good standard, professional team would be involved in the project.  The Executive Director explained that a competitive tender exercise had to be demonstrated to the Heritage Lottery Fund, which was not just price driven, but also took into account quality and past experience.

Councillor Bird addressed the Panel under Standing Order 34.  He asked for clarification on the role of the Coastal Community Team in the project.  The Regeneration Programmes Manager explained that the Regeneration Project Team, who had evolved into the Coastal Community Team, had initiated the project and had been overseeing progress.

In response to a question from Councillor Howland, the Regeneration Programmes Manager explained that snagging would be carried out, before final sign off by the Clerk of Works.

In response to questions from the Chairman, the Regeneration Programmes Manager confirmed that work to the Butterfly Shelters should be completed within the next two to three weeks.  The interpretation package included eleven interpretation boards and two totem columns and would include information on the ecology, geology, history and heritage of the area.

RESOLVED: The update was noted.