Tax burden blamed for bulldozed buildings (From Echo)

Tax burden blamed for bulldozed buildings

12:40am Friday 19th September 2008 in Search By Geoff Percival

A CHANGE in Government policy, which means owners of empty offices and factories have to pay business rates, is leaving ugly demolition sites blighting the community.

Mike Lambert, chief executive of Renaissance Southend, has joined with others and written to Prime Minister Gordon Brown urging a change in the law, particularly in areas where regeneration is urgently needed.

Mr Lambert said empty buildings, such as Esplanade House in Southend, were being knocked down so owners wouldn’t have to pay the rates.

This was causing a problem as it left sites looking ugly.

If the buildings had been retained, they could have been let in the short term.

The problem is getting worse because fewer homes were being built, but developers were holding on to large brownfield sites.

Mr Lambert said: “The visual effect is very poor and these are premises which would otherwise have accommodated short-term lets to small businesses.

“Small businesses lose out and the developer is denied a rental income which could have offset the holding costs on the land until there is an upturn in the economy.”

Mr Lambert said the business rate situation was a factor in the demolition of both the former Ekco Works, in Priory Crescent, and Esplanade House in Eastern Esplanade.

Planning permission has still to be approved on Esplanade House and no application has been submitted yet to the council for the Ekco site.