Alderley Edge Parish Council has authorised the appropriation of land which they own at Talbot Road in order to facilitate the redevelopment of the land to create a new medical centre for the village - for which planning permission has been granted.
Councillors agreed to this action at their meeting on Monday, 12th January, as a safeguard incase the relevant land, shown edged red on the plan above, has not already been acquired by the Parish Council for planning purposes following the acquisition of the entire Festival Hall site from Macclesfield Borough Council in March 2009.
In order to use land for a purpose other than the one for which it was acquired, the land must be appropriated for a different use. Appropriation is a statutory process, which allows the Parish Council to transfer property within its ownership from one use to another.
In order to do so, the Parish Council determined that the land is no longer needed for the original purposes for which it was acquired. The relevant part of the Parish Council's land currently comprises an area which they agreed is no longer required for use as part of the main Festival Hall building, including Parish Council offices and meeting rooms, or as an entrance to the hall.
Cllr Mike WIlliamson, Chairman of Alderley Edge Parish Council, explained "The Festival Hall was transferred to the Parish Council by MBC on the 31st March 2009. We are building a Medical Centre on part of that land. Because this is a change of use, we have been advised by our solicitors that appropriation of the land provides protection to the Parish Council in regard to that change.
"The Parish Council considers the land to be better used for the provision of the medical centre, contributing to the social well being of the village, therefore we have appropriated it under powers granted to us, as a Local Authority, within the 1972 Local Government Act.
"This allows appropriation, where there is such a social benefit and where planning approval has been obtained. The protection is against any interested party which might dispute the change from community use as a hall; in this case, of course, the hall remains, although in an altered state."
