Image
Council officers were given the green light to progress with plans for the building, currently used as one of two main office bases for North Somerset Council. These include creating a plan to seek a developer for the site, and establishing a working group responsible for establishing and overseeing key priorities for redevelopment.
Cllr Ash Cartman, North Somerset Council’s Executive Member for Corporate Services, said: “The proposed working group will establish the key priorities for the redevelopment of the Castlewood site and will consider environmental, social, and financial considerations as well as the latest evidence and best practice.
“I’m pleased that councillors voted to support the suggested way forward for the future of Castlewood. This decision will inform the development of the outline planning application and procurement plan, key milestones in the project.”
The decision to gradually transition out of Castlewood was taken in May 2022 as part of the council’s review of how it uses its office space. The project looks to:
- enable new ways of working flexibly
- reduce costs
- reduce the council's carbon footprint
- provide homes and jobs that meet the needs of our communities
- deliver current government targets for housing supply, and
- help deliver other priorities such as improvements to schools, transport or leisure facilities.
You can watch the recording of yesterday’s council meeting on our YouTube channel at https://youtu.be/lK4oCSvpdoc. Minutes of the meeting are also available at www.n-somerset.gov.uk/meetings.