The leader of Lichfield District Council insists spending £1.9million to buy the city’s former police station is a “good investment” – despite it no longer being used for Friarsgate.
The site had been an integral part of the long-awaited city redevelopment project before it was axed last month after councillors refused to stump up the £49million needed to prop up the project.
Minutes from a previously private meeting of the council reveal that while putting a line through the Friarsgate scheme, councillors did approve a plan to increase the £1.8million budget for the old police station to £1.913million.
But despite their being no immediate plans to use the site, Cllr Wilcox defended the decision to purchase the land.
“The investment in the police station is a sound and good investment,” he said. “It is a key strategic site on prime land an acquisition to be proud of.
“The police had been due to take a unit in the new development and the change to the figures reflect that this will now not be happening.”
The minutes reveal that only Labour councillors Diane Evans, Sue Woodward, Eric Drinkwater and Sharon Banevicius voted against the proposals to increase the funding for the purchase of the police station.
Cllr Woodward, leader of the opposition group said: “I was surprised and disappointed that all the Conservative members present voted to actually increase the budget for the purchase of Lichfield police station even though no Plan B has yet been considered.
“When I contrast this with the amount of capital spent in Burntwood since 2015, it’s gobsmacking that all of the Tories representing Burntwood wards went along with it.”
