A car park, industrial units and several regeneration sites could all be sold off as Somerset Council seeks to balance its books.

The council set its annual budget in February on the basis of selling off large amounts of its land, property and assets.

The government has allowed the council to use the proceeds from these sales to fund day-to-day services (under a ‘capitalisation directive’), with £36.9m of receipts being built into the 2024/25 budget.

The council’s corporate and resources scrutiny committee agreed a provisional list of key sites which will be sold off on Wednesday (July 24), with a final decision expected to be taken later in the summer.

Where an asset is sold, all existing leases will remain in place under the same terms unless otherwise stated – meaning the businesses and groups currently based on site will have a new landlord but not have to relocate.

The sites which are on the chopping block are as follows:

  • Land at Manor Farm, Lopen: around 50 acres of this farm holding, a short distance from the A303, will be retained and let for agricultural purposes, with the remainder being sold off. Planning permission is in place to convert two agricultural buildings to houses,  with a further application to convert traditional listed buildings within the site into five properties. Discussions are ongoing with Lopen Parish Council regarding the use of part of the land for “potential amenity land”
  • Land at Evercreech: this unspecified parcel is expected to be purchased by an affordable housing provider. Discussions are ongoing between the provider and the council’s planning team regarding the mixture of housing intended for the site, with any sale being completed once planning permission has been secured
  • Down’s Farm, Donyatt: the current tenant at this farm near Donyatt Halt (on the Stop Line Way) has expressed an interest in purchasing the farmstead and part of the current holding at full market price. The council will retain the remainder of the farm, which will remain in active agricultural use
  • Market House, Taunton: the grade two listed Market House lies in the heart of Taunton town centre and is currently the base for Taunton’s tourist information offices. Somerset Council and Taunton Town Council (which funds the information service) are discussing relocation of these services to a different location – though the existing lease may be retained as part of the sale of this asset on the open market
  • Unit 4, Blackdown Business Park, Sylvan  Road, Wellington: this industrial unit is currently let to Fleetwood Fox, which designs and produces rugs and carpets. The council intends to dispose of the unit on the open market via auction, with the existing tenancy agreement remaining in place – meaning the company will not need to find new premises
  • Roughmoor Enterprise Centre, Roughmoor, Williton: this industrial state near Williton’s heritage railway station comprises 15 small units, the majority of which are currently let. Because it does not form part of the council’s rural enterprise centre network, the council does not currently provide any economic development support to these tenants. It is proposed that the buildings be sold on the open market, with the existing tenants being unaffected by any change in ownership
  • Barns Close Industrial Estate, Barns Close, Dulverton: this small industrial estate within the Exmoor National Park comprises four units, and is currently let to two tenants. The site is expected to be sold off at auction, with the existing tenants remaining in place
  • Yeovil Small Business Centre, Memorial Road, Yeovil: This small business park near Yeovil Town Football Club comprises two blocks of light industrial units within the Houndstone Business Park, which was acquired by South Somerset District Council. The buildings have “no active economic development value” and are expected to be sold on the open market
  • Land at Splatt Farm, Splatt Lane, Spaxton: the council sold off the farmhouse and farm buildings in 2020, with permission being secured to renovate the properties in the same year. The 87 acres retained by the council have “limited use for new entrant farmers” and cannot be used for phosphate mitigation or biodiversity improvements. The land is expected to be sold on the open market
  • Land at Thorney Marsh, Castle Cary: the council currently holds around 92 acres of land, though it does not own the adjoining farmhouse. Around five acres to the north is expected to be retained for phosphate mitigation, with the remainder (which has no “strategic or operational use”) will be sold off on the open market
  • Land at Forton, Chard: this unspecified holding of 92 acres lies at the edge of Chard “has little potential for redevelopment opportunities”, with the council having previously sold off with the associated grade two listed farmhouse and associated buildings. The land is expected to be sold on the open market, with the council believing it has “limitations for new entrants to farming” and has little prospect for phosphate mitigation or biodiversity schemes
  • Leaze Farm, Wharfside, Lympsham: the house and farm buildings at this council holding near Weston-super-Mare are being returned to the council following the conclusion of the current tenancy. The council intends to secure planning permission to redevelop the properties, after which they will be sold on the open market – though most of the land will be retained
  • Cornhill Complex, Cornhill, Bridgwater: this grade one listed building in the heart of Bridgwater town centre (located on the Celebration Mile) is currently home to the Prezzo restaurant and an indoor market comprising 13 units. The council intends to sell the property on the open market, with discussions with Bridgwater Town Council being undertaken to protect the historic building and the market’s character
  • C Block, County Hall, The Crescent, Taunton: the council indicated in March that it would be selling off this part of County Hall for redevelopment as part of its ongoing property rationalisation programme. Officers are already marketing the property, seeking a buyer who will redevelop it into residential accommodation for key workers
  • Part of Firepool site, Canal Road, Taunton: a small part of the Firepool regeneration site is “considered to be ready for disposal” – specifically the small section between Canal Road and the A3087 Trenchard Way. This section is identified within the Firepool masterplan for delivering student accommodation, with the council seeking to sell off the land by the time the northern boulevard through the site has been delivered
  • Fiveways Resource Centre,  A37 Ilchester Road, Yeovil: this complex was used as a day centre until the summer of 2019, providing more than 2,300 sq m of employment and light industrial space. A sale has been agreed subject to planning permission, with the developer seeking to redevelop the buildings into supported living units
  • 55 North Street, Wellington: this building is currently a temporary home for Wellington Library while the council completes a £900,000 refurbishment of the Fore Street site. After this work is completed by the end of the summer (and the library has reopened), the North Street building will be offered on the open market or potentially via auction
  • Boden Mill, A358 Silver Street, Chard: This historic former lace factory, which dates back to 1820, is grade two listed and has seen a variety of uses since the factory closed in the 1930s. The building was included within the Chard regeneration scheme pursued by South Somerset District Council, which saw the creation of Chard Leisure Centre and numerous improvements to the wider town centre. However, the building was removed from thr scheme in August 2021 due to a lack of funding and objections from Historic England. With “limited prospect of regeneration of the site in the short to medium term”, the council intends to sell the site on the open market for redevelopment so that it no longer has to pay the costs of maintaining the building in its current condition
  • The Boden Centre, Boden Street, Chard: this community building at the corner of Boden Street and Mill Lane, comprising nearly 400 sq m of space, is currently home to the Chard Community Hub. The council intends to sell the site on the open market – though there are no signs the hub will have to leave as part of this disposal
  • Land near Hill View School, Ash: the council owns several parcels of land between Ash and the A303, part of which has been used to construct the new Hill View School for special needs children. Two parcels of land, declared surplus by the council’s asset management group, are expected to be sold off on the open market
  • 11 South Street, Wiveliscombe: this property has formed part of the academy lease with Kingsmead School since 2011 and was once used to provide accommodation for the school caretakers. The property is currently vacated and has been surrendered back to the council by the academy. The building will be sold on the open market because it is too costly to remodel it for a children’s home or similar facility
  • High Street car park, Old Pig Market, Taunton: this car park (also known as the Mary Street car park) has been subject to antisocial behaviour issues and was damaged in a recent fire. The council’s parking services team believe that parking demand in this area can be met by the adjacent Orchard Street multi-storey car park, allowing this car park to be sold off. Early discussions are under way about the prospect of demolishing the site and replacing it with new housing

The sale of these 22 sites is expected to generate between £17m and £21m for the council over the next 12 to 18 months.

Deputy leader Liz Leyshon said: “Anything that would be declared surplus would have to go through the asset management group.

“This is us trying to be more transparent in the work we have to do to try and create a more viable council.”

Councillor Simon Coles (whose Taunton East division lies near the High Street car park site) said he hoped that falling interest rates would allow the council to invest in refurbishing other assets with a view to achieving a better price down the road.

He said: “We are conscious that interest rates are starting to come down, and may be falling quite considerably by the end of this financial year.

“I want to be reassured that we are looking at that, so that where this is an opportunity to invest a little money in these sites to generate more income, we can do that.”

The council’s executive committee is expected to approve the final list of disposals when it meets on August 7.

Council leader Bill Revans has written to prime minister Keir Starmer and communities secretary Angela Rayner, requesting urgent reform of local government and a meeting to discuss the council’s financial position.

He said: “We have worked incredibly hard to reduce our spending and have never shied away from taking difficult decisions to find savings across all service areas.

“We’ve worked in partnership with city, town and parish councils to protect services and assets as far as possible, but we continue to face heartbreaking decisions that will have a visible and lasting impact on our communities.”