New “More 4 Less” What could the Bay have used millions on instead?
Nick Bye said the promenade was beyond repair. However Mayor Oliver ended up repairing and it certainly looks much better than before. The only issue is – at what costs was that achieved and whether something else could have been done at a fraction of the cost?
In the end over £1.65m was borrowed to repair what was known as the Banjo in Princess Gardens, Torquay – the two tier concrete structure between the Pavilion and Theatre that had remained closed for some years – a truly unsightly picture for a Premier Resort.
Council was warned that the associated repayments were not in-built into the budget and we estimate the council now paying around £100,000 per annum to cover the loan.
The scheme demolished the top tier and repaired the bottom, giving a guaranteed life span of 25 years or until the next generation before looking at repairs again.
Alternatively it could simply have been demolished for under £100,000. A staggering £2.4m difference and now, £100,000 would be available per annum.
What could that money be used for instead? Where could the money used for the repair been used for instead at the time? Pavilion – Oldway – Brixham Central Car Park?
MANAGING the budget involves a 3 pronged attack. One prong attacking wastage and looking at how to do things better for less.
You have heard of the Ghost Busters. I would introduce the Waste Busters. A team that goes through the finances and interacts with the world to find savings.
