FACTS & Frequently Asked Questions
Why are the lights on at our new build site
when no workers are there?
Hallams, the contractors gave the following response:-
We pay for the electrics (currently off generator) and
the lights are PIR activated for security. We also had full time
security over Christmas when the lights were on full
time.
Is the council using alternative greener methods to
produce electricity in the new Council offices?
It is acknowledged that the full
range of green technologies has not been adopted although it is
important that the reasoning behind this is understood.
There is the commercial standpoint in
terms of payback periods. Although the increasing cost of
fuel will improve these over time many technologies such as
photovoltaic’s currently have a payback beyond their life.
This is a symptom in part of the high capital investments
required.
In demonstrating value for money to the
taxpayer consideration must be given to such analysis and although
increasing costs can be modelled this introduces an element of risk
to any investment.
As has been reported the vast majority of
the investment for the development has been funded through an
insurance settlement. Which provides funding for a
like-for-like replacement and thus green technologies would not
fall within this criteria.
This aside in designing the building the
introduction of green technologies was considered from a commercial
standpoint to determine if it could be funded as part of the global
insurance settlement. Through this process the introduction
of solar panels to heat the water required in the building has
proved viable with a payback of less than 10 years.
In addition to the solar hot water the
building itself has been designed to be green and minimise the
energy it consumes. So for example the building is naturally
ventilated eliminating air conditioning in the open plan
offices. With the orientation of the building itself
minimising the heat gain and loss and in turn the need to heat or
cool to maintain comfortable working temperatures.
So on the surface it may seem minimal
consideration has been given to being green but in designing
any new building this is unavoidable and something the project team
have been fully engaged with our architects and engineers.
The energy efficiency rating of the
building, similar to that you may see on white goods such as
fridges, is expected to be a B.
Will the new Council offices have a sprinkler
system?
Archial, the Council's appointed design team for the project
gave the following response:-
In our experience this suggestion has been
explored on a number of projects including commercial office
buildings for international operators such as Marconi and local
authorities. Generally the end conclusion has been that when
balancing risk and cost it has never been a viable option for the
following reasons:
1) The physical implications on the site
planning has been significant with the requirement for sprinkler
tanks etc having a major visual impact on the projects.
2) Costs of the sprinkler system have
generally vastly exceeded the savings in insurance premium as a
result of having them.
3) Sprinklers do not prevent full loss in
the result of a fire, often the implications of the sprinklers
activating will have a significant business impact as it is likely
that furniture, soft furnishings, decoration and IT will all be
effected by the activation, the main thing it protects is the
building fabric.
4) Accidental or activation through
malfunction can have a similar effect to the above and this has
happened in the past.
5) Key areas of risk in the building will
be protected ie comms rooms and other areas of risk can be reviewed
as the project progresses for example sealed fire resisting post
boxes can be considered with built in extinguishers.
6) The installation of a sprinkler system
means that supply pipes will need to be passed through the raised
access floors with power and data, and whilst some systems in there
dormant state will sit dry this may present an additional
risk.
The Building will be designed in
accordance with the Building Regulations and therefore guidance
contained within the Approved Document B and/or the current British
Standards where appropriate, will be followed.
In accordance with the Approved
Documents, the building is considered to be in Purpose Group 3 -
Office.
Due to the height of the building, in
accordance with the Statutory Guidance documents, sprinklers are
not required in order to satisfy the functional requirements. Note
that sprinklers would be required if the building height exceeded
30m.
Where is the Town Station site located?
The Burton Street site is situated
to the south of Melton Mowbray town centre and market
square and is shown on the map below. The site benefits from being
directly adjacent to the railway station, which is located
directly to the south.
How will the Town Station site be
developed?
The site is really important and any development needed o be
given careful consideration. The site already had a valid planning
permission for retail, office and housing development. As the
Council now owns the entire site it can control development and
take these issues into account more than a developer would
necessarily wish to do.
Who will be sharing the Town Station site with
you?
We have an agreement with the County
Council and Probation Service. Others including the PCT,
voluntary sector and Police looking at the options for
joint-working in terms of office requirements. We would
anticipate that they will fully fund their own space requirements,
probably through rental payments, and that this will not be a
pressure on our budget.
The access in and out of the site is not very good, how
will this be improved?
As part of the planning application a
junction improvement scheme was submitted including analysis of
traffic flows. This identified that the impact on traffic
flows would not be significantly above those already
occurring. In order to improve the access in and out, a new
access road is being built and this involves building on the
land we have purchased to enable an improved access to the
railway station, Town Estate car park, Council Offices and Pay
and Display car park.
We have already had informal feedback from
our Public Consultation group that this is an area that the public
will be particularly interested in and we will provide detailed
information as it becomes available.
What is the future of the Pay &
Display car park on the site?
This would, in the majority, be retained
at this current time.
What about the land conditions, highways, access,
archaeological site sensitivity, accessibility,
flooding?
A detailed report was produced by Maber Associates Ltd.
(architects) looking at these issues in detail and which has been
considered by Councillors. This covered highways, planning,
flooding, archaeology, site investigations, ecological issues etc.
Download the feasibility report here:
Further detailed reports were submitted as part of the
planning application, click here for more information.
Following completion of the Demolition the Main Contractor has
now been appointed and has commenced on site.
What sort of issues have you had to deal with as part of
the design?
The site has natural constraints and issues associated with
it such as:
1. Its orientation meaning that the southern side most
exposed to the sun will probably require solar protection and the
northern aspect could therefore accomodate more glazing.
2. Mucky Lane has lots of services that run
underneath it that we are not proposing to move and this
limits the extent of the site for development directly next to the
railway station.
3. In modern design terms you first need to decide how to
cool a building eg passively or mechanically
(airconditioning). The Council wishes to have as efficient a
building as possible with low running costs and this supports a
more passive cooling system.
Many of these issues were explored as part of our inital
consultation process
here.
Frequently Asked Questions
(Archive)
Please contact us at parkside@melton.gov.uk
if you would like any additional information.
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