Council defends centre's £7m cost

COUNCILLORS have defended spending nearly 7m on a flagship customer service centre and new office space in Hull.

The Wilson building close to the city’s Guildhall is being modified to house the centre as well as “back-room” functions.

The development is part of a rationalisation programme which the authority has been pursuing for over a year, which involves cutting the number of properties it uses from 43 to 29.

It hopes to make money by selling seven buildings, including the Myton Centre and Kings Buildings on South Church Side, transferring another to the 400m Building Schools for the Future programme and terminating leases on eight others.

The council, which is facing cuts of more than 30m, says it will save in excess of 2m through a combination of sales, lease terminations and reduced overheads.

Liberal Democrat portfolio holder Coun Mike Ross said the new building – which replaces cramped facilities on George Street – would house all the people needed under the same roof to answer inquiries.

He said: “It would seem odd to take on another liability but just because of the financial position the council is in, it doesn’t mean everything stops.

“We still have to provide a good service and that includes how to deliver customer service.

“Something like 70 to 80 per cent of those working there have an HU postcode, so it’s local jobs for local people.”

According to council figures, 350,000 is being spent on furnishings and fittings, and part of the costs involve replacing single-glazed windows with double glazing to improve energy efficiency. The purchase of the site was a significant part of the 6.7m cost.

However Labour group leader Steve Brady said he wouldn’t accept the figures until he’d seen a full breakdown and thought the council should use more of its surplus furniture, rather than go for new.

“Why should I believe the figures when they’ve been getting so much wrong in the last few months?”, he asked.

The other buildings for sale include Trippet Street, Studley Street, numbers 93 to 95 Alfred Gelder Street and Dock Office Chambers.

The idea is that staff will be gathered into remaining buildings to improve integration of services. The authority has terminated leases on King William House and Essex House and so far 250 staff have moved to new locations.

King William House was costing the authority 260,000 a year, Essex House 37,000.

The new customer service centre, which is due to open in January, and is named after the city’s famous Wilson Line, the world’s largest privately-owned shipping company, will have 90 positions open to the public on each of its three floors, and 35 members of the public will be able to be seen at a time. There will be 12 public meeting rooms, seven booths, and 10 “pods” as well as five “meet and greet” areas.

Meanwhile Hull Coroner’s Court will soon be moving across the road to refurbished premises in the city’s Guildhall.

The council is spending 270,000 to improve the two courts in the former magistrates’ court. The coroner’s court, currently based at Essex House, has to hire facilities elsewhere when it hears jury inquests because there is no retiring room there for the jury members.

It means Coroner Geoffrey Saul is sometimes on one side of the city while a deputy hears another case at Essex House.

The move will bring them under one roof, with a choice of two courtrooms, converted from the original court numbers five and six.