Trafford Council spent £153m on property in Greater Manchester in 2019 – here’s where the cash went

Trafford Council spent £153.4 million on purchasing and investing in property in 2019 as part of its finance strategy.

The authority has spent the cash in the hope of bringing in greater returns for council tax payers through interest on loans and from profits on any future sales of property assets, as well as supporting ongoing regeneration across Trafford.

Some of the money used to make these investments has come from a central government borrowing fund which offers low interest rates for local authorities and encourages them to invest in property.

The rest has come from within the council’s budget using council tax.

In total, Trafford has purchased five properties this year for a total of £50.8 million and made loans as part of its property investment strategy totalling £102.6 million.

The council bought the following properties in 2019:

• Lacey Street Royal Mail depot, Stretford (bought for £800,000)
• Stretford Mall (bought as part of £50 million deal with developers Bruntwood: £25 million to cover the council’s half of the purchase, a further £25 million was loaned to Bruntwood to cover their half of the costs)
• Stamford Quarter shopping centre, Altrincham (bought as part of above £50 million Bruntwood deal)
• Clarendon House (bought as part of above £50 million Bruntwood deal)
• Sainsbury’s Altrincham (bought for £25million)

The council loaned money to owners or developers for the following properties:

• CIS Tower, Miller Street, Manchester city centre (loan of £60 million to owners for refinancing and refurbishing the building)
• Four office buildings off Albert Square, Manchester city centre (loan of £17.6 million as property investment)

• Stamford Quarter, Altrincham (£50 million loaned to Bruntwood developers as part of £100million purchase deal)
• Stretford Mall (£50 million loaned to Bruntwood developers as part of above deal)
• Clarendon House (£50 million loaned to Bruntwood developers as part of above deal)

The grand total of more than £203 million spent this year doesn’t include a further £2.5 million loaned to Trafford Leisure to support two leisure centres in Altrincham and Urmston.

The council made clear that the loan wasn’t part of the council’s investment strategy, but to support the centres and give staff their first pay increase in years.

Other ongoing development projects that the council has on its books include the former Kellogg’s factory site in Stretford that was bought for £12 million back in September 2017.

The site is expected to include 750 homes, an 100-bedroom hotel and a primary school once development work is finished.

Plans to merge two primary schools, knock down their 100-year-old building and replace it with a brand new 21-classroom school in Altrincham are also on the cards.

The council is still in talks with Stamford Park Infants and Junior Schools after an offer of £8 million to build a new school on the site was turned down twice.

A spokesperson for Trafford Council said: “Trafford Council purchased or invested in a number of properties in 2019 as part of our ongoing investment strategy.

“This strategy supports our regeneration priorities, such as Stretford Mall, and provides an income stream which funds critical Trafford Council services.”