£100k increase in bill to knock down chapel

THE bill paid to demolish a disused methodist chapel in a council scheme to make way for new development has gone up by more than £100,000.

- By STUART ARNOLD

Redcar and Cleveland Council had to vary the terms of a contract issued to knock down Arlington Chapel and School House in Loftus because of “further requirements which could not be determined or actioned until after the site was cleared”.

This lifted the original contract award cost for the work from £241,856 to £344,065 - an increase of £102,209, according to a recently published spending decision document.

The plans were first signed off under the former independent/Liberal Democrat administration led by former council leader Mary Lanigan.

But local Labour figures such as her predecessor, former councillor Sue Jeffrey, expressed doubts about whether value for money was being achieved, while another ex-councillor and cabinet member Bob Norton said it was “nothing short of a vanity project”.

The council acquired the site, which had been vacant and in poor condition for many years, in November 2021 as it was deemed a “key regeneration gateway” within a masterplan to regenerate Loftus, and having the potential for new housing.