County Hall to be remarketed

Plans to market County Hall for alternative uses have been agreed by councillors following a meeting of the Resources and Performance Cabinet Panel on Thursday 19th June.

County Hall has been marketed for employment use since September 2023, following the council’s decision to move most of its services from the Hertford site to its Stevenage Campus. To date there has been limited interest in securing the site for employment use, with most interested parties looking to rent small parts of the building. Thursday's decision now means that County Hall can also be marketed for alternative uses, including residential or commercial.

The previous cabinet decision to market County Hall for employment use included retention of the front part of the building, including the Council Chamber, for democratic purposes such as cabinet meetings. The new administration, in line with its plans to deliver a more effective council, has decided that the whole building will now be included in the marketing. This will save around £9.7m which was earmarked for splitting the front part of County Hall away from the rest of the building, reduce running costs, as well as increasing the total value of the potential sale of the site.

Work has now commenced to create new spaces to allow for democratic meetings to take place at the council’s Stevenage campus, bringing councillors closer to the officers responsible for delivering council services.

While there is a lot of fondness for County Hall and the history it represents, our plan for a fair deal for Hertfordshire hinges on our ability to make the county council more effective, in part by making better use of our existing resources. “In addition to finalising the future of County Hall, we have commissioned a review into our wider property portfolio which we expect a report on later this year. By looking at how we can best use our assets, particularly those that are not fully utilised we can reduce the need for borrowing, allowing us to invest in our vital services and deliver on our vision for a better Hertfordshire.

:: Cllr Chris Lucas, Executive Member for Resources & Performance

However, some councillors were sceptical about claims that the relocation of democratic services could be acheved by October.

The original part of County Hall is Grade II* listed, and contains many of the most significant heritage features. Potential bidders will be expected to demonstrate that their proposals will protect the building's heritage.

The county council will remain responsible custodians of County Hall while the bids are evaluated and any potential planning permissions are granted, during which time the site will continue to generate income for the council by being rented out for TV and film projects.

The decision is expected to be approved by the council's full Cabinet on Monday 23rd June.