No final decision made on new Saxonvale owner as rumours of cash offer circulate

NO final decision has been made on a key Frome regeneration site – despite local rumours that a cash offer to purchase it has been made.

The Saxonvale site in Frome town centre has seen the subject of two competing proposals for its regeneration – one from the Bristol-based Acorn Property Group, the other from the locally-based Mayday Saxonvale.
Somerset Council (which owns the site) indicated in early-January that it would be looking to sell off the land as part of a wider review of its land, buildings and property portfolio, intended to balance its budget and provide funding for front-line services.

Following the publication of Acorn’s amended proposals for the site, unconfirmed reports surfaced on social media that Mayday Saxonvale had already made a cash offer to buy the site. But the council has said that it had set no timescale for the sale of the site and would ensure due diligence was carried out to prevent taxpayers’ money from being wasted.

Cllr Shane Collins, whose Frome East division borders the 12-acre Saxonvale site, claimed that Mayday Saxonvale had made a cash offer for the site on social media.

Responding to Acorn’s new proposals, he said, “One would have thought Mayday’s cash offer would be preferable to Somerset Council instead of waiting years for the profit split from the sales and overage agreement with Acorn.”

Mayday Saxonvale said that no offer had yet been formally presented to the council, but that it hoped to make such an offer shortly as part of a formal bidding process.

In a joint statement, directors Damon Moore and Paul Oster said, “We continue to be engaged in ongoing discussions with Somerset Council regarding our proposal for Saxonvale.

“We expect to soon be engaging in a formal bidding process for the site, alongside the Acorn Property Group.”

Acorn recently submitted revised plans for its own Saxonvale regeneration scheme, increasing the amount of commercial space within the site following the judicial review in October 2023 which saw their planning permission quashed by the High Court. Local people had the opportunity to view the amended plans at a drop-in event which was held at Frome Town Hall on 6th March.

Messrs. Moore and Oster said that Mayday’s plans were still the only option which genuinely reflected local needs regarding housing, employment and other matters.

They said, “The sole reason they have increased commercial space is because the High Court ruled that their planning permission incorrectly interpreted the requirement in local planning policy.

“Acorn has described this ruling as centring on a ‘procedural technicality’. Misinterpreting policy is in no sense ‘procedural’.

“This misinterpretation related to 1,744 sq m of missing commercial space – which is equivalent to more than three Frome Town Halls – this has resulted in a significant amendment to their plan, and so was quite obviously not a ‘technicality’.

“The Mayday scheme remains the only plan with true ambition for an expanded town centre and expanded commercial space that is needed by our town, which is stated in the adopted Local Plan.”

Acorn has stated that the vision for the site would deliver significant improvements to local roads and schools, on top of the additional commercial space which was now included.

Strategic partnership manager Amy Proctor said, “We have always believed in our vision for Saxonvale which will transform this long-awaited redundant site, delivering much-needed housing, community and commercial space – in addition to £2m in Section 106 contributions, including more than £1m towards education.

“We will ensure the commercial space is sustainable, deliverable and a realistic offering for Frome, we will continue to engage with the local community and work towards a detailed application later in the year.”

The council declined to confirm the existence or status of any cash offer for the Saxonvale site, stating that proper processes would be followed to ensure value for money for the taxpayer regardless of which scheme was ultimately implemented.

A spokesperson said, “There are no formal time-scales in place for a resolution on the future of Saxonvale.

“We are exploring all available options for the site and is committed to a robust due diligence process to inform any decision.”