Why council docks building has not been sold yet

Gloucester City Council is in the process of selling its former officers at Herbert, Kimberley and Philpotts

A council says the need for a successful planning application and ongoing legal proceedings are just two of the reasons it is yet to sell its former offices.

Gloucester City Council (GCC) has been in the process of selling its site at Gloucester Docks since 2023.

The local authority left the Herbert, Kimberley and Philpotts (HKP) building in 2019 and the warehouses were earmarked for development.

The Local Democracy Reporting Service understands the site, which was previously planned to be turned into a hotel, could possibly be used to house students in the future.

Andrew Hearne, head of place at the council, told a meeting of GCC's cabinet on Wednesday: "The buyer in question has gone through a pre-application stage. They have feedback from the planning department.

"And, up until this point, they have now spent the last three months assessing the feedback that has come through the pre-app."

Mr Hearne added there had been some positive engagement over the past four to five weeks over how to take the scheme forward.

"It is not an easy application to go through which is why the application has taken longer.

"Because of the complexity of the building, it's a heritage building for one. So the design is slightly different.

"Plus the use and time to get to it is also complex," he said.

Mr Hearne added he was confident positive communication relating to the site would continue.