Centre buyer frustrated by council delay

The reluctance of Dundee City Council to approve the purchase of the Wellgate Centre is frustrating the shopping hub’s buyer.

Belgate Estates, which bought the ailing centre for £1.4 million, has been unable to move in due to a delay in paperwork being signed off by the local authority.

Belgate’s property and asset manager, Stephen Hill, said: “We are incredibly frustrated with the time it has taken the council to approve the transfer of the head lease.

“We were geared up to take ownership of the centre at the start of the year when a significant amount of diligence was undertaken and we feel there has been a huge amount of momentum lost the longer this has dragged on.”

The new buyer of Dundee’s Wellgate Shopping Centre says it is “incredibly frustrated” by the council’s reluctance to approve the deal.

Belgate Estates, which bought the ailing centre for £1.4 million, has been unable to move in due to a delay in paperwork being signed off by Dundee City Council.

It is understood the delay by the local authority, which owns the land, has made it difficult for the firm to secure new tenants for the centre’s many empty units.

The council, meanwhile, says Belgate must “demonstrate that it can honour all the obligations under the lease”.

It was sold at auction by one of the largest wealth management companies in the UK, St James’s Place, almost a year ago in December 2021.

Belgate had hoped to bring in a number of new businesses early in 2022.

Belgate’s property and asset manager Stephen Hill said: “We are incredibly frustrated with the time it has taken the council to approve the transfer of the head lease.

“We were geared up to take ownership of the centre at the start of the year when a significant amount of diligence was undertaken and we feel there has been a huge amount of momentum lost the longer this has dragged on.”

He added that the firm has made much faster progress in Falkirk after purchasing the town’s Howgate Shopping Centre in May.

Managers have already started making improvements there including bringing in new businesses.

He said: “We are already well under way (at the Howgate) with a plan similar to what we would envisage initially for Wellgate and have developed good relations with Falkirk Council and would hope for a similar relationship with Dundee City Council in due course.

“We are a hands-on owner and proven asset manager based in Scotland and with our experience of managing similar assets consider that we are well suited to re-energise Wellgate which, in turn, is going to introduce new offerings and create jobs and be a boost to the local economy in these increasingly challenging times.”

St James’s Place had bought it for £31m in 2011 but made the decision last year to sell the centre.

It comes after the council produced “conceptual” drawings illustrating what the Murraygate could look like if the Wellgate was flattened.

They were produced as part of its document Dundee 2050: Our Vision for the Future, which set out ideas on how to tackle shop closures and stimulate debate.

A Dundee City Council spokesperson said: “The council has a statutory duty to secure best value in all property transactions, and can only accept a request to transfer a lease if the potential new tenant can demonstrate that it can honour all the obligations under the lease.

“The council has responded formally to the centre owners, but cannot discuss any matters relating to its commercial dealings with any third party.”

“We are a hands-on owner and proven asset manager