We have sent the following as a letter to the "Cambridge Independent" for publication:

Last Wednesday the County Councils’ Assets and Procurement Committee rubber-stamped the disposal of the former Mill Road Library into the hands of a private commercial bidder.   At the insistence of the officers, the main details of the sale of Our Old Library were so shrouded in secrecy that elected committee members were left floundering.  Gagged, they were unable to find any form of words that they could use in public, that would not then put them in breach of confidentiality.    

Farcically, the local ward Councillor wasn’t even allowed to mention the name of the preferred bidder - Dan Ross. This although the County organised a “meet and greet” on 7th December (the day of the Mill Road Winter Fair) for local people to meet Dan Ross.  Equally farcically, this “meet and greet” was totally unpublicised.  Those very few who had a ‘need to know’ were unequivocally told to keep it secret! Officers claimed that 60 people came to that event, but did not tell the committee that this was in spite of officer insistence on the secrecy of the event.    

All consistent with the County’s disregard of the local community and community views regarding Our Old Library over decades.  

What local involvement there has been in the disposal of the former Library has been absolutely in spite of, rather than facilitated by, the County officers.  

At the October 2024 meeting of this committee, John was denied permission to present the change.org petition “please help us save the former Mill Road Library for our community” - which now has almost 3000 signatures.

Although the Winter Fair was very sadly cancelled due to the weather, we and a few other members of the community went along to the “meet and greet” to meet with Dan Ross.  There we were told by County Council officer, John Macmillan, that the terms of the sale were still “under discussion”.  

But as the report to the January committee meeting later revealed, Heads of Terms of the sale had been agreed, and signed, on 3rd December 2024 (this confirmed in the January committee meeting).  Four days before we spoke with John Macmillan on 7th December ’24.  Misleading, lies?

All the key information for the Committee was in confidential appendices.  It was only via a Councillor’s slip of the tongue that we heard that one of the sticking points was the cost of dealing with continuing dampness in the building.  What possible justification could there be for this being “confidential”?

It was particularly shocking to hear Cllr Steve Count, former leader of the Council, trying to score party points.  This when the deterioration of the building, all the consequent costs incurred, and the current disposal to a private buyer of a much-loved public listed building and Asset of Community Value, are all direct consequences of his Tory administration.  And their failure over nearly 2 decades to enforce the repair clause of the ICCA’s lease. 

But the present administration is also culpable, in having allowed their officers to perpetuate their excessive and needless secrecy, and totally commercially-minded approach.  County Councillors have allowed their officers to treat the disposal of this much-loved public asset as a purely commercial matter.  In so doing, the officers have been able to completely dismiss the community from any meaningful consideration within the bidding process.    

There has been a total contrast between approaches to the collapses respectively of the sales of Shire Hall, and of Our Old Library. In the case of Shire Hall, the recommendation was to reopen discussions with the second bidder.  But when Centre 33 withdrew from Our Old Library, instead going back to the second bidder (the Community Bid), the officers re-started the whole Asset of Community Value process including the 6-month moratorium.  Leaving Our Old Library empty and unused, when it could have already been occupied by the Community Bid.  Instead, its future remains on a knife-edge.  

The County officers have resolutely resisted providing any tangible way to ensure that the building benefits the community.  The matrix for selecting bids was totally weighted towards commercial bids.  The County officers (and consequently the County councillors) have been blind to the possibilities of safeguarding local community interests: both within what Dan Ross can do without having to apply to the City Council for planning permission, or if he decides to sell the building on. 

The only safeguard the officers suggested was a covenant restricting residential use. But residential use would require planning permission, a matter for the City Council, and in which the local community would then have full voice.  

The community could have been given first refusal on Our Old Library, if the sale falls through for any reason. This could have been via the Heads of Terms, or via a covenant.  But at consecutive Committee meetings the officers have said that neither covenants nor Heads of Terms are legally enforceable.  This is not correct, as we would have pointed out in a Public Question (due to illness we submitted it late, and we were not allowed to ask it). 

None of the Councillors called for first refusal for the community. 

The Committee approved the revised terms, requested by Dan Ross, unanimously.  This notwithstanding Cllr Count’s saying that the whole of the sale process has so been deeply flawed that he is making a complaint to the County’s Chief Executive.

Dan Ross now has no impediments to taking possession of this much-loved community building.   The County Council’s actions have left the Mill Road community completely high and dry.   At no stage have the County demonstrated any tangible benefit to the community from the sale of Our Old Library.  

We still don’t even know what the County agreed to sell Our Old Library for on 3rd December, let alone the revised terms.  When will the County Council come clean and tell us for how many pieces of silver they are selling Our Old Library out of public ownership?