Church Meeting 16th July

At the regular Church Meeting in July most of the time was allocated to dealing with the redevelopment scheme and as many members as possible were asked to make a special effort to attend. In the event 24 members were present and a number sent their apologies due to sickness, holidays etc. In the absence on holiday of Pat Hall the meeting was chaired by Tom Lockett and held in the Church for easy access. Guy Morfett from the Synod Office at Croydon was present and Tom Roberts, our architect, attended in order to present the details of the scheme.

Tom Lockett began by outlining the purpose of the meeting which was to take a vote on whether the members wished to go ahead with the plan or not. It was emphasised that because of all the uncertainty, which would be explained later, the plans may come to nothing. Essentially it is intended to demolish the whole of the Church building; student accommodation is planned for approximately the rear two thirds with a new Church to be built at the front. The student accommodation needs to be ready by September 2009 and the new Church building should also be ready at about the same time. Future plans may include Unity Hall but this is not certain at the moment and negotiations will continue.

Guy Morfett said the timescale was extremely tight and there were still several hurdles to overcome. A Charity Valuation had been carried out at very short notice and initial contact had been made with the Charity Commission, which must be satisfied that we are selling part of the site for an appropriate sum. This process takes time and it is by no means certain that all the necessary actions can take place in the time available. The Property Committee at Synod also have to agree but at a previous meeting they had given permission for Guy to proceed with the negotiations. Also, the Trustees from Southern Synod must give their consent. Finally, of course, the property developer must offer a sum of money which will be sufficient for the new building without leaving the Church in debt.

Tom Roberts presented the plans with drawings and photographs of similar designs and explained the role of Richard Horden, the eminent architect who designed the Queen’s Stand. It will be a modern structure with extensive use of glass allowing as much light as possible into the Church. The external design reflects the shape of the earlier eighteenth century Church with classical square lines. Tom is working with the property developer to apply for Planning Permission from Epsom & Ewell Borough Council by the end of July. A model of the proposed building showed clearly what was planned, although some of the internal detail will be finalised later.

A number of questions were asked and comments made and as far as possible answers were given to the satisfaction of members. The plans were generally thought to provide an exciting and beautiful building which would serve the Church well.

The Resolution was then read to the meeting by the Chairman:

“We are resolved that part of the site of the existing Church be sold to Woodgavil Group (property developers) who plan to demolish the Church and build student accommodation for UCCA. A new Church and Meeting Rooms etc. will be built on approximately the front third of the site using the proceeds of the sale. The basic design will be as proposed and presented to this meeting by Tom Roberts subject to modifications as the project proceeds. In a second phase, Unity Hall may also be offered for sale or lease to Woodgavil Group or any other interested party. All necessary approvals and consents will be sought and obtained as required.”

The meeting voted with a show of hands and the Resolution was passed unanimously without abstentions.

The Steering Committee for this project now has a clear mandate from Church Meeting to take the matter further, working with Guy Morfett and Tom Roberts as appropriate and reporting back to Church Meeting as it proceeds.