New i360 Owner To Fund Council Projects

The i360 tower and Deputy Leader Jacob Tailor

The i360’s new owner has offered to pay a percentage of its annual income towards council projects.

A confidential report to Brighton and Hove City Council cabinet, released as part of a freedom of information request states the attraction’s new owner Nightcap Limited will pick one area to support financially every year based on a short list provided by the council.

When the tower first secured planning permission in 2006, a legal agreement known as a section 106 between the council, the landowner The West Pier Trust, and i360 Brighton Limited included one per cent of the net ticket revenue going to the council for environmental renewal, maintenance and improvement works.

During the cabinet discussions about writing off i360 Brighton Limited’s £51 million debt to the council in January, deputy leader councillor Jacob Taylor was not certain the previously agreed percentage of ticket income would apply to the new owner.

At the time, Councillor Taylor confirmed negotiations were under way for a potential revenue share but urged people to accept the £51 million owed by i360 Brighton Limited was “essentially gone”.

On Tuesday 13 May, Councillor Taylor said:

“We were pleased to be able to secure a commitment from the Brighton i360 to pay the council one per cent of the revenue coming from the tower. We wish them well and have full faith in them as operators.

“Where this money is spent will be agreed by the council and the Brighton i360 and, while it is unlikely to be a decision which goes before cabinet, we will make sure the process is open and transparent and that residents are fully aware of the difference this income makes.”

Councillor Taylor also confirmed the tendering process is underway for an independent investigation into the decision-making process that resulted in the council agreeing to broker a loan with the Public Works Loan Board.

The council still owes the board £32 million or about £2.2 million a year over the next 16 years until 2041.

The additional £19 million of the i360 debt includes interest owed to the council.

Councillor Taylor said:

“Given the colossal amount of money that was lost because of Green Party and Tory decisions, we are keen to discover how and why the initial decision on funding was taken.

“This is about learning lessons for the council in how it makes large capital decisions.

“As a reminder – Labour councillors argued against the huge funding package and voted against it in 2014.

"Labour councillors Warren Morgan and Les Hamilton were, unfortunately, proved right when they warned it was an unsustainable amount of money to lend.

“The scope of our planned investigation has been prepared, and we are now in the procurement phase.

"As a piece of commissioned work, we must go through the proper tender process and make sure the investigation is not only at a level we and residents expect, but also delivers value for money.

“This is not a service we regularly commission, so it has taken some time to fully research and understand the market. We hope to be able to confirm the timelines and parameters of the investigation shortly.”

Securing business rates was one of the reasons given for ensuring the i360s sale went through.

The freedom of information request by journalist John Keenan also noted that Nightcap asked for 75 per cent business rate relief in the first year of operation but this was turned down, according to the report.

The financial statement said there is a cap of £65,000 on business rate relief which is given to for 84 local charities.

Nightcap’s request would come to £100,000 and was described as “potentially expose the council to further requests without a consistent policy”.

Nightcap bought the i360 for £150,000 from the administrators Interpath Limited and has invested approximately £400,000 in getting the venue operating again.

The i360 ceased trading in December when the company filed for administration, leaving more than 100 people jobless just before Christmas.

Nightcap’s spokesperson declined to comment on the agreement with the council.