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A letter to the Observer

We have just sent a letter to the Chichester Observer to express our disquiet at some of the obvious failings in the selection process for the Butter Market redevelopment. Here is the gist of the contents:

The council’s recent decision regarding the redevelopment of the Chichester Butter Market has left us bitterly disappointed. Our proposal was openly supported by The Chichester Chamber of Commerce, the Chichester Society, Natwest Bank, the Royal Bank Of Scotland, the two largest organic producers in the Chichester area, many smaller local growers and local fisherman, the existing tenants,and numerous residents. We feel it offered the best combination of financial returns for the council, a variety of quality local produce for Chichester’s residents, and a fairer deal for local traders and producers.

What we find most disappointing, however, is that the council’s decision was based on what appears to be a flawed evaluation process. DTZ had been appointed to examine the separate proposals and recommend that which best met the council’s brief. Had our proposal been defeated by a rival who offered more to Chichester, then we could have simply licked our wounds and looked forward to a sympathetic restoration of the Butter Market. This is not the case.

The results of the public consultation phase were never publicised, and it is our belief there was no fit and proper collection of essential financial information about the developers and their proposals. In recent exchanges with DTZ, it is clear to us that many aspects of our proposal were either overlooked or misunderstood. As a result, we feel that the council has been ill-advised and there would have been a different outcome to the process had DTZ carried out their duty with the broader interests of  local tax payers and the people of Chichester in mind

Stephen Baker and Derek Bond