Council completes deal to officially buy back land it wrongly sold
A town council has officially bought back a piece of land at the centre of a legal row and a residents' campaign.
The parcel of land at Greenfields Recreation Ground in Shrewsbury is now officially owned by Shrewsbury Town Council again – and will soon be available for community use according to the authority.
The council said that the settlement agreement relating to the land was "for £1.34m". It said the total means that the net cost to the council to-date stands at £600k.
In a statement the council said that the amount will not be paid for by raising council tax, with the purchase coming from "existing reserves" – including using the "original funds received for the land plus any interest accrued since the sale".
It said the move would ensure that there will be no impact upon staff or services.
The council added that it is also pursuing other parties for potential compensation over the issue.
The move to re-acquire the land was completed after the town council and CSE Developments (Shropshire) Limited exchanged contracts to secure the transfer of ownership.
