Councillors approve 18-month search to find new owner for Angus Council’s Forfar HQ

The possible sale of the Angus House building at Orchardbank Business Park is one of the options to be included in a marketing exercise agreed by councillors at a recent meeting of the full council.

But it could also see the 17-year-old building part-leased or leased out completely.

Most of the building space is currently unused, the local authority says, due to the rise in employees working from home following the Covid pandemic.

It currently costs the local authority more than £400,000 a year to run Angus House.

During a marathon-long behind closed-doors meeting, councillors also sought to have other council buildings in Forfar appraised while the marketing of Angus House is under way.

Carnoustie Independent councillor David Cheape wanted a complete review of all the council’s offices in Forfar, including Ravenswood and County Buildings, as well as Angus House.

He wanted the options appraisal to consider future use based on lease income or sale value but councillors voted against this proposal.

SNP group leader Beth Whiteside urged the authority to press on with the 18-month marketing exercise of Angus House as is.

She said: “We’re in limbo until we actually get to the market.

“We can do options appraisals until they’re coming out of our ears.

“I think we should press on.”

The exercise will cost the council around £6,500, with future options to be brought back to councillors at the end of that period.

The council’s ‘Agile’ programme – which provides Angus Council staff with the ability to work from home or at other venues – has left much of the Orchardbank headquarters’ capacity unused.

And the council says this could harm their ability to make financial and carbon savings in the future.

The Agile programme has delivered £3.6m of recurring revenue savings since it was started in 2015.

It has also generated £1.3m in property sales.