PRICES paid to bring two Middlesbrough landmarks into public hands have been revealed. 

Middlesbrough Council coughed up £8m for Captain Cook Square shopping centre and £1m for the House of Fraser building in the town centre. 

The pair were bought earlier this month – with officials saying they were snapped up for £34m less than valued in the past.  

A “game changing” leisure facility has been lined up for Captain Cook Square funded using money from Government grants.

Council bosses say it’s all part of a wider drive to “transform the future of the high street” with a better balance of retail, leisure and residential space. 

The new approach was agreed by leaders in December with the council working alongside commercial property experts Knight Frank.

A bid for £20m from the Government’s “Future High Streets Fund” has been lined up to pay for the vision. 

Regeneration chief Richard Horniman told councillors Middlesbrough was “drastically under-represented” when it came to leisure destinations earlier this month – adding the House of Fraser building was bought to prevent it standing empty given the retailer’s struggles. 

Bosses have stressed the funds used to buy the sites are from capital budgets not revenue budgets. 

In other words, funds which go towards statutory council services cannot be used to pay for such schemes. 

Middlesbrough Mayor Andy Preston believed the council had got “excellent value” from the purchases on the back of tough negotiations.

He said: “Towns and city centres across the world are struggling and in Middlesbrough, despite bright spots, we’re fighting for our life.  

“The massive collapse in price of Captain Cook Square coupled with the opportunity for us to borrow at almost zero cost makes this a remarkable opportunity for our town – especially as the rental income brings in more than the borrowing cost.

“We bought the whole of Captain Cook Square with tenants in place at £8m when it was valued at around £35m a few years ago.

“The former Binns building, which now hosts House of Fraser, was previously valued at around £8m. 

“After months of negotiations, we paid just £1m and I think that is excellent value for the people of Middlesbrough.”

Council chiefs had lined up the purchase of the sites before the pandemic hit but the virus saw the prices come down further. 

Councillors have been told rents from Captain Cook Square will allow it to turn a profit for the next few years yet if nothing changes. 

Middlesbrough isn’t the first authority to snap up shopping precincts in the past two years.

Neighbouring Stockton Council bought the Castlegate and the adjoining Swallow Hotel for £13.8m last year – before unveiling plans to demolish the pair to create a park linking to the River Tees.

It also purchased Wellington Square for £7m in May 2019 as part of its wider High Street ambitions. 

Shop closures and the departure of big high street names have been the reasons offered up for the interventions – with a desire to offer housing, leisure and uses other than retail in Teesside town centres.  

Mr Preston said the council had “positive and creative ideas” to change central Middlesbrough in the next two to three years.

“These buildings will play an important part in that change,” he added.

“Despite the very real challenges our town centre faces – similar to many other town centres – we’re confident we can not only halt the decline but take positive steps to attract people back into our town, retain and create jobs, and boost the local economy.”

Labour group leader Cllr Matt Storey offered a note of caution on the plans. 

“Like Stockton’s plans to redevelop the Castlegate this is another example of a Council looking to repurpose their town centre to keep it alive,” he added.

“With the budget pressures we are facing, driving up private sector investment and commercial revenue in the town centre is critical.

“My only concern is the commercial viability of such a major project.

“The economic consequences of covid are not clear as yet – and we need to be sure that there is the demand for this type of development in a post-covid economy.”