After decades lying derelict, £70 million in repairs and five years of operating, not a single penny of £15 million owed to the people of Derbyshire has been repaid by the Buxton Crescent operators.
A Freedom of Information request from the Local Democracy Reporting Service has revealed that the total owed by the Buxton Crescent operators to Derbyshire County Council is now £15.4 million, as of June this year.
Of this, £11.39 million is a loan, and the rest is interest garnered over the nearly five years the venue has been open.
This comes as the council, in a private meeting in July, agreed to the “consensual sale” of the property, along with the neighbouring historic Old Hall Hotel, “and repayment of the county council’s loan”. That decision relates the intended sale from Ensana to new operators, following the venues being placed on the market in September last year.
The sale to the new operators is due to be finalised in the autumn, with no further updates available, says Ensana.
It has said repeatedly that the sale of the properties is “debt free”, with “all existing loans to be repaid”.
The firm has not detailed, when asked, if it would be repaying the loan before the intended sale or whether the burden of paying the loan would be effectively passed over to the new owners with the sale.
Meanwhile, the county council has confirmed through the information request that “none of the loan has been repaid”.
It said “none of the £15.4 million loan has been written off and is still outstanding”.
The authority details that in July 2021 the loan was “varied” leading to £728,000 in loan interest being written off.
It says: “This is in recognition of the fact that Buxton Crescent Limited’s revenues were significantly lower than anticipated because of the Covid-19 pandemic, which impacted on its ability to afford interest payments on the loan. This was funded by Covid-19 grant funding.”
The 1780s Buxton Crescent opened in September 2020 after 17 years of renovation and 28 years closed, eventually costing £70 million, as an 81-bed luxury spa hotel and a 10 per cent discount for Derbyshire residents.
Buxton Crescent Limited is jointly owned by CP Holdings and the Trevor Osborne Property Group Ltd, with the hotel operated by Ensana.
The freehold of the buildings is held by High Peak Borough Council and Derbyshire County Council.
The county council confirmed that the property has not yet been sold, with the last update from the ownership being that “the owners are engaged in a sale process”.
Following the private meeting at which the “consensual sale” of the Crescent was agreed on July 24, county council leader, Reform’s Alan Graves, said: “Following extensive negotiations, the sale of Buxton Crescent Hotel in Buxton has been agreed and is expected to be complete in the autumn, subject to finalising legal agreements.
“Cabinet members agreed to the consensual sale at a meeting on Thursday (24 July). Consensual sale means all parties agreed to the approach.
“Built in the 1780s by the Fifth Duke of Devonshire as the centrepiece of his Georgian Spa development, the crescent is an important piece of Buxton’s past history and today’s tourism economy.
“Today’s decision marks a major step forward towards securing the future operation of the hotel and recovering a loan made by the county council to the hotel which led the project to restore the nationally important and unique Grade-I listed building and adjoining Grade-II listed natural baths.”
An Ensana spokesperson, asked about the existing loan, lack of payments and “debt free” sale, deferred to their most recent statement, saying: “We confirm that the Buxton Crescent Hotel and The Old Hall Hotel have been put on the market today via global commercial real estate company CBRE.
“The properties are being offered debt free with the owners confirming that all existing loans on the hotels will be repaid.
“The hotels and all staff are working on a ‘Business As Usual’ premise as there is no change in the day to day operation of the hotels.”
Of the £70 million renovations for the Buxton Crescent, 60 per cent stemmed from public organisations, in an agreement between the owners and local authorities.
The venue currently shows its lowest priced room, on a “summer offer”, is £207 for a night, while a “Buxton stay” with dinner, breakfast and spa access is £530 for a night.
