,
community purchase of the filling station was completed last summer.
We now have a great deal of information on the
site and the significant work that needs to be done to make it
viable as a filling station. This information includes surveys of
the storage tanks, petrol spill interceptor, drainage and
buildings.
Hudson House has also commissioned work on possible site layout,
regulatory requirements, equipment and 24/7 operations. The
project team also held discussions with potential petrol
suppliers, site operators and with Northern Powergrid on the
feasibility of installing fast electric chargers. We are very
grateful to Richmondshire District Council for a generous grant
which reimbursed most of the costs and made this work
possible.
Our conclusion was that a community filling station could be
viable, provided the purchase price recognised the amount of
work required to update the pumps and buildings. Based on
those figures we have made an appropriate offer, but the owner
is currently testing the market at a price we cannot make work
and therefore cannot recommend to the community.
In the event that other offers do come in, that isn’t necessarily
bad news. It all depends on what the purchaser wants to do
with the site. Hudson House’s overriding objective is to get fuel
supplies back in the two dales, and while we would like there to
be some community involvement we will work constructively
with anyone who can help deliver that.