Parking Income and Empty Business Property query
Case reference FOI2023/01740
Published 6 November 2023
Request
(a) Your site says car park income latest figure was £2,020,148, yet the figure for all and every fee from motorists (provisional) for 22/23 is £5,334,006. Please give a breakdown of this second figure.
(b) In respect of empty business properties in the city, what is the policy for charging or not charging business rates? Can the Council state, approximately, what extra income would be coming in if there were no empty business properties within the city as defined below.
For the purposes of the definition of "city" in this request, I mean the "circular" area bounded by the river in the south, the "new" bridge/Victoria Street up to the roundabout by Debenhams, then right along the A438 to the lights St Owen Street, then straight on to the river.
Response
(a) Your site says car park income latest figure was £2,020,148, yet the figure for all and every fee from motorists (provisional) for 22/23 is £5,334,006. Please give a breakdown of this second figure.
(b) In respect of empty business properties in the city, what is the policy for charging or not charging business rates? Can the Council state, approximately, what extra income would be coming in if there were no empty business properties within the city as defined below.
For the purposes of the definition of "city" in this request, I mean the "circular" area bounded by the river in the south, the "new" bridge/Victoria Street up to the roundabout by Debenhams, then right along the A438 to the lights St Owen Street, then straight on to the river.
Regarding question (b) this information is not held in a form that would enable it to be located, retrieved and extracted within the Appropriate Time Limit which equates to 18 hours as defined by the Freedom of Information and Data Protection (Appropriate Limits and Fees) Regulations 2004.
There are 291 empty properties currently within the parish of Hereford set up on our database.
It would take approximately 5 minutes per account to investigate each property to either exclude it from the suggested area or to calculate the relevant part of the charge requested. This would take over 24 hours.
Where the Limit is exceeded Public Authorities are not obliged to supply the information requested by virtue of S12 of the Act. Please take this letter as a refusal notice under S17 of the Act.
I have been advised by the service area that some of the information requested may be held online via the following link: Business rates relief and exemptions - Herefordshire Council.
It might be possible to provide a response to question (a) within the appropriate time limit if you could please clarify the source of the figures you have provided in this question.
Documents
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