Details of Empty Commercial Properties

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Customer Service Centre
Tel: 01376 552525
Email: [Braintree District Council request email]

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Dear Ms Davis

Further to your Freedom of Information request received by Braintree
District Council I write to advise you of the following.

For ease of reference your request is repeated below,

Please can you provide me with the following information under the Freedom
Of Information Act 2000:-

a) addresses and rateable values of empty Commercial properties that are
within Braintree District Council area; and

b) the names of the owners of those properties referred to in (a)

Please find attached an excel spreadsheet containing the addresses of all
the buildings which are paying empty property rates, their rateable values
and the date of when empty rates liability commenced. However, you will
note that the Council has not provided you with details of the names of
the owners.

<<Davis - Disclosure.xls>>
The Council's computerised system which may hold details of ownership is
unable to run reports based upon ownership details. It can however run
reports which identify vacant properties paying empty property rates, a
copy of which is attached. From the results of the report identifying
vacant properties each property record, including computer records and
paper files would have to be retrieved and examined to retrieve ownership
information, subject to it being provided to the Council.

To do this the Council has estimated that the cost of complying with you
request would be £739.37 and therefore exceeds the appropriate limit of
£450.00 under Freedom of Information and Data protection (Appropriate
Limit and Fees) Regulations 2004.

The Council has estimated this cost of the following bases.

As you can see from the enclosed list of properties there are 1183 records
which would need to be examined.

Allowing for 40 records to be examined in an hour this would take 29.5
hours. 29.5 hours x £25.00 = £739.37.

You may wish to consider narrowing the scope of your request to a more
specific area in order to fall below the appropriate limit.

If you disagree with the Council's decision in respect of your freedom of
information request or are otherwise unhappy with how the Council has
dealt with your request in the first instance you may approach Sharon
Lowe, Head of Law & Governance in writing at the following address:-

Braintree District Council, Law & Governance, Causeway House, Bocking End,
Braintree, Essex, CM7 9HB
Should you remain dissatisfied with the outcome you have a right of appeal
under S50 of the Freedom of Information Act to appeal against the decision
by contacting the Information Commissioner, Wycliffe House, Water Lane,
Wilmslow SK9 5AF, [1][email address]

Yours sincerely

Emma Wisbey
Governance Lawyer
Ext: 2610
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