A project to demolish a council building and replace it with 27 car parking spaces went £60,000 over budget, it has been revealed. 

Maldon District Council budgeted £100,000 but spent £160,000 on demolishing St Cedd’s House, reconfiguring the council offices and expanding the car park, in Princes Road.

The application allowed the council to install 20 regular car parking spaces, in addition to the 11 that previously served St Cedd’s House, as well as seven new disabled parking spaces.

The building had housed Homestart, Viking Community Transport and the Citizens Advice Bureau.

Councillor Stephen Savage, speaking at a meeting of the council’s overview and scrutiny committee last week, insisted the clear budgeting failures needed looking at.

Mr Savage said: “That car park has still not been finished off, that is why I think it needs looking at.

“There is something not right.

“It is not just this £60,000.

“The whole project of putting lighting in the car park is an overspend as that was never part of the original plans for the car park.

“My view is that the buck stops with the chief executive, or that there are more than one person to blame. This £60,000 is just the tip of the iceberg.”

The report put forward by the council about the overspend revealed the authority had not consulted a professional estimator before beginning the project.

It stated: “Where a project involves construction a professional estimator should be used at the time to ensure that the level of expenditure approved in the budget process is sufficient to deliver the project.

“This did not take place on the St Cedd’s car park project and very early in the process it was identified that sufficient budget had not been allowed for.”

Minutes of previous meetings suggested the council’s chief executive Fiona Marshall had stated that no-one was to blame for the failure to deliver the car park on budget, but she denied that on this occasion, describing the situation as regrettable.

She said: “I do not recall saying that no-one was to blame.

“My recollection is that I said the position was regrettable but unfortunately the officers who were involved have now left.”

In the past few months the council has reportedly made multiple attempts to track down one of the officers involved in the project who has since left the job.

But, despite trying to make contact five times, the council has had no response or answers to queries.

Mr Savage asked for a further report on the project to be presented at the next overview and scrutiny committee meeting about the problems with the project and the overall cost.

Mark Durham, Leader of Maldon District Council said: “The St Cedd's House and Car Park Project was necessary to deal with an ageing building that was no longer fit for purpose, but comprised far more than this.

"The project reconfigured the main office building to make more efficient use of space and allowed partner organisations and voluntary groups to be co-located in the offices.

"It also created additional car parking spaces, including disabled spaces to serve the buildings users and provide additional weekend parking for residents and visitors.

"The council recognises the management of the project as a whole was below the standard we should expect and have taken steps to ensure this would not happen again.”