You may have seen on the town’s notice boards, social media and on their website, a number of statements from Wivenhoe Town Council (WTC) about the Bike Kitchen.
They claim our crowdfunder is misleading, but their accusations lack facts.
TL;DR The Bike Kitchen is only asking for a fair lease with a fair market level rent.
We do not receive heavily subsidised accommodation. We pay an independently verified market-level rent at The Fishermans Store of over £12/sq ft, which aligns with other WTC lettings. While WTC claim we only use the space four hours a week, we use it 24/7 for storage, enabling year round opening, while our volunteers contribute over 1,000 hours to Wivenhoe every year.
The “options” WTC presented us were unworkable. They offered a choice of unsuitable alternative premises with unfavourable lease terms or increasing the rent to 3 times the market rate at the Fisherman’s Store. WTC declared their proposal final, refusing further negotiation, and gave us just three working days to respond.
Following legal advice, we rejected both options and served a standard Section 26 notice to formalise lease renewal negotiations. Unfortunately we’ve now had to ask the court to step in to determine a fair rent level. The Bike Kitchen is only asking for a fair lease with a fair market level rent.
Find out how you can help save Wivenhoe Bike Kitchen on our crowdfunder page.
You can read Wivenhoe Town Council’s statements on their website.
In the following 12 months, WTC has not made any attempt to find an alternative tenant for the premises behind the town hall.