Sefton Council will be asked to approve an extra £33m of borrowing towards the rising cost of the Marine Lake Events Centre (MLEC) at a full council meeting at Southport Town Hall next week.
The council approved a £73m budget for the project in September 2022 after securing grant funding through the Southport Town Deal, but the total cost has now risen to £106m, an increase of 45%.
The original £73m package was made up of £33.3m from the Town Deal, £20m from the Liverpool City Region Combined Authority and £19.7m from Sefton Council.
The council’s own share now stands to rise to £52.7m unless further grant funding or partner contributions are secured.
The report before councillors states the £33m will be “underwritten by the Council in the first instance prior to any additional funding being received”.
The council estimates the borrowing will cost £2.3m a yearm, in addition to the £2.7m permanent revenue subsidy the venue will require from year three.
The project is now on it’s third major contractor, with VINCI set to construct the centre following the departures of Kier and GRAHAM.
MLEC is set to open early in 2029.
The vote comes with the council under severe financial pressure.
Sefton is forecasting a £29.4m revenue overspend for 2025/26, reduced to £11.9m after mitigations, and its general balances are forecast to be nil by the end of the financial year.
The council applied for a £12m capitalisation direction from the government to set a balanced budget for 2026/27, and auditors Grant Thornton have said its reserves offer only “limited financial resilience”.
At the same meeting, Councillor Thomas Swaney, one of three Reform UK councillors elected in Norwood ward in May, has submitted a motion calling on the Cabinet to commission an independent review of the project’s revised budget, funding sources and projected economic impact, with the findings presented to full council “before any additional borrowing is approved”.
The borrowing approval sits at item 11 on the agenda. Cllr Swaney’s motion sits at item 22, meaning councillors are due to vote on the £33m before the motion demanding a review of it is debated.
Sefton Council says the project still represents value for money despite the increased cost.
Its June Cabinet report states the venue will contribute about £31m a year to the local economy, create 386 jobs and attract more than 600,000 new visitors to Southport.