Elgin’s St Giles shopping centre said to owe £750k in unpaid rates
Moray Council is taking legal action to retrieve hundreds of thousands of pounds in unpaid non-domestic rates from the owners of the St Giles Centre.
The figure is thought to be in the region of £750,000, stretching back over several years.
A spokesperson for the council said it had “exhausted all reasonable avenues of support” and it was their duty to retrieve the “significant sum of arrears”.
Owners St Giles Centre Holdings Ltd has been approached for comment.
Councillors discussed retrieving the money in October at a meeting held behind closed doors.
A motion to delay pursuing the debt until after Christmas was defeated by 15 votes to five with one abstention.
The centre is currently home to Argos, Waterstones, WH Smith, EE, Vodafone, Ramsdens, Subway and Ashers Bakery.
Whisky specialists Gordon and MacPhail are temporarily renting a unit until their building on South Street is renovated.
However there are several empty units, including those once occupied by Monsoon, Mountain Warehouse and Superdrug.
Marc Macrae, chairman of the council’s economic development committee, said the authority had been working for years to try resolve the problem.
Cllr Macrae (Fochabers/Lhanbryde, Conservative) said: “It must be frustrating for other businesses that are paying their non-domestic rates to know that a fairly large one is not paying theirs.
“This has been going on over for a number of years, and the council has been working with the centre so payments were affordable to them.
“But this is significant arrears and the council has a duty to be equitable
“It’s a very difficult thing for many businesses. And the council will provide help and support to any business that is in arrears.
“The council collects non-domestic rates on behalf of the Scottish Government, so we’re not benefiting ourselves.”
While stating that businesses need to pay their rates, cllr Jérémie Fernandes (Elgin North, SNP) felt the decision to chase payment in the busy pre-Christmas period was “disappointing”.
He said: “What it means for the St Giles Centre remains to be seen, and I will be keeping a close eye on what happens next.
“A closure of St Giles Centre, with potential job losses, would be a devastating blow for Elgin, particularly at a time when investment is finally coming to the town centre.”
John Divers (Elgin South, Labour) said the council had a legal duty to recover the debt.
He added: “This is not a good position to be in, and I think a lot of people will have difficulty with this.
“What effect will it have on the town centre? That is the question that will need to be dealt with.
“And what impact will it have on the store owners in the St Giles Centre?
“But at the end of the day the council has to recover the money.”
This week will see the 33rd anniversary of the shopping centre officially opening on November 15, 1991.
A Moray Council spokesperson said: “The council has exhausted all reasonable avenues of support in its responsibilities to recover non-domestic rates (NDR) from this company.
“A number of temporary solutions were put in place to assist with the impacts of the pandemic, assistance that was offered and available to any business in these circumstances at the time.
“However, the significant sum of arrears must be pursued given our duties as a NDR levying authority including those to other NDR payers.
“We appreciate the financial position of the building owner and landlord creates uncertainty regarding the centre and remain committed to supporting businesses to continue to trade in a suitable location locally.”