Last night’s meeting of the Boston Borough Council Cabinet celebrated its first secret session of 2013 by chucking out the public and the press to discuss a report on the Princess Royal Sports Arena by Chief Executive Richard Harbord.
The reason for treating the voters as people of no account was that allowing them to hear how millions of pounds of our council tax have been wasted during the past ten years might involve disclosure of “exempt” information.
When we search our files, it comes as no surprise that there are probably more references to the PRSA than anything else.
Yet despite promising for years that Boston taxpayers will cease  to fund this great white elephant, nothing has been done.
Whilst we await an announcement with bated breath, we note the amount of time that has passed since council leader Pete Bedford offered us his “vision” back in March 2011.
High on his list list of “immediate” priorities Tories was that arrangements for the Princess Royal Sports Arena would be settled “once and for all.”
Since then, money has continued to be given to the Boston Sports Initiative, who are the trustees of the PRSA.
And in the current edition of the Boston Borough Council bulletin, Councillor Bedford is still banging the same drum, saying: “Arrangements are now at an advanced stage to put the Boston Sports Initiative into the position of managing the Princess Royal Sports Arena. This will enable it to become a successful venue for sport and public entertainment, providing an alternative venue for some of the more traditional Assembly Rooms events.”
So – what have they been doing for the past decade, we wonder?
Given the history of the BSI, (see the illustration  at the top of the page)  It is hard to imagine how – in  a single bound – it will go from rattling its begging bowl beneath the noses of successive council administrations to suddenly being able to manage a facility that it has spectacularly failed to do in the past.
More worryingly, Councillor Bedford’s most recent remarks carry no implication that the council will stop funding the PRSA’s losses – although this coming financial year is supposed to be the one in which the bonanza comes to an end. In August last year, the council gave the BSI £27,000, and in November, forked out £1,800 in “consultancy” fees.
Back in 2010, local news reports said that as a result of the council writing off a debt of almost £2 million to the BSI, the arena would now be “returned” to the council.
Well before that, a damning report by the Audit Commission noted that the development had gone £2 million over its construction budget than originally expected, and that  funds from other sources had  not  materialised to the extent expected. Estimates that the arena would make profits of £398,000 in its first five years were revised to predict a loss of £325,000 for the same period.
Then there was the deal with Boston Rugby Club that gave it exclusive rights to provide the PRSA catering.
The former chief executive of Boston Borough Council, Mark James, led the planning
of the project – and clearly thought that it was such a good idea that he took it with him to Carmarthenshire … where a rugby stadium has since cost his council taxpayers more than £10 million plus a £2.4 million  loan on top.
So what is the PRSA worth these days?
Boston Borough Council’s asset register for the year ended March 2010 values it at £11,242,000 as a “freehold let.”
However, in 2011, the BSI valued the arena including the stadium and attached facilities at a comparatively meagre £6,716,000.

click to enlarge photo

That valuation was made in the final report sent by the BSI to the Charity Commissioners, and we assume that there have been no further financial statements   because the PRSA’s unerring ability to lose money means that no further reports are required.
So what of Boston Rugby Club – the beneficiary of the sweetheart catering deal that took everyone by surprise?
Their accounts to the Charity Commission are long overdue  - see our illustration (right.) .
In fact, the next time they file their accounts will be the first time.
The word that springs to mind in this tragic saga is pussyfooting.
The people underwriting the borough council’s largesse  – that means you and us – are denied an explanation.
The beneficiaries seem to have gone into hiding.
Yet still, Boston Borough Council will not level with the public at large about the pathetic way they have handled the PRSA debacle.
PRSA?
Pretty Rotten State of Affairs.

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