The Castle Toward Trust in conjunction with Actual Reality devised a business plan, raised considerable funds and attempted to begin negotiations with Argyll & Bute Council’s estate agents Baird Lumsden to make a bid to buy Castle Toward.  The Council and their agents presented obstacles in the progress of negotiations, to deter the Trust and Actual Reality from making a bid.

GL Hearn, the Property Consultants representing The Castle Toward Trust made several attempts to contact Baird Lumsden but were continually met with difficulties in identifying an appropriate contact.  GL Hearn informed the Council’s Planning Services of this grievance and made clear their intentions to purchase.  Hugh Blake informed GL Hearn that ‘the Council was obliged to and had determined to dispose of Castle Toward on the open market and that no closed sale was possible’.

Requests were made by the Trust and Actual Reality for the Council to not publicly market the sale as this would make uncertain the property with the subsequent effect that Actual Reality would find it difficult to function properly as a business.  Bookings are made months and even years in advance with schools, and there was concern that such ambiguity of the future could jeopardize present delivery of services to schools.  It was requested therefore, that the council sell to The Castle Toward Trust off the market, appealing to them as current tenants.  It was proposed that a value be agreed upon on a willing buyer, willing seller basis.  The Council refused this request.

The Council put it to the Castle Toward Trust that the purchase price would be required to be paid in full, rather than in installments.  The Council’s attitude was that The Trust was not able financially to make the payment in full.

  • Castle Toward Trust Chairman W H Mann confirmed to Councillor MacAskill that the Trust would firstly be able, and secondly be glad, to purchase in this fashion, in order to avoid substantial installment payments, in a letter dated 17th November 2005.

In spite of these attempts by the Council to avert Actual Reality from being able to make a bid to purchase Castle Toward, no other significant attempts were being made from any third parties, as the minutes of this meeting indicate:

Castle Toward Sub-Committee Meeting, Thursday 27th April 2006

2. CASTLE TOWARD

Consideration was given to a report updating the Sub Committee on the delayed sale of Castle Toward.

Link to minutes of this meeting.

The next stage of events is 2008 – 2009: The Unacknowledged Bid to Purchase