BOROUGH OF POOLE
LOCAL ECONOMY OVERVIEW GROUP
28 FEBRUARY 2008
The Meeting commenced at 7:00pm and concluded at 10:15pm.
Present:
Councillor Mrs Dion (Chairman)
Councillor Mrs Walton (Vice-Chairman)
Councillors Brooke, Clements, Collier, Mason, Parker, Rampton, Mrs Stribley and Trent.
LEO31.08 APOLOGIES FOR ABSENCE
There were no apologies for absence received.
LEO32.08 DECLARATIONS OF INTEREST
Councillor Clements, Mrs Dion, Parker and Mrs Walton declared personal interests in M.LE040.08 as Members of the Tourism Management Board.
Councillor Clements declared a personal interest in M.LE037.08 as a Member of the Regional Assembly and in respect of M.LE035.08 as a Member of the Co-op. He also declared a prejudicial interest in item LEO40.08 as a Member of the Poole Tourism Management Board and left the Meeting for the discussion on this item.
Councillor Mrs Stribley declared a personal interest in M.LE039.08 as she had been in receipt of a written representation on this issue.
Councillor Brooke declared a personal interest in M.LE040.08 as a Town Centre Trader.
All Members declared a personal interest in M.LE036.08 as they had received a written representation on this issue.
LEO33.08 MINUTES
A Member drew attention to the Minutes of the Meeting held on 6 December 2007 to M.LE027.07 and the fact that no mention had been made of the departure by Councillor Mason from the Meeting after the item had been discussed.
RESOLVED that the Minutes of the Meeting held on 6 December 2007, having been previously circulated, be taken as read, confirmed as a correct record and signed by the Chairman with the addition of the words after the decision on Minute LE027.07:
“Councillor Mason left the Meeting and took no part in the remainder of the items on the Agenda”.
LEO34.08 SUCH OTHER BUSINESS, AS IN THE OPINION OF THE CHAIRMAN, IS OF SUFFICIENT URGENCY TO WARRANT CONSIDERATION
There were no urgent items of business.
LEO35.08 PROGRESS TOWARDS POOLE BECOMING A FAIR TRADE TOWN
The Community Planning Manager updated Members of the Overview Group on the progress made so far in achieving Fair Trade Town status. To become a Fair Trade Town, 5 goals had to be met:
· A local Council must pass a resolution supporting Fair Trade, and serve Fair Trade coffee and tea at its meetings and in offices and canteens.
· A range of Fair Trade products must be readily available in the area’s shops and served in local cafés and catering establishments (targets are set in relation to population)
· Fair Trade products must be used by a number of local work places (Estate Agents, Hairdressers etc) and community organisations (Churches, schools etc).
· Attract media coverage and popular support for the campaign.
· A local Fair Trade Steering Group must be convened to ensure continued commitment to Fair Trade Town status.
A decision on the Council’s application for Fair Trade status would be known in the next few weeks and the Members of the Overview Group were thanked for their support in pursing this aim.
The Meeting was advised that it had been acknowledged that the coffee supplied initially to the Council had not been universally supported and it was hoped to improve this by arranging a tasting opportunity of different brands for one to be selected for use in the Council offices.
Members raised the following:-
· It was essential that once the brand of coffee had been decided, that this should be packaged at source.
· Officers should be congratulated and thanked for their work on this matter. The Steering Group should also be thanked for their work. There were now approximately 1,000 Fair Trade products in shops and local firms, such as “Lush”, were on board and purchasing Fair Trade goods.
· It was disappointing that Fair Trade Status had not yet been achieved and drew attention to the fact that there were now many Fair Trade products for sale in shops.
· Attention was drawn to the recent Adam Smith press report and it was felt that there was a need to counteract what had been said to support the Fair Trade aims.
· One way of obtaining views on the type of coffee to be used by the Council would be to possibly run a coffee morning and invite local businesses to become involved or, alternatively, a stall could be provided in the Town Centre serving Fair Trade coffee which could also support the Mayor’s Charity.
RESOLVED that the Update Report on Progress made so far in achieving Fair Trade Town Status be noted.
For: Unanimous
LEO36.08 SANDBANKS CONSERVATION AREA CHARACTER APPRAISAL – PUBLIC CONSULTATION
The Head of Planning Design and Control Services submitted a Report, which sought to approve the document “Sandbanks Conservation Area Character Appraisal” draft for public consultation. If approved, public consultation would begin in April for a period of 6 weeks.
The Sandbanks Conservation Area was an area worthy of protecting and safeguarding from inappropriate development. It had exceptional landscape qualities, a virtue of its coastal setting and was distinctive and evolved more gradually than the rest of the peninsular with most properties benefitting from harbour views. Generously spaced, elegant Edwardian Villas, positioned within a sylvan setting were visible from Brownsea Island and the Harbour. With this in mind, the Area was now under significant pressure of development and the absence of a Character Appraisal was a weakness, which had to be resolved.
The Meeting was advised that there were four distinct sub areas within the Conservation Area that had developed with unique qualities. These attributes were worth careful consideration when minor and major developments were proposed, including:
· The Old Coastguard Road area had the oldest known settlements on Sandbanks and had developed in many phases.
· The Haven Lake Area, which had been developed around a World War 2 bombed house site.
· The Edwardian Villas facing Brownsea Island formed a unique group of original buildings (with the exception of No.98) on the peninsula framed by private jetties in a heavily treed setting.
· North Haven Point had 3 exposed properties set within heavily treed plots with dramatic views out to the harbour mouth. The plot at No 102 was vacant but very constrained.
Additionally, the Victorian Coastguard cottage terrace was a Building of Local Importance, listed in the Local Plan 2004, because it was considered a landmark and the oldest building on Sandbanks built for the Lifeboat crews and their families. Three other buildings were proposed for the Buildings of Local Importance because of their architectural integrity and group value, including Haven Lake Lodge, the Wytch and No.84 Panorama Road. The Local Plan Policy BE15 proposed that the demolition of local listed buildings should be resisted.
RECOMMENDED that the launch of Public Consultation on proposals for the Conservation and Management of the Sandbanks Conservation Area be agreed.
For: Unanimous
LEO37.08 PLANNING UPDATE
The Head of Strategic Planning Services provided the Overview Group with an update on the Regional Spatial Strategy, the process for submission of the Local Development Framework Core Strategy and the Strategic Housing Land Availability Assessment.
He stated that an examination into the Draft Regional Spatial Strategy had been conducted during the Spring and Summer of 2007. The Panel had now reported its findings to the Secretary of State who would now consider and publish modification in due course. The Panel Report was not binding in the same way as an Inspector’s report into a Local Development Document but might be a material consideration in planning decisions. The Report set out the general comments from the Panel.
The Head of Strategic Planning Services highlighted the following:-
· The Conurbation – Bournemouth, Poole and Christchurch had been identified as strategically Significant Towns and Cities in the draft Regional Spatial Strategy (RSS) and it was argued that the Plan should take a wider view of the Strategically Significant Towns and Cities (SSCT) i.e. to include those parts of Purbeck and East Dorset that functioned as part of the wider conurbation. The Panel had agreed with this and emphasised that it was entirely artificial to distinguish between, for example, Corfe Mullen and Broastone, and likewise Hamworthy and Upton.
· Housing Provision – there was a deficiency across the Housing Market Area of 8,070 dwellings although for the SSCT of Bournemouth, Poole and Christchurch this was only 6% of the total. The Panel had concluded that the reasoning behind the increased numbers i.e. household formation rates was equally applicable to rural areas as to urban ones and a 15% uplift had been applied to Purbeck and North Dorset. The Panel had recognised the very high level of housing provision on previously developed land in the SSCT and was of the opinion that the scope for additional urban intensification was limited.
The Panel had recognised that brown field capacity was insufficient to meet the development needs of the area and had recommended urban extensions in East Dorset, the ‘western sector’ for 2,750 dwellings in Purbeck, and a green belt site in Bournemouth for 1,500 dwellings. In total about 48,100 dwellings were to be provided in the Housing Market Area of which 10,000 were in Poole and 14,600 plus 1,500 urban extensions in Bournemouth.
· Economic activity - A deficiency of 110 hectares of employment land in Bournemouth and Poole had been identified and the Panel had recommended that further guidance was required. The Panel recognised that the market for land was not constrained by Council boundaries and that the search for additional land should be conducted on a urban wide basis. Bournemouth Airport was not seen as a priority for public finance and investment. The Airport might well fulfil part of the overall employment land requirement but needed to sit within the context of town centres and Regeneration Area first and therefore complemented this Strategy.
· Strategic Regeneration - The Panel had expressed that priority should be given to the Regeneration Area for infrastructure particularly in support of employment provision. However, there was no need to phase brown field housing sites ahead of Greenfield and that Poole’s growth point status should ensure quality development that would complement development elsewhere.
He emphasised that the Panel had now recognised that there was no need to phase Brownfield sites. The comments regarding Town Centre Regeneration were welcomed especially on the importance of employment, mixed uses and priorities for infrastructure. The Panel had also emphasised the importance of the A31 link but there were inconsistencies and errors in the Panel’s report and the conclusions that been reached were of concern. As a consequence representations had been made drawing attention to the factual errors and inconsistencies.
The Portfolio Holder agreed that representations should be made on the inconsistencies and errors and that the MP for Poole was being made aware of these issues at a forthcoming meeting.
Members made the following comments:-
· Accessing employment in the Town Centre was a concern – it was felt that the local bus network did not have the capacity to deal with this. A Member felt that the former Park and Ride site at Creekmoor should be used for the general public to get into the Town Centre, especially for part-time workers. This should be given a high priority.
· A Member asked whether the Atkins Report into the feasibility of the “western sector” had been presented strongly enough at the Examination in Public.
The Portfolio Holder for Local Economy responded by stating that land use issues and suitability had been highlighted at the EIP together with the cost of infrastructure which showed that the previous proposals for the ‘western sector’ were not viable. The Examination in Public did not take account of constraint issues.
The Head of Strategic Planning responded by stating that the Atkins Report had been highlighted at the Examination in Public but this process was superficial and only a short consideration was given to some of the important issues, which had to be addressed.
· A Member drew attention to the issues regarding single farm payments and that with regard to the Habitats Regulations he drew attention to the new policy that had been recommended stating that new development would be facilitated by policy measures to secure effective avoidance and mitigation of the potential adverse effects on the ecology integrity of the Natura 2000 sites. This meant that Local Authorities would have to find mitigation sites and complex calculations on land space were needed. There were real concerns on the effect on local biospheres. The Council should consider and reserve land for formal open space and that this should not be offered up as development land.
· There were fears that the comments made on the ‘wider conurbation’ would have an effect on the way that open space between areas such as Corfe Mullen and Creekmoor were viewed, making them more vulnerable.
· There were concerns that there was a real need to protect employment land.
· There was unanimous support by the Overview Group objecting to any use of greenbelt land for housing or employment.
· A Member felt that the report by the EIP was inaccurate and did not take into account such things as:-
(i) the political situation in East Dorset