COUNCIL 12 May 2008 MINUTES
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COUNCIL 12 May 2008 MINUTES Held at Council Chamber, Elizabeth House, Stratford-upon-Avon Meeting commenced: 2.00 pm meeting ended: 3.20 pm Present: The Chairman of the Council (Councillor Stuart Beese) in the Chair COUNCILLORS V Seaman T Dixon L Marshall B Slaughter S Adams J Fradgley C Mills R Stevens J Appleton A Gardner P Moorse J Taylor G Atkinson S Gray E Payne S Thirlwell P Barnes T Honychurch D Pemberton L Topham P Beaman J Horner G Roache M Weddell Rev N Beamer S Jackson N Rock C Williams M Beckett K James K Rolfe D Wise M Brain Sir W Lawrence Bt C Saint S Wixey R Cheney S Main I Seccombe H Wright R Cockings B Mann P Seccombe 1089. Apologies for Absence Apologies for absence had been received from Councillors Akeister, Bowring, Close, R Hobbs, V Hobbs, Patrick and R Wright. The Chairman welcomed to the meeting the new Councillors who had been elected to the Council at the Elections held on 1 May 2008, namely Councillors Atkinson, Cheney, Cockings, Honychurch, Horner, Mann, Rolfe and Taylor. 1090. Disclosure of Interests Personal Interests were recorded by the following Councillors relating to any item on the Agenda arising from virtue of the members serving on the organisations indicated:- 1. As a Warwickshire County Councillor Councillors Appleton, Barnes, Main, Saint, I Seccombe and Stevens 2. As a member of Stratford Local Strategic Partnership Councillor Topham 3. As a member of Stratford Crime and Disorder Reduction Partnership Councillors Weddell and Williams 4. As a member of the Coventry, Solihull and Warwickshire Sub-Regional Forum Councillors James and Topham 5. As a Director of the Coventry, Solihull and Warwickshire Partnership Limited . Councillor Topham, together with Councillor Saint as a Warwickshire County Council appointee. Councillor Minute Nature of Interest Type of Reference Interest P Barnes 1093 Chairman of WCC Planning Committee Personal M Brain 1093 Member of BARD Personal C Saint 1093 Director of West Midlands Regional Assembly Personal Limited, WCC Portfolio Holder on Planning Matters S Jackson 1093 As a member of an organisation that had Personal enabled BARD to participate in an event I Seccombe 1093 Member of BARD Personal P Seccombe 1093 Chartered Surveyor and his wife’s Personal membership of BARD The Chief Executive made reference to representations that all Councillors had received from local interested parties in respect of the Eco Town proposals under Minute 1093 below. 1091. Public Participation (Questions by the Public) In accordance with the Council Procedure Rules the following questions were asked by the person indicated: 1. The following question was asked by Mr. George West to the Leader of the Council, Cllr. Les Topham 'The Long Marston depot has suffered in the past from flooding. In July 2007 the surrounding villages of Long Marston, Broad Marston, Pebworth and Quinton all suffered badly from Flooding. Villagers are very anxious that the proposed development of an eco / new town on this site, with its many tonnes of concrete will increase greatly the flooding risk in all surrounding areas. In these uncertain times with climate change bringing more frequent flood risks what assurance will The Council give that these real, concerns of householders with regard to flooding will be addressed?' The Leader of the Council, Councillor Les Topham replied along the following lines: “It is not just Long Marston, we get flooding all over the district and we are addressing this problem”. 2. The following question was asked by Mrs. Joan Mathews Chairman - Marston Sicca Parish Council, to the Leader of the Council, Cllr. Les Topham th Appendix C of the Council papers published for 12 May meeting is a copy of a letter written to The Leader from Sir Simon Milton, Chairman of the LGA. He expresses concern over the Governments proposals for Eco Towns, which will by-pass normal planning processes. He particularly expresses concerns, which I share with my community in Long Marston, that the ‘infrastructure and wider economic and social considerations for new settlements of up to 20,000 homes can be dealt with in this way. The government’s intended approach carries a strong risk that eco towns will not be the sustainable communities we all wish to see’. He advises that the LGA will be mounting a vigorous campaign to persuade the government to drop its misconceived proposals, and asks Leaders to join in their campaign. Can I request that Cllr. Topham will be writing to Sir Simon Milton offering Stratford District Council’s unconditional support on the LGA’s campaign to oppose the eco-town in Long Marston and support his National position? The Leader of the Council, Councillor Topham replied along the following lines: “I will be writing to Sir Simon Milton following the conclusion of this meeting.” 3. The following question was asked by Mr. Mike Walsby OBE Chairman Quinton Parish Council to the Portfolio Holder for Housing: There is a common misconception amongst the general public that the term Affordable Housing means cheaper than houses currently available on the market, which people on low incomes would be able to afford. Environmentally friendly homes are in fact more expensive to build; so can you tell us in layman’s terms what is meant by the term Affordable Housing, and at the same time give us some estimates of likely prices that would be payable by these low income families? The Revenues and Housing Services Portfolio-holder, Councillor Roache replied as follows: • The cost of any housing on the Long Marston site has not yet been determined. • Affordable housing is for people who cannot afford to access open market housing i.e. owner occupation or private rented. • In this district housing association homes for rent or shared ownership (part rent / part buy) homes are considered to be affordable housing. • This definition of affordable housing accords with statutory Government guidance. • Housing association rents are regulated by Government, and are well below market rates. • Any “green” homes will be cheaper to run than conventional non- green homes. 4. The following question was asked by Mrs. Sue Cook - Chairman Admington Parish Council to the Portfolio Holder for Transport The Middle Quinton site is deep inside the Vale of Evesham HGV Control Zone. This was created because of the exceptionally poor local road network, bordered on the North West by the River Avon, on the East by the River Stour, and to the South by the Cotswold Escarpment however… The DCLG consultation document states on page 29 that there are “no major issues regarding the strategic road network” – is this is because the site is nowhere near the strategic road network? The developers state that they will create 3000 jobs on the site. But: You cannot exclude non – residents from applying for these jobs You cannot make employers only employ people from Middle Quinton The majority of the 15000 plus population will be commuting to Birmingham, Coventry and other employment centres. How will the local road network cope with what in reality be a very non- eco commuter town with large volumes of cars and HGVs entering and leaving the site on a daily basis? The Planning Portfolio-holder, Councillor Thirlwell replied as follows: I would agree with Mrs Cook that the statement in the consultation document that there are ‘No major issues regarding the strategic transport network.’ would appear to be a reflection of the remoteness of the site from the strategic road network (i.e. via C & B roads to A46 or A44). Given the scale of the proposal and its location a robust and thorough Transport Assessment is a pre-requisite for any development to proceed on this site. Officers from the three highway authorities of Gloucestershire, Warwickshire and Worcestershire are well advanced in setting the scope for the Transport Assessment. Key elements of the assessment will include: 1. The likely trip generation by the development, including employment on the site. 2. The anticipated origin and destination of external trips. 3. The share for external trips between different modes of transport, e.g. public transport, and the private car. This would include a detailed assessment of the accessibility of the Middle Quinton site across all transport modes. 4. Detailed proposals for public transport provision and how this can be supported in the long term. 5. The traffic impact of the development at the date of full occupation, including for freight. 6. Proposed mitigation measures, including possible new road infrastructure, with sufficient feasibility study of the proposed measures to demonstrate their deliverability and cost. Mrs. Cook should be assured that the Council will not support any proposal unless the Transport Assessment clearly demonstrates that the transport impacts of the proposed Eco-town can be successfully mitigated. 1092. Announcements The following items were reported under this heading: 1. The Chairman belatedly welcomed the Councillor Paul Middlesborough the Leader of Wychavon District Council to the meeting; 2. The Chairman reported receipt of a petition signed by local residents opposed to the Eco Town Proposal and reported that it would be available in the Members’ Lounge after the meeting; 3. The Chief Executive reported receipt of letters from the following a. Shakespeare Birthday Celebrations Committee thanking the Council for its continued support for the Celebrations; and, b. Stratford Rotary thanking the Council for the use of the Recreation Ground for the recent Shakespeare Marathon and Half-Marathon event. 1093. Eco Town Proposal The Leader of the Council read to the meeting a letter he had received from the Leader of Wychavon District Council outlining that Council’s observations on the Eco Town proposals. Councillor Topham reported that he would respond to the letter following this meeting of the Council detailing the decision.