Issue - meetings

To consider the consultation responses to the initial consultation and approve a publication version for further consultation.

The report is attached and copies of appendices 1 – 4 are available via the Council’s website, at Reception at the Town Hall and for Councillors in the Group Rooms.

Please note that it is likely there will be an update to appendix no.2 (Officer Responses and Actions Housing Growth) and this will be provided as soon as possible.

As noted at Minute 35 above, a question to the Leader in respect of this item had been received from Mr David Rose, as set out below:

Why are Redditch Borough Council still advocating building between 600 and 3,400 houses in Webheath, when Redditch Borough Council Planning Committee on 22nd May, 3013 voted against Taylor Wimpey building 200 new houses, (which surely means that Redditch Borough Council have decided not to build in Webheath), because of poor highway infrastructure, over subscribed local schools, poor unsustainable infrastructures (including foul sewage) etc.?

The Leader replied as follows:

Paragraph 3.16 in the Report answers this question and explains why an early planning application from a developer, on part of a proposed site, is different to the consideration of sites for inclusion through the Plan making process.

3.16 “…With regards to Policy 48 Webheath, Officers are aware that the Council refused planning permission on 22^nd May 2013 for a proposal on part this Strategic Site set out in the Draft Local Plan No.4. The refusal was based upon the proposal’s additional traffic generation on the local road network coupled with the lack of suitable infrastructure to support the development and the lack of contribution towards the wider highway network infrastructure; however this does not alter the fact that the proposal site and the remainder of the Webheath Strategic Site is capable of sustainable delivery in the short to medium term, subject to necessary infrastructure being delivered. This Strategic Site should therefore continue to feature in the Proposed Submission version of the Borough of Redditch Local Plan No.4.”

More details will follow later this year on the viability of the site to be able to deliver the necessary infrastructure. This will confirm whether there are showstoppers to the Local Plan’s proposed allocated sites being delivered sustainably. The necessary works for the Foxlydiate site will be tested through detailed highway modelling. The costs of wider highway infrastructure and other sustainable transport costs will need to be aggregated to the Webheath site and to the cross boundary site at Foxlydiate in order to test the viability accurately. The cost of implementing necessary sewerage treatment for the two sites is borne by both the developer (for the on-site drainage, connection, pumping station and pressurised sewer) and Severn Trent Water and therefore has little impact on the ability of the site to be delivered, in any case the cost of upgrade works to serve these sites would not be vastly different to the alternative site options.

Mr Rose subsequently asked the following supplementary question of the Leader:

The Leader was asked to which overseeing Local Government watchdog local residents might complain regarding the proposal by the Council to contradict the decision made by its Planning Committee and the throwing of money at a scheme which was not sustainable.

Officers provided the following answer to this supplementary question on behalf of the Leader:

Until the Local Plan inquiry process was under way there was no recourse  ...  view the full minutes text for item 37