Urgent business
To consider any business deemed as urgent by the Chair.
Petition - “Prevent tower-block developments in the Staines Conservation Area or overlooking the riverfront, and spread the planning housing growth target more evenly across the borough.”
The chair has agreed to this item being added to the agenda in accordance with Section 100B(4)(b) of the Local Government Act 1972 for the following reasons:
“The Local Plan Task Group and the Staines Development Task Group are currently assessing issues which are linked to the subject of the petition and therefore waiting until January will prevent this being considered appropriately.”
The item, which was omitted from the main agenda, was referred from Council on 14 October 2021, under the following resolution:
Resolved that
the petition be referred to the Environment and Sustainability
Committee for further consideration.
Minutes:
A petition had been presented to Council on 14 October 2021 when it was agreed to refer it to the Environment and Sustainability Committee for consideration.
The petition had not been included in the published agenda but added as urgent business as it could not wait until the next meeting in January 2022. The Local Plan Task Group (LPTG) and Staines Development Task Group (SDTG) were currently assessing this as part of their work in the coming months. The Chair of the Committee suggested that the most appropriate course of action was for the petition to be considered by those task groups when meeting to progress the Local Plan and Staines Development Framework.
The Chair of the SDTG confirmed that the petition and the issues raised in it were in the forefront of the minds of those on the task group and would be borne in mind.
A question was asked regarding adoption of the petition and the Committee was informed by the Principal Solicitor that the advice circulated at the time of the Council meeting still stood and that it would not be lawful for the Council to do so. The most appropriate process would be for the task groups to consider the petition when doing their work and then report back to Environment and Sustainability Committee with their recommendations for consideration.
The view was put forward that it was only fair for the housing target to be more evenly distributed across the borough, not predominantly in Staines and only an independent consultant could fairly facilitate this. Furthermore, at a recent meeting Staines councillors had agreed that they would not support any development in the Staines conversation and riverside area of more than 5 or 6 storeys.
The Group Head of Regeneration and Growth advised that from an officer perspective, the most appropriate way to deal with this would be for the SDTG to consider and discuss the matter fully and reach a stage where they were in agreement on the recommendations to be made. The SDTG would then meet jointly with the LPTG to discuss the recommendations they were putting forward. The LPTG would then consider those proposals before making a final recommendation to the Environment and Sustainability Committee for their consideration.
It was recognised that difficult decisions had to be made and that Staines town as the focal point for the borough needed to be the best design possible to maximise economic and residential opportunities. All Staines councillors were members of the SDTG, and every ward was represented in the LPTG which was as politically proportionate as possible to ensure fair representation. Officers advised that the relevant task groups were holding regular meetings and councillors were challenging and questioning all aspects of their work.
A question was asked as to whether the outline planning permission granted in 2008 for the waterfront site still stood and therefore subsequent planning applications could exercise that permission. The Chair believed, but could not confirm, that the last full permission had expired ... view the full minutes text for item 518