| 128 | APOLOGIES FOR ABSENCE |
| | | Apologies of absence were received from Councillors Crack and Hunter. |
|
| 129 | DECLARATIONS OF INTEREST |
| | | There were no declarations of interest.
|
| The Committee agreed to reverse the order of the reports as printed on the agenda and has been minuted in the order the items were taken. |
|
| 130 | CHATHAM ROAD SCHEME |
| | Discussion: |
| | | The Committee received a presentation from Mott MacDonald, the engineers working on behalf of the Council on the road scheme proposals for Chatham Town Centre, which provided details of the proposed phase 2 road scheme for Chatham.
|
| Members asked questions and made comments which included but was not limited to: capacity assurances, plans for the Pentagon and how the area along the Brook could be improved to have retail frontages and a footway under the Pentagon next to the Brook, estimated times of travel along particular routes, pathways and crossings for pedestrians, plans for the green space and the memorial at the Gibraltar Hill area, provision for service vehicles at the High Street and the Pentagon, provisions for taxi ranks, the long term use of the proposed temporary bus route, the timing for any reduction in parking spaces and the impact of the bus facility on the Paddock and the net difference in the Paddock area.
|
| Officers also undertook to correct the location of the potential Bowater park and ride which had been incorrectly indicated on a map in the presentation. |
|
| | > Chatham Road Scheme (pdf file 498.5kb) |
| | Decision: |
| | | That Cabinet is recommended to approve the following recommendations as set out in paragraph 7.1 of the report:
|
| | (i) | approve the phase 2 works;
|
| | (ii) | approve the final layout for the bus facility, subject to the Council, as landowners, advertising the appropriation of that part of the proposed site currently forming open space to bus facility (and delegate authority to the Director of Regeneration, Community and Culture, in consultation with the Portfolio Holder, to issue the relevant advertisement and consider any objections and determine whether or not to appropriate the land;
|
| | (iii) | recommend to Council that the Council makes a Compulsory Purchase Order for the acquisition of any land required for the road scheme which cannot be acquired by negotiation, and
|
| | (iv) | delegate authority to the Assistant Director, Housing and Corporate Services, in consultation with the Portfolio Holder for Finance, all aspects of estate management of the land acquired, including the grant of short term leases and licences and the surrender or variation of existing interests,
and in addition Cabinet consider the following additional recommendations from the Committee:
|
| | (v) | That more consultation be undertaken on the Gibraltar Hill area with local residents, particularly with regard to the future of the Waghorn Memorial, the obelisk and the green space;
|
| | (vi) | That greater clarity be given on the phasing of the car parking around Chatham Town Centre;
|
| | (vii) | That careful consideration be given to the access of service vehicles to the High Street and Pentagon areas;
|
| | (viii) | That clarification be given to the provision of taxi facilities, particularly near to the bus facility and that the possibility of using the bus facility as a taxi rank at night be explored;
|
| | (ix) | That clarification is sought from the owners of the Pentagon on the future plans for the area and that greater clarification on plans for the interface of the Brook and the Pentagon be sought;
|
| | (x) | That investigations take place into the long-term use of the temporary bus route. |
|
| 131 | CHATHAM CENTRE AND WATERFRONT DEVELOPMENT BRIEF |
| | Discussion: |
| | | The Chatham Project Manager gave a presentation to the Committee on the main areas of revision to the masterplans and Development Brief for Chatham Centre and Waterfront, which had been made in response to the consultation carried out.
|
| Members made comments and asked questions which included but was not limited to: the two towers which had been removed from the river frontage, the future plans of Tesco's, the tall buildings zone, the plans for the pumping station, the positioning of the proposed theatre, the use of the green space available, the positioning of the landmark building, the increased recognition of the barrier ditch and plans for the area around the historical buildings in Chatham, for example Fort Amherst. |
|
| | > Chatham Centre and Waterfront (pdf file 4.8Mb) |
| | Decision: |
| | | That Cabinet is recommended to adopt the revised masterplans and Development Brief, as set out in the report and consider the following key points from the Committee:
|
| | (i) | That the opening of the Great Lines Ditch be endorsed and that the listed structures be noted and careful consideration of their future be given;
|
| | (ii) | That the exact location of the landmark building be determined at the time of a planning application;
|
| | (iii) | That the design of the cultural building be sensitive to the park;
|
| | (iv) | That it is noted that the buildings on the masterplans are purely indicative at this stage;
|
| | (v) | That an intention be endorsed to ensure Rats Bay Pumping Station is as unobtrusive as possible by either its relocation or other means. |
|