Winchester City Borough Council West of Waterlooville Forum Meeting

The meeting was held virtually and the Chairperson welcomed representatives to the first meeting of the new municipal year.

            RESOLVED:

That, Councillor Robinson be appointed Vice Chairperson of the Forum for the 2022/23 Municipal Year.

There were no disclosures of interest made at the meeting.

RESOLVED:

That future meetings of the Forum take place virtually at 6pm on the dates as set out on the agenda.

Arising from the minutes of the previous meeting, various points were raised as follows:

·         Policing of the development – Councillor Crichton advised that the previous matter regarding the Police and Crime Commissioner had been referred to senior officers with the proposal that policing of the development would be covered by Waterlooville going forward.

·         Forthcoming planning applications – Councillor Crichton reported that the application for Phase 3b was still to be approved and asked that this be considered at the earliest convenience.

In response, Rose Chapman reported that in respect of Phase 3b, the latest update from was that there were several highways issues remaining before progress could be made and that she would liaise with planning officers at Havant Borough Council going forward.

·         Community Officer position – Councillor Crichton raised concern that Havant Borough Council had advised that they could no longer provide the Community Officer role going forward which he stated would make it difficult for the Parish Council to monitor the development.

In response to the points raised, Steve Lincoln advised that he had spoken with Tracy Vear and Havant Borough Council had advised that they were experiencing difficulties recruiting to the position. The Community Officer role was a time limited post within the s106 agreement that was approaching the end of its contract. Resourcing of this post within the s.106 agreement was to be provided by Grainger plc and as such Havant Borough Council would return any residual funding to them in this respect as it was unable to fulfil recruitment any further. It was noted that Mark Maitland’s role at WCC does include support to communities. However, his role is not dedicated to Newlands and the development so his capacity to provide ongoing support would be limited. In conclusion, Councillor Robinson advised that she would clarify the position further and report back directly to Councillor Crichton in due course.

·         Update from Taylor Wimpey – Councillor Crichton provided a verbal update, on behalf of Taylor Wimpey, setting out their latest position on site. He advised that Taylor Wimpey were currently working towards the adoption of the spine road which had two outstanding matters in relation to the s104 agreement with Southern Water waiting for a response from Winchester City Council and the street lighting standards with what was expected prior to the installation of new LED lighting by Hampshire Highways upon road adoption. The delay to street lighting matters would have a knock on effect to other works, such as the surfacing of the cycle path.

·         Adoption of Open Space agreement at Wellington Park by Havant Borough Council – Councillor Crichton reported that adoption of the open space at Wellington Park remained an ongoing issue to be addressed.

·         Proxima Park – Councillor Crichton reported that there had been complications to the completion of this development due to changes in management agents. 

Following discussion of the minutes, it was agreed that future agendas of the Forum include an ‘Any Other Business’ item to allow for any additional matters to be raised.

RESOLVED:

That the minutes of the previous meeting, held on 8 March 2022, be approved and adopted.

No members of the public were present to make representations

Grainger

Grainger development update – The Chairperson welcomed Asim Kayani (Grainger plc) to the meeting. He provided a verbal update on the physical development of the site and made reference to the following points:

-       Current occupations were 1,026 on the Berewood site

-       Infrastructure works: Recently awarded the tender for the western link road which links the southern and northern section together within Berewood. This was a ten month programme which was ongoing

-       Road remedials had been carried out as part of the s38 agreement in terms of handing these over to Hampshire County Council as part of the arrangement

-       Land sell of Phase 5a and Phase 3b to Bloor Homes. Phase 5a planning application had been approved by Winchester City Council and Bloor Homes were now on site, with Phase 3b planning application in the process of being determined by Havant Borough Council.

-       There had been an exchange on further land parcels Phase 9c and Phase 11a with Redrow for 192 units. Redrow were currently preparing a reserve matters application to be submitted to Winchester City Council in due course.

In conclusion, Grainger offered the opportunity for members to visit the site for a walkabout and presentation to see how work had progressed in previous years with the development.

Arising out of questions from members of the Forum, the following issues were discussed:

Sports Pavilion – Councillor Crichton reported on outstanding matters and made reference to the footpath which was awaiting approval from Hampshire County Council and the Ramblers Association.

In response, it was noted that representatives from Grainger had met with the ramblers on site several weeks ago to go address their comments and they had since confirmed their approval of the proposed footpath diversion. Hampshire County Council Countryside Team had also given their approval and were discussing matters internally with Hampshire Highways. They would report back in due course on how to progress to next stage of legally approving the diversion to resolve the matter.

Signage – Councillor Berry requested the provision of welcome signage for Newlands. The Chairperson agreed that she would discuss this further with officers and provide an update in due course.

B2150 Issues – The Chairperson advised the Forum that the meeting that was due to take place regarding B2150 issues, was cancelled at that time. It was hoped that this would be rescheduled in due course.

RESOLVED:

That the verbal report be noted.