Winchester City Borough Council Local Plan Advisory Group Meeting

None

None.

Several representations from members were considered under the respective agenda item.

Councillor Horrill raised that agenda item of 7 of the previous minutes included an action that the Partnership for South Hampshire (PfSH) strategic area development be discussed at a future meeting. It was agreed by the Chairperson that this should be an agenda item at the next meeting.

RESOLVED:

1.    That the minutes of the previous meeting held on 1 July 2021 be agreed as a correct record.

2.    That the agenda for the next meeting of the group include an item regarding the Partnership for South Hampshire (PfSH) strategic area development

Councillor David Ashe, Upham Parish Council addressed the meeting regarding several entries in the SHELAA that he felt would impact Upham and the surrounding area. Specifically, Councillor Ashe referred to sites around Mortimers Lane and the impact development here would have upon the National Park, the local roads, and drainage. He referred to Eastleigh Borough Councils Examination in Public (EiP) in 2019 regarding sites in Mortimers Lane and felt that the sieving process of the SHELAA should prevent sites like these from coming forward. The Chairperson responded to the points raised and noted Councillor Ashe’s comments.

Councillor Eleanor Bell, Hursley Parish Council addressed the meeting regarding several issues including the timescales for the publication of the regulation 18, the benefit of the Strategic Planning team working closely with smaller parish councils, the unmet need requirements from the Partnership for South Hampshire and whether there would be a further iteration of the SHELAA. The Strategic Planning Manager responded to the points raised.

Leanne Cooper addressed the meeting and asked for further information concerning the timescales for the publication of the finalised plans of housing build numbers and the specific sites being proposed. The Strategic Planning Manager responded to the points raised.

Councillor Read asked if officers would provide a hard copy of the finalised SHELAA as this would normally only be retained on the Councillor iPad for a relatively short period.

Councillor Laming addressed the meeting regarding concerns from residents of Badgers Farm and Oliver’s Battery. He believed it was vital that full assessments of the impact of development on the local environment and infrastructure were undertaken before any decisions were made on potential sites for development. 

The Chairperson thanked the speakers for their contributions.   

Bridgid Taylor, Principal Planning Officer provided the advisory group with a presentation that had previously been circulated to members regarding the Strategic Housing and Employment Land Availability Assessment. The presentation was available on the council's website at this link. The presentation provided members with a high-level overview of progress made to date on the SHELAA including the sites that had so far been put forward for assessment.

Members made several comments and asked several questions concerning the presentation which included the following:

·         further information regarding the site proposed for gypsy and traveller accommodation in Boarhunt

·         whether additional meetings of this group would be scheduled before SHELAA publication?

·         whether officers were aware of the housing requirements flowing from PfSH and how much of this may be accommodated in the Winchester district?

·         whether officers could advise of the likely completion date of processing of all data?

·         a request to differentiate between sites that were new to the SHELAA and those that had been identified previously

·         details on the level and type of participation and interaction with the PfSH

·         at which stage would the SHELAA identify numbers of individual units on sites?

·         how long was the SHELAA valid for?

·         the process concerning the withdrawal of the Royaldown site

These questions were responded to by officers and the Chairperson accordingly.

RESOLVED:

1.    That the presentation and update be noted

2.  That officers consider the points made by members

Adrian Fox, Strategic Planning Manager provided the advisory group with a presentation that had previously been circulated to members regarding the “Responses to the Strategic Issues and Priorities consultation”. The presentation was available on the council's website at this link. The presentation provided members with an update concerning the comments and responses regarding the Local Plan Vision and Development Strategy including an overview of the number of responses and the method of response and a summary of the key points under each of the consultation questions. 

Members made several comments and asked several questions concerning the presentation which included the following:

·         the benefit of having a vision that looked beyond the local plan timeframe for example to 2050

·         how did student accommodation fit within the Vision?

·         whether a working group could be established to specifically work up a vision for the district?

·         the importance of re-using and re-purposing of buildings instead of demolition

·         members aspirations for the highest possible building codes

These questions were responded to by officers and the Chairperson accordingly.

Steve Opacic, Strategic Planning Projects Officer continued the presentation and focussed on specific elements of the Vision and Strategic Issues. Mr Opacic updated members regarding the officer analysis from part 1 of the Homes for All element of the Vision and the proposed recommendations and way forward.

Members made several comments and asked several questions concerning the presentation which included the following:

·         clarification regarding the scale used for the graph on page 68 of the report

·         had the duty to co-operate regarding PfSH unmet demand already been satisfied via previous development?

·         the impact to the Southern Parishes from the level of development envisaged in the presentation slides

·         the importance of maintaining a strategic gap between rural settlements

·         member involvement in the site selection process

·         the timescale for the completion of the data analysis

·         the importance of climate change and the climate emergency being central to the Vision and the steps being taken

·         are discussions being undertaken with the South Downs National Park Authority regarding their allocation of sites and units?

·         are there sufficient City Council resources to assist Parish Councils with their Village Design Statements and Neighbourhood plans?

·         how Local Plan policies could help resolve issues of viability when applications come forward to the Planning committee?

These questions were responded to by officers and the Chairperson accordingly.

RESOLVED:

1.    That the presentation and update be noted

2.  That officers consider the points made by members

Adrian Fox, Strategic Planning manager summarised the various workstreams that officers were focussing on for the next period, these include:

·         2 further meetings of this group before the end of the year

·         the Landscape and Characterisation assessment

·         the Open Space Strategy

·         the analysis of representations

·         the Local Plan viability assessment

·         the assessment of various PfSH tenders

·         the presentation of the SHELAA to the cabinet

Following a question regarding the timescales for completion of the Vision, Mr Fox advised that further work was required on this element but at this stage, work was being prioritised on completion of the analysis of the representations and completion of the SHELAA.