|
In July 2007 the government invited expressions of interest from local authorities and the private sector in the development of Eco-towns. Eco-towns are described as small new towns of at least 5-20,000 homes designed to achieve zero carbon development and more sustainable living using the best new design and architecture.
St Modwen and the Bird Group submitted an expression of interest to the Government for the development of an Eco-town of 6000 dwellings which they are referring to as 'Middle Quinton'. The site extends to 240 hectares and includes the former Engineers Depot now owned by St Modwen and the Birds site to the south-west which is within Wychavon/Worcestershire. The submission documents which have been produced by the landowners are available to download.
A hard copy of the submission documents are available for inspection at Customer Services in Elizabeth House.
Consultation on shortlisted sites
The government published a short list of fifteen locations to go through to the next stage of consultation. This shortlist included the 'Middle Quinton' proposal. The government have set out four key stages in the planning process as follows:
Stage One : Three month consultation on preliminary views on eco-town benefits and the shortlisted locations; Completed. See Previous Consultation Summer 2008.
Stage Two : Further consultation on a Sustainability Appraisal and a draft Planning Policy Statement; Current consultation ends 30 April 2009. See below.
Stage Three : A decision on the list of the locations with potential to be an eco-town as part of the final Planning Policy Statement, late Spring 2009;
Stage Four: Submission of planning applications.
Stage 2 Consultation
The government has launched the second stage of the eco-towns consultation with publication of a draft Eco-Towns Planning Policy Statement (PPS) and an accompanying Sustainability Appraisal (SA). The Middle Quinton proposal remains within the shortlist of 12 locations.
The draft PPS sets green standards for new development, including achieving zero carbon status across all the buildings in the eco-town and allocating 40% of the area within the town to be green space. The PPS also states that individual eco-towns will need to submit planning applications in the same way as any other major development proposal.
The SA identifies and evaluates the likely impact of the proposals on the local economy, community and environment, and considers reasonable alternatives. This consultation will be on 12 shortlisted locations, as a result of the Sustainability Appraisals and the previous decision of some promoters to withdraw from this process. The SA includes sections on each of the shortlisted locations, and the Middle Quinton Section of the SA can be downloaded here.
This current round of consultation has been extended until 30 April 2009. As part of this consultation a new government website has been launched to both explain the eco-towns concept and standards, and to invite comments and ideas:
Eco-towns - Have Your Say
Further information, publications and news releases can be found on the CLG website.
Assessment Work
In order to inform the response to the second stage consultation, the Council, togther with its partners, has commissioned additional technical assessments of the Middle Quinton proposal. The following documents are now available:
The Council's Response
The six local authorities directly affected by the Middle Quinton proposal have prepared a Joint Response to the second stage consultation. This response has been endorsed by the District Council and submitted to Communities and Local Government for consideration. Notwithstanding the additional information that has been produced as part of the second stage consultation, the Councils remain opposed to this proposal.
The key elements of the joint response are summarised below:
- Because of their strategic significance the PPS should include a clear statement that eco-towns would only be acceptable where they have been considered within and supported by the development plan process.
- Changes are sought to the proposed locational principles set out in the draft PPS which would enable the consideration of smaller eco-communities within or adjacent to existing urban areas.
- Detailed comments are provided on the proposed Eco-town standards set out in the draft PPS seeking clearer, more robust standards and the use of performance phasing to ensure compliance with the standards.
- The remote rural location of the Middle Quinton site, where accessibility is constrained by physical features such as the River Avon and the Cotswolds AONB, is such that it cannot be considered to be a sustainable location for the development of an Eco-town. Detailed comments are made on the Sustainability Appraisal (SA) for the Middle Quinton proposal. These conclude that the weaknesses of the location are such that the SA should have rejected the Middle Quinton location outright.
- Should the proposal proceed, contrary to the strong objections of the local authorities, then the provision of sustainable transport links and the impact of the proposal on the local road network will be critical. This requires a much more thorough assessment than the Strategic Transport Assessment undertaken to date, and the proposal would need to deliver a step change in the provision and utilisation of all forms of public transport in the local area.
- The independent viability assessment commissioned by the local authorities concludes that the development is not viable with a deficit of £373 million. Substantial public subsidy would be required to support the development. Such public expenditure would be better directed to sustainable urban locations where needs can be matched with opportunities and existing infrastructure can be utilised more effectively.
In addition to the Joint Response, the Leaders of the six local authorities have sent a letter to the Housing and Planning Minister, Margaret Beckett MP expressing the Councils' contiued opposition to the Middle Quinton Eco-town proposal.
Working Groups
The Council has established Joint Working Groups at both Officer and Member level.
For further information please contact the Planning Policy team on 01789 260337, by emailing planning@stratford-dc.gov.uk, or by fax on 01789 260330.
If you have any questions about the eco-town debate or if you would like to leave us your comments, please e-mail ecotown.debate@stratford-dc.gov.uk
|
