Agenda and minutes

To note the attendance at this meeting of any duly appointed Reserve Members.

Reserve Members may attend meetings:-

(i)                 to take the place of an ordinary Member for whom they are a reserve;

(ii)               where the ordinary Member will be absent for the whole of the meeting; and

(iii)             the meeting notes at the start of the meeting at the item ‘Reserves’ that the Reserve Member is or will be attending as a reserve;

(iv)              if a Reserve Member whose intention to attend has been noted arrives after the commencement of the meeting, then that Reserve Member can only act as a Member from the start of the next item of business on the agenda after his/her arrival.

RESOLVED:  To note the attendance at this meeting of the following duly appointed Reserve Member:-

To receive declarations of personal or prejudicial interests, arising from business to be transacted at this meeting, from:

(a)               all Members of the Panel;

(b)               all other Members present.

RESOLVED:  To note that there were no declarations of interests made by Members.

That the minutes of the meeting held on 27 July 2011 be taken as read and signed as a correct record.

RESOLVED:  That the minutes of the meeting held on 27 July 2011, be taken as read and signed as a correct record.

To receive questions (if any) from local residents or organisations under the provisions of Executive Procedure Rule 51 (Part 4D of the Constitution).

RESOLVED:  To note that no public questions were put, or petitions or deputations received at this meeting under the provisions of Committee Procedure Rules 17, 15 and 16 (Part 4B of the Constitution) respectively.

Report of the Corporate Director of Place Shaping

The Divisional Director for Planning gave an extensive presentation on the progress to date with regard to the emerging spatial vision for the Heart of Harrow Intensification Area, setting out a draft Spatial Vision for the entire Harrow and Wealdstone Intensification Area.  He also referred to the appendix which had been circulated late as the information was still being compiled at the time of agenda dispatch.  He briefly recapped on the issues that faced the borough:

?                    planned growth

?                    “Tired” looking town centres

?                    suburbs under threat

?                    uncertain infrastructure and service planning

?                    lack of confidence, including developer/investor interest

?                    lack of visibility in London

?                    unclear and uncertain spatial vision 

?                    fear/resistance

?                    community ownership

He then spoke on the need to establish a more secure future for development, including the identification to date of seven sub-areas for the Harrow and Wealdstone Intensification Area, each with an individual role and emerging set of objectives to help guide future development.  He advised that the draft Plan sought to address the issues of sub-standard infrastructure and that, to date, the consultation forums held had led to the drawing up of the emergent forms of development and green areas presented to the Panel.  It was recognised that whilst there was anxiety concerning the proposals for new development, the consultation had started to identify resident desires and expectations around the need for higher quality development and a more diverse and stronger street / café culture.

The Divisional Director then briefly took the Panel through the emerging views for each as follows:

Harrow:  Harrow Metropolitan Centre was divided into three separate areas. The Western Gateway and Town Centre East were essentially areas of transition between the town centre commercial core and surrounding residential area, with the mix of uses, densities and scale of development gradually reducing towards the sub area boundary.  The Town Centre sub-area comprised the main retail and commercial core of the Intensification Area.  It typified Harrow’s Metropolitan character, and development here would be required to be of a type and scale that reaffirmed Harrow’s Metropolitan Centre role, by extending the retail and commercial offer and through the creation of a network of quality public spaces.  It was considered the most appropriate part of the Intensification Area to locate a tall “landmark” building, marking the Town Centre’s borough-wide role and importance.

Station Road:  The main objective for the sub-area was to improve the High Road character and enhance its role in linking the two main shopping areas, especially for pedestrians, cyclists and bus users, utilising development sites as “stepping stones” along the way.  Public realm improvements, allied to improvements to key junctions to smooth traffic flow, would strengthen the High Road character.  Higher densities would be limited to the road frontage reducing where they met the surrounding residential area.  Street enhancements to Hindes and Elmgrove Roads would provide a green corridor linking two significant parcels of open space serving the sub-area.  Greenhill Way car park, Tesco and the Civic Centre were identified as key development sites.

Wealdstone:  Wealdstone  ...  view the full minutes text for item 68.

Members noted the updates with respect to the various projects listed.

The Chair referred to the need to identify an alternative solution for a potential re-siting of the Civic Centre library with a state of the art facility for the future but noted that there were various potential possibilities available to the Council for the future consideration of its land use.

A Member requested an update with regard to Bradstowe House expressing his concern at the issues of graffiti and trespass which affected the site.  The Leader of the Council expressed his own disappointment with regard to progress on the site but advised that the Council were charging a rent for the ongoing encroachment on the pavement area which prevented thoroughfare use.  The Divisional Director Planning advised that the most recent negotiations with the developer had resulted in their stating that the project was unlikely to restart unless the current residential Market improved to make the commerciality of the development more viable.  He further stated that several proposed change requests to the planning application had been informally received and that, to date, a number of the proposals tabled were unlikely to meet appropriate planning application standards.  He was hopeful that the proposed intensification programme works would assist in a change to the external investment profile of Harrow which would then promote greater confidence and provide an opportunity to move the development forward emphasising that there was currently no simple solution to the issues faced by the developer.

RESOLVED:  That the update be noted.

Members considered which items they would like to receive at their next meeting.  Officers advised they were working with the Youth parliament for a future submission to the Panel on youth aspirations for the Borough.

Members agreed that Transport for London (TfL) be invited to the next meeting to speak on its broad approach to managing traffic flows in the future as part of its “managing place” strategy.

It was noted that the AAP would also return to a future meeting for further discussion and that Land Securities had indicated an interest in presenting to the next meeting with respect to aspirations for the Kodak site.