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 the 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 all Members present.

RESOLVED:  To note that the following interest was declared:

To consider whether any of the items listed on the agenda should be considered with the press and public excluded on the grounds that it is thought likely, in view of the nature of the business to be transacted, that there would be disclosure of confidential information in breach of an obligation of confidence or of exempt information as defined in the Local Government (Access to Information) Act 1985.

RESOLVED:  That all items be considered with the press and public present with the exception of the following items for the reasons set out below:

That the minutes of the meeting held on 14 July 2005, having been circulated, be taken as read and signed as a correct record.

RESOLVED:  That, subject to the following amendment, the minutes of the meeting held on 14 July 2005, having been circulated, be taken as read and signed as a correct record:

Minute 58, Café Culture:  Resolution be amended to read: 

“That the draft Café Culture Guide for Harrow Town Centre be approved.”

To receive petitions (if any) submitted by members of the public/Councillors under the provisions of Executive Procedure Rule 14 (Part 4B of the Constitution).

RESOLVED:  To note that no petitions had been received at this meeting under the provisions of Executive Procedure Rule 14 (Part 4D of the Constitution).

To receive any public questions received in accordance with paragraph 15 of the Executive Procedure Rules.

RESOLVED:  To note that no public questions were put at the meeting under the provisions of Executive Procedure Rule 15 (Part 4D of the Constitution).

Report of the Director of Strategic Planning.

The Director of Strategic Planning reported orally at the meeting on this matter, both in the public and private sessions of the meeting.  He reported that the Council had received a planning application from Dandara Ltd for the redevelopment of 51 College Road, the old Post Office site.

The Director advised that the Council was consulting widely on the planning application.  He stated that the application would be considered by the Development Control Committee in due course and that the merits of the application would be judged against the Council’s adopted policies for Harrow Town Centre and the Planning Brief for the Harrow?on?the?Hill Station site.

The Panel was also informed that the office building adjacent to the bus station in Harrow Town Centre had been purchased by a property company and that officers were discussing whether this could be included in any future development.

Additionally, the Council was holding discussions with Harrow College on their accommodation strategy which they intended to submit to the Learning and Skills Council in January 2006.

RESOLVED:  That the oral report be noted.

Report of the Director of Strategic Planning.

The Director of Strategic Planning and an officer introduced the report and responded to questions from Members of the Panel.

The Director sought the Panel’s approval to the appointment of a consultant design team to prepare a public realm strategy for Harrow Town Centre and the Brief circulated with the agenda.  He also sought Members’ views on the extent of their own involvement in the selection process for a consultant.

An officer reported that it was intended to create a high quality public realm in conjunction with a multi-disciplinary consultant team who had a proven track record in public realm design and its delivery.  He explained that the consultant team would implement the proposals and deal with all engineering and technical issues.  He added that, subject to the approval of the draft Brief, the tender process would commence after Christmas 2005 with a view to appointing a consultant by March 2006.

In response to questions from Members of the Panel on the Brief, the Director and the officer responded as follows:

Vision and Objectives

·                     that it was intended to create a distinct identity for Harrow Town Centre in order to distinguish it from its competitors such as Brent Cross and Watford Shopping Centres;

·                     that whilst there may be some benefits in taking a consistent approach to the public realm for Harrow as a whole, it was important for Harrow Town Centre to have a distinct identity which would distinguish Harrow from competing shopping centres;

·                     that the priority was to regenerate Harrow Town Centre and to create a high quality public realm that provided a unique sense of place and a unique Harrow identity that was distinctive;

·                     that lessons could be learnt which could be developed for Harrow’s other District Centres;

·                     that the Council’s procurement team would be involved in the process;

·                     that the consultant appointed would be expected to develop designs to a stage where they could be implemented and that the Council was not looking to appoint a contractor to implement the design at this early stage.

The Portfolio Holder for Environment and Transport considered this scheme as a pilot and supported the concept.  He stated that officers should to be mindful of asking the consultant appointed to create a design that could be adapted for Harrow’s District Centres.  He emphasised the need for close liaison between the consultant appointed and the Council’s procurement team, and the Director undertook to ensure that this issue was addressed in the Brief.

Two Members opposed the proposal to pay a maximum of £5,000 to consultant teams shortlisted to cover the costs of preparing a detailed tender and an outline design approach in response to the Brief.  They noted the reasons behind this approach but were of the view that this approach was fundamentally inappropriate.

In response to comments from other Members of the Panel, the Director stated that:-

·                     the consultant appointed would be asked to create a physical environment which had economic/commercial benefits on the scheme but emphasised that the scheme was  ...  view the full minutes text for item 68.

Report of the Director of Strategic Planning.

The Panel considered a confidential report of the Director of Strategic Planning which provided a brief history of the proposed ‘Hanging Gardens’ and surface treatment works in Clarendon Road.

The Director reported on the changes in the scheme prepared by Alsop & Partners, the consultants appointed by the Council to oversee improvements to Clarendon Road.  He sought the Panel’s views on whether the proposed scheme should proceed in whole or in part, and advised Members of the benefits or otherwise of each of the options. He advised that the surface treatment works provided good value for money.

RESOLVED:  That the provision within the agreed Capital Programme for Harrow Town Centre, to reflect the omission of the ‘Hanging Garden’ element from the Clarendon Road Public Realm proposals, be agreed.