Agenda and draft minutes

The Chairman welcomed everyone to the meeting and explained its purpose, which was to discuss any areas of concern relating to the Planning and Transportation Service.

The minutes of the meeting held on 23^rd January, 2007 were agreed as a correct record.

Minute No. 19 - 4(6)(a)

Karl Battersby, Director Planning and Transportation, reported that a few Parish Councils had taken up his offer to visit to discuss any general planning issues or to do a presentation.  He reminded Parish Councils present that this offer still stood should they wish him to attend any of their meetings in the future.

Minute No. 19 – 4(7)(c)

A visit had been made to Ravenfield Parish Council to discuss various options for improvements to Ravenfield Crossroads.  Various proposals had now been considered and this information would be shared with the Parish Council.

Minute No. 20(3)

An update was provided on the available facilities for plastic recycling in Rotherham, background to recycling plastic, what was recyclable and recycling centre locations.

A copy of the full answer would be appended to the minutes and circulated to all Parish Councils.

Minute No. 20(4)

An update was provided on the contribution of derelict properties to the new dwelling figure, which was set in the Regional Spatial Strategy.  The Regional Spatial Strategy figures took account of clearance and vacancy rates.  The annual contribution from a reduction in the vacancy rate for Rotherham was set at zero as the local vacancy rate was below the 3.5% Regional Spatial Strategy target for vacant properties (Rotherham vacancy rate at 2006 was 2.6% - Regional AMR 2006).  As it was difficult to eliminate these factors in the long term, the gross figures given in the Regional Spatial Strategy were indicative.  The net figures were the building target that Rotherham had to meet.  Current net figures in the Draft Regional Spatial Strategy were 750 dwellings per annum for 2004-11 and 20011-16, 950 dwellings per annum for the period 2004-21.  These figures were subject to change in the Proposed Changes to Regional Spatial Strategy, expected in September, 2007.  Rotherham’s Local Development Framework would apportion the final Regional Spatial Strategy new dwelling requirement to identified growth areas in the borough in line with a sustainable settlement hierarchy.

Minute No. 21(a)

Discussions had take place and a response had been copied to the Chairman of the Parish Council regarding the provision of a footpath.

In summary, the provision of a footpath was unacceptable for the numbers of people that used it and the significant amount of money required to bring it up to acceptable standards.  A footpath in this location did not demonstrate value for money.

Whilst it was acknowledged the recent weather had attributed to the damage to the road surface along this stretch, there was another access point to the cemetery further along the A57.

A representative from Anston Parish Council asked if the housing development in this locality could contribute to the pavement via a Section 106 agreement as vehicles may pass down this road to get to the new development.

The Director of Planning and Transportation agreed to take back these suggestions and consider the requests further.

With regards to the speed limits through villages, a  ...  view the full minutes text for item 27.

The Director of Planning and Transportation, gave a presentation on Rotherham Town Centre Renaissance which drew specific attention to:-

·              Town Centre Goals.

·              Ten Goals Underpin:-

v           River/Canal.

v           Accessibility to Good Housing Stock in the Town Centre.

v           Network of Parks/Green Spaces Landscape.

v           Public Transport Network.

v           Centenary Way.

v           Forge Island,

v           New Civic Focus.

v           Best for Rotherham.

v           Community Access to Health, Education and Social Wellbeing.

v           Dynamic Local Economy.

·              Lot 1 – Guest/Chrimes Development.

·              The Site – Guest/Chrimes.

·              Statistics.

·              Civic Quarter Development – Timings.

·              Strategic Brief – R.M.B.C.

·              Site Layout.

·              Massing Model.

·              Local Design Influence.

·              Aspirations – New Civic Space.

·              Precedents.

·              Civic Quarter Development – Summary.

·              Express Parks – Lots 2 and 3.

·              Site 1 – Walker Place.

·              Site 2 – Drummond Street Car Park.

·              Site 3 – Covered Market.

·              Site 6 – Crinoline House.

·              Site 7 – ForgeIsland.

·              Site 8 – Bailey House.

·              Site 12 – Town Hall.

·              Phase 1, 2 and 3.

·              Westgate Demonstrator Project.

·              Westgate Demonstrator Public Realm.

·              Townscape Heritage Initiative.

·              Three CranesPlaza.

·              Templeborough to Rotherham Flood Alleviation Scheme.

·              Acquisitions.

·              Living Over The Shops.

·              New Projects.

·              Public Realm Strategy.

·              Transport Strategy.

·              Core Measures currently being remodelled in detail.

·              Railway Station Proposals.

·              Bus Station Proposals.

A question and answer session ensued and the following issues were clarified:-

-                 Car Parking Provision for the Town Centre.

-                 Relationship with Tesco and how on board they were with the proposals.

-                 Whether the latest floods had impacted on the plans.

-                 Inclusion of Wellgate’s high retail area in the plans for the town centre.

-                 Plans for the old Cinema on Doncaster Gate.

-                 Finance for the plans and confidence to bring these schemes to fruition.

-                 Improvements to the town centre and the impact this may have on surrounding districts.

Agreed:-  That Karl Battersby, Director of Planning and Transportation, be thanked for his very informative presentation.

(Submitted by Bramley Parish Council)

Discussion took place on the following local issues, which were reported by representatives of the Parish and Town Councils:-

(a)     What action is the Highway Authority able to take to cure the problems of traffic congestion and poor air quality on the A631 Bawtry Road between the M18 Junction at Hellaby, through Bramley and the bus lane at Wickersley, to the Wickersley Tanyard area?

         The Director of Planning and Transportation was unable to provide a quick fix to this problem as the area was not designated an air management watch area.

         In terms of the traffic congestion, there would be some work undertaken on the M18 motorway roundabout, which would improve flow and congestion in this hotspot.  In addition, the A631 was a quality bus corridor which encouraged motorists to leave their cars and to use public transport.

(b)     The Parish Council are concerned about road safety and speed issues throughout the villages of Woodsetts and Dinnington and wondered what the Council and the Police could do about any speed restrictions.

         The Parish Council were very concerned about vehicle speeds as the 30 mph recommended speed limit was being ignored.

         The Transportation Representative confirmed that the Council did have a budget for the introduction of road safety schemes and took into account the accident records in particular hotspots.  Therefore, Woodsetts was not highlighted as having cause for concern.

         It was pointed out that there were probably accidents occurring that went unreported and the need for informing the Police and the Council when any such incident occurred was emphasised.

         It was suggested that if the concerns were significant then a request should be resubmitted for a pedestrian crossing given that the route of concern was used when there were incidents on the A57.

(c)     There are increasing concerns about the company, Arkwrights, between Gildingwells and Dinnington and the impact this is having on Woodsetts.  The company was based in Dinnington, but used H.G.V.’s on the poor road network.  The Parish Council were concerned about the effect this was having on Woodsetts and the surrounding villages and believed a notice had been served on the company.

         Woodsetts Parish Council were also concerned that once the new Village Hall was completed and the recreation ground being used, that the safety of users would be in jeopardy with the speeding lorries coming through the village.

         The Transportation Representative was unable to confirm what the notice referred to had been issued for.  Liaison would take place with South Yorkshire Police to determine the nature of the notice.

(d)     The road from Hill Top and Firsby was full of very large potholes and could only be passable with a four wheeled drive vehicle.  The villages of Firsby and Hooton Roberts requested that the road be repaired and resurfaced as soon as possible so residents and emergency services could access the properties.

         The Director of Planning and Transportation agreed to pass this request to his colleagues in Streetpride for a response.

(a)     A representative from Todwick Parish Council contacted Streetpride and, having listened to their recorded message about recycling, suggested that a message in English be recorded without background noise.

         This suggestion would be forwarded onto the relevant service.

(b)     A representative from Treeton Parish Council expressed his concern about the proposed works on West Bawtry Road dual carriageway and asked what plans there were to improve the air pollution in this area and around Whiston crossroads.

         The Director of Planning and Transportation could not recall any environmental enhancements to the West Bawtry Road scheme.  The intention of the scheme was to improve the road network and make it more accessible to users.

         Any enhancements on this scheme would be fed back to the Parish Council in due course.

Councillor Smith thanked the Parish Councils’ representatives for their attendance and closed the meeting at 7.30 p.m.