Agenda and minutes

Venue: Livery Hall - Guildhall

Contact: Gemma Stokley
tel. no.: 020 7332 3414  Email: gemma.stokley@cityoflondon.gov.uk

Items
No. Item

1.

Apologies

Minutes:

Introductions

The Town Clerk opened the meeting by introducing herself and stating that the Committee was quorate.

 

A roll call of Members present was undertaken.

 

The Town Clerk highlighted that the meeting was being recorded as well as live streamed and would be made available on the City Corporation’s YouTube page for a period of time after the meeting had concluded. With this in mind, it was confirmed that participants in the meeting had all individually agreed and given their consent to being recorded and that all personal data would be processed in accordance with the Data Protection Act 2018. The Town Clerk highlighted that, for further information on this, viewers could contact the City Corporation using the details provided on the public webpages.

 

The Chair then introduced himself and welcomed all those in attendance and viewing the meeting via YouTube.

 

Apologies for absence were received from Henry Colthurst, Peter Dunphy, Natasha Lloyd – Owen, Oliver Lodge and Sylvia Moys.

 ...  view the full minutes text for item 1.

2.

Members' Declarations under the Code of Conduct in respect of items on the agenda

Minutes:

The Chair – Deputy Alastair Moss - declared a professional conflict of interest in relation to an objection received on agenda Item 4 – 15 Minories, 57-60 & 62 Aldgate High Street and 1 Little Somerset Street, London, EC3 - and advised that, as such, he would withdraw from the meeting for the duration of this item and allow the Deputy Chairman to manage this.

 

 ...  view the full minutes text for item 2.

3.

Minutes pdf icon PDF 331 KB

To agree the public minutes and summary of the meeting held on 17 November 2020.

 ...  view the full agenda text for item 3.

Minutes:

The Committee considered the public minutes and summary of the meeting held virtually on 17 November 2020 and approved them as a correct record.

 

MATTERS ARISING

Anonymisation in Minutes – A Member commented that, whilst he felt that the draft minutes had been well written, they were also bound by the convention that Member contributions were to be anonymised. For the sake of transparency, the Member asked that they be amended so that Members asking questions or making comments were identified by name and that this was now done in the minutes of all future meetings of this Committee. The Member also proposed that the way that individual Members voted at this Committee were recorded within the minutes. He concluded by stating that, whilst he would normally provide the Chair to and Committee Clerk with advanced written warning of any proposed amendments the minutes, he had not done so on this occasion as he felt that there had been recent efforts within the Corporation to limit and control Member participation in meetings and he wanted to protest against this.

 

The Chair commented that he was not opposed to Members being named within the minutes but asked the Town Clerk to comment on the current convention and the background to this. The Town Clerk reported that, as already stated, it was convention across all Corporation Committees and Sub-Committees that Member contributions and votes were anonymised. If the Committee as a whole were supportive of changing this practice for these meetings this could be considered. The Town Clerk added that, at present, all meetings were broadcast live and were also recorded so that all Member contributions were visible and the way in which individual Members voted was fully transparent.

 

Another Member spoke to state that, as this Committee had a quasi-judicial role,

 ...  view the full minutes text for item 3.

4.

15 MINORIES, 57-60 & 62 ALDGATE HIGH STREET AND 1 LITTLE SOMERSET STREET LONDON EC3 pdf icon PDF 3 MB

Report of the Interim Chief Planning Officer and Development Director.

 ...  view the full agenda text for item 4.

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The Committee considered a report of the Interim Chief Planning Officer and Development Director regarding 15 Minories, 57-60 & 62 Aldgate High Street and 1 Little Somerset Street, London, EC3, specifically, the demolition of existing structures, and erection of a mixed use office building Class B1(a), including ground floor Class A1, Class A3, and Class A4 uses. (30,901 sq. m. gea.).

 

The Interim Chief Planning Officer and Development Director presented the application and also drew Members’ attention to the fact that an addendum to the report had been circulated and published yesterday afternoon as had some late representations from an objector. Members were informed that the site in question had a very long and convoluted planning history, spanning back more than 15 years. Officers commented that this was probably a reflection of the challenging nature of the site which had a number of subterranean constraints such as tunnels. It was highlighted that this was a key, strategic location for the City, on the eastern gateway to the City, directly opposite Aldgate tube station.

 

Members were shown images of the existing site which Officers referred to as undistinguished introduction to the City. Officers reported that, in 2014,  this Committee had resolved to grant a fairly transformational Master Plan to address this entire site going as far down as to the Guinness Estate at the northern end which involved three separate buildings – one residential block to the south, a hotel scheme in the centre and an office scheme on Aldgate High Street. There was therefore a permission which had been implemented on this site and the southern residential building had been built out to shell and core, the hotel building was nearing completion and set to open in Spring 2021. This proposal therefore only related to the office component of

 ...  view the full minutes text for item 4.

5.

Bridge House Estates, Colechurch House, SE1 - Proposed Removal of the Elevated Footway pdf icon PDF 641 KB

Report of the City Surveyor.

 ...  view the full agenda text for item 5.

Minutes:

The Committee considered a report of the City Surveyor regarding the proposed removal of the elevated footway at Colechurch House, SE1.

 

RESOLVED – That, acting collectively for the City as trustee of Bridge House Estates, and considering it to be in the best interests of the charity, the Committee:

 

i)              Delegate authority to the City Surveyor to carry out the statutory consultation in accordance with section 32(3) of the City of London (Various Powers) Act 1963 (as amended) with Network Rail, Transport for London and the London Borough of Southwark with regards to the proposed demolition of the elevated footway at Colechurch House;

ii)             Delegate authority to the City Surveyor in consultation with the Chairs of the Planning and Transportation Committee and Property Investment Board to review the responses to the consultation subject to reporting back to Committee in the event of any unresolved objections or issues; and

iii)           Subject to there being (i) no unresolved objections or issues in response to the statutory consultation (ii)planning permission being granted for the redevelopment of Colechurch House and removal of the elevated footway and (iii) the developer obtaining all consents necessary for the demolition of the elevated footway, to delegate authority to the City Surveyor to take all necessary steps (including the entering into of any necessary agreements) to enable the stopping up and demolition of the elevated footway to be carried out.

 

 ...  view the full minutes text for item 5.

6.

London Wall Car Park - partial repurposing for last mile logistics hub pdf icon PDF 149 KB

Report of the Director of the Built Environment.

 

N.B: - To be considered alongside a Non-Public Appendix at Agenda Item 24.

 

 ...  view the full agenda text for item 6.

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The Committee considered a report of the Director of the Built Environment recommending the repurposing of 39 spaces in London Wall Car Park for their use as a last mile logistics hub to be operated by Amazon Logistics.

 

A Member commented that she was aware that some residents used this Car Park and questioned whether this would still be possible should these proposals be approved. Officers assured the Member that this would still be possible as this arrangement would essentially use surplus capacity in the car park as there was no consistent, wider demand for these spaces at present.

 

RESOLVED – That Members agree to:

·         The repurposing of 39 spaces in London Wall Car Park for use as a last mile logistics hub, with the responsibility for the facility remaining with the Department of the Built Environment.

·         Lease the hub to Amazon Logistics subject to final agreement of the terms set out in the non-public appendix 1, with such terms to be agreed under delegated authority by the City Surveyor.

·         Approve the necessary enabling works subject to planning approvals, the cost of which would be covered by the operator.

 ...  view the full minutes text for item 6.

7.

Local Development Scheme 2020 pdf icon PDF 142 KB

Report of the Director of the Built Environment.

 ...  view the full agenda text for item 7.

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The Committee considered a report of the Director of the Built Environment regarding the Local Development Scheme (LDS).

 

RESOLVED – That Members:

·         Approve the updated Local Development Scheme for publication; and

·         Resolve that the updated Local Development Scheme is to have effect from 15 December 2020.

 ...  view the full minutes text for item 7.

8.

Thermal Comfort Guidelines pdf icon PDF 104 KB

Report of the Interim Chief Planning Officer and Development Director.

 ...  view the full agenda text for item 8.

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The Committee considered a report of the Interim Chief Planning Officer and Development Director regarding Thermal Comfort Guidelines.

 

The Chair commended this work. The Interim Chief Planning Officer and Development Director reported that this work merged together sunlight, wind, heat and humidity through the seasons to really understand how locations felt for those using that space, quantifying this and assessing applications in terms of their impact on users. Members were informed that this work was quite revolutionary globally and that Officers hoped to be able to further refine it in due course as more lessons were learned.  It was not felt that this would be onerous on developers or applicants as it built upon the Microclimatic work that they were already required to do.

 

A Member questioned whether the guidelines would have any legal standing or were simply advisory. Officers reported that the guidelines would be a planning advice note and not supplementary planning guidance. The Chair added that where he and the Deputy Chair were meeting applicants, they were emphasising the importance of these guidelines.

 

RESOLVED – That Members adopt the Guidelines as a Planning Advice Note.

 ...  view the full minutes text for item 8.

9.

Review of Pilot and Future Bridge House Estates Funding for Enforcement Activity against Illegal Street Trading on and by the Bridges pdf icon PDF 186 KB

Report of the Director of Markets and Consumer Protection.

 ...  view the full agenda text for item 9.

Minutes:

The Committee considered a report of the Director of Markets and Consumer Protection providing details of the review of the 2 year pilot of a new approach to enforcement against illegal street traders by the City Corporation as local authority on the five Thames bridges owned by Bridge House Estates (BHE).

 

A Member stated that he strongly supported this and made the point that the involvement of the City of London Police had made a huge difference to the success of this work and that it was therefore very important for this to continue.

 

RESOLVED – That, Members of the Planning and Transportation Committee: -

 

·         Note the review of the effectiveness and outcomes of the two-year trial period of increased enforcement activity against illegal street trading on and around the five bridges owned, supported and maintained by Bridge House Estates.

·         Agree to support enhanced local authority street trading enforcement capability on and around the bridges for a further two year period (subject to annual review) with a view to supporting, safeguarding and preserving the bridges and to the protection of the general public who use the bridges,

 ...  view the full minutes text for item 9.

10.

Gateway 6 - Outcome Report - London Bridge Waterproofing and Bearings Replacement pdf icon PDF 379 KB

Report of the Director of the Built Environment.

 ...  view the full agenda text for item 10.

Minutes:

The Committee considered a Gateway 6 – Outcome Report of the Director of the Built Environment regarding the London Bridge Waterproofing and Bearings Replacement work.

 

The Committee were informed that the Director of the Built Environment was immensely proud of the team involved in this work for completing the project early by immediately responding to the first national lockdown in March 2020 to find safe ways of working and keep the project running.

 

The Chair added the Committee’s thanks to Officers for completing this high profile wor succesfully.

 

RESOLVED – That the Committee:

·         Approve the closure of the project, providing the final account is agreed within £2,626,000

·         Delegate authority to the Chief Officer to agree a settlement of disputed items, if this becomes necessary,

·         Delegate authority to the Chief Officer to use released but unspent CRP allocation (up to £61,000) to settle, if this becomes necessary.

 ...  view the full minutes text for item 10.

11.

Transport Strategy Update: Quarter 2 2020/21 pdf icon PDF 143 KB

Report of the Director of the Built Environment.

 ...  view the full agenda text for item 11.

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The Committee received a report of the Director of the Built Environment updating Members on progress with delivering the City of London Transport Strategy for Quarter 2 of 2020/21 (July-September 2020).

 

RESOLVED – That Members note the report.

 ...  view the full minutes text for item 11.

12.

2020/21 Business Plan Update Q2 pdf icon PDF 174 KB

Report of the Director of the Built Environment.

 ...  view the full agenda text for item 12.

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The Committee received a report of the Director of the Built Environment setting out progress made during Q2 of the 2020/21 Departmental Business Plan.

 

RESOLVED – That Members note the report and appendices.

 ...  view the full minutes text for item 12.

13.

Department of the Built Environment Risk Management - Quarterly Report pdf icon PDF 157 KB

Report of the Director of the Built Environment.

 ...  view the full agenda text for item 13.

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The Committee received a report of the Director of the Built Environment providing Members with assurance that risk management procedures in place within the Department of the Built Environment are satisfactory and that they meet the requirements of the corporate Risk Management Framework.

 

RESOLVED – That Members note the report and the actions taken in the Department of the Built Environment to monitor and manage effectively risks arising from the department’s operations.

 

 ...  view the full minutes text for item 13.

14.

PUBLIC MINUTES OF THE STREETS AND WALKWAYS SUB-COMMITTEE pdf icon PDF 156 KB

To receive the public minutes and summary of the Streets and Walkways Sub-Committee held virtually on 15 October 2020.

 ...  view the full agenda text for item 14.

Minutes:

The Committee received the public minutes of the Streets and Walkways Sub-Committee held virtually on 15 October 2020.

 

RECEIVED.

 ...  view the full minutes text for item 14.

15.

OUTSTANDING ACTIONS pdf icon PDF 127 KB

Report of the Town Clerk.

 ...  view the full agenda text for item 15.

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The Committee received a report of the Town Clerk detailing the Committee’s outstanding actions.

 

RECEIVED.

 

 ...  view the full minutes text for item 15.

16.

Public Lift Report pdf icon PDF 179 KB

Report of the City Surveyor.

 ...  view the full agenda text for item 16.

Minutes:

The Committee received a public lift report of the City Surveyor for the period 29/10/2020 – 25/11/2020.

 

Officers reported that Blackfriars lift was nearing repair after having overcome some issues with the doors. However, there were now issues with the lift controller with Officers waiting on lead times now for its replacement. A Member expressed concern at the fact that this was a relatively new lift yet seemed to be particularly problematic and questioned the reasons behind this. Officers reported that a previous lift failure had resulted in the fire service attending and forcing the doors to free someone trapped inside and further safety measures to prevent the need to force the doors open in the event of future entrapments were now being looked at with new doors to be fitted in due course.

 

Members were informed that there were some issues with vandalism to the Inclinator with the doors being forced. Officers had discussed the matter with the lift contractor who would now be attending every morning and evening to ensure that the Inclinator was back in service. Further measures such as the installation of CCTV were also now under consideration.

 

A Member commented that a new lift had been installed in London Street as part of the 17 Mount Lane planning application. She questioned whether this was anything to do with the City Corporation and reported that she had recently had to help free someone trapped inside. She reported that there had been issues with the door mechanism and asked that this be fed back to the building owner. Officers undertook to make further enquiries on this.

 

RESOLVED – That Members note the report.

 

 ...  view the full minutes text for item 16.

17.

Delegated decisions of the Chief Planning Officer and Development Director pdf icon PDF 142 KB

Report of the Interim Chief Planning Ofiicer and Development Director.

 ...  view the full agenda text for item 17.

Minutes:

The Committee received a report of the Interim Chief Planning Officer and Development Director providing Members detailing development and advertisement applications determined by the Interim Chief Planning Officer and Development Director or those so authorised under their delegated powers since the report to the last meeting.

 

RESOLVED – That the report be noted.

 

 ...  view the full minutes text for item 17.

18.

Valid planning applications received by Department of the Built Environment pdf icon PDF 33 KB

Report of the Interim Chief Planning Officer and Development Director.

 ...  view the full agenda text for item 18.

Minutes:

The Committee received a report of the Interim Chief Planning Officer and Development Director providing Members with a list detailing development applications received by the Department of the Built Environment since the report to the last meeting.

 

The Interim Chief Planning Officer and Development Director highlighted that the Department was currently busier than ever with November 2020 statistics depicting that applications were higher now than pre-lockdown in March 2020.  He therefore forewarned Members that a number of major, ambitious schemes would be put to the Committee in the next six months and reported that the department had been resourced to be able to withstand this amount of work and move things forward as quickly as possible.

 

A Member requested that, where there were major applications to be considered, these were considered at separate, dedicated meetings so that they were able to be adequately deliberated.

 

The Town Clerk reported that additional meeting dates were currently being identified for the first quarter of 2021 for this purpose.

 

Another Member spoke to suggest that no more than one substantial planning application should be put on an agenda for each meeting. The Chair agreed with this point.

 

Another Member suggested that fortnightly meeting dates, set in advance, could also be helpful. The Chair highlighted that similar comments were now being received from all parties and that he and the Deputy Chair were assuming that Members would be amenable to this. He commented that agenda plans were being drawn up on the assumption that just one application per meeting would be considered and that, as such, it was clear that additional meetings would be required in 2021 which Members would be notified of as soon as possible.

 

The Deputy Chair added that reports on applications and Officer presentations should always be as thorough as possible

 ...  view the full minutes text for item 18.

19.

PUBLIC REPORT OF ACTION TAKEN pdf icon PDF 141 KB

Report of the Town Clerk.

 ...  view the full agenda text for item 19.

Minutes:

The Committee received a report of the Town Clerk advising Members of action taken by the Town Clerk since their last meeting in consultation with the Chair and Deputy Chairman and in accordance with Standing Order Nos 41(a) and 41(b).

 

RESOLVED – That Members note the report.

 

 ...  view the full minutes text for item 19.

20.

Questions on matters relating to the work of the committee

Minutes:

Staffing – Transport Officers

A Member noted that a number of Transport Planning Officers had left the organisation recently and sought some assurance that the Department were still adequately resourced from this perspective. The Member added that she wanted to record her thanks to those who had left for all of their hard work. The Interim Chief Planning Officer and Development Director reported that the Department were devising a new way of working where work was now increasingly carried out across teams as opposed to in siloes and stated that he was confident that the resources were in place to cover this work. The Committee were informed that some members of the Strategic Transportation Team were also soon set to depart and that resources would be managed across the section to cover these roles given that there was an organisation-wide recruitment freeze in force at present. It was therefore not envisaged that there would be any significant impact on resources.

 

Virtual Reality (VR) Square Mile

A Member reported that he had attended a very interesting webinar on this subject in recent months which had also been attended by the Interim Chief Planning Officer and Development Director and had featured ‘the most advanced, fully interactive, virtual reality model ever created of a major City’, sponsored by the City of London. He therefore questioned whether any of this technology which had been developed so successfully could be used to help the Committee understand the context of some of the forthcoming applications. The Interim Chief Planning Officer and Development Director stated that he would be happy to present the technology to the Committee at a future training session. He added that VR technology required the use of a headset but that the aim was for this to become an established tool, not just

 ...  view the full minutes text for item 20.

21.

Any other Business that the Chairman considers urgent

Minutes:

There were no additional, urgent items of business for consideration.

 ...  view the full minutes text for item 21.

22.

Exclusion of the Public

MOTION – That under Section 100(A) of the Local Government Act 1972, the public be excluded from the meeting for the following items on the grounds that they involve the likely disclosure of exempt information as defined in Part I of the Schedule 12A of the Local Government Act.

 ...  view the full agenda text for item 22.

Minutes:

RESOLVED - That under Section 100(A) of the Local Government Act 1972, the public be excluded from the meeting for the following items on the grounds that they involve the likely disclosure of exempt information as defined in Part I of the Schedule 12A of the Local Government Act.

 

                        Item No(s)                                                      Paragraph No(s)

                              23                                                                     3, 5 & 7

                           24-25                                                                        3

                           26-27                                                                        -

 

 ...  view the full minutes text for item 22.

23.

Debt Arrears - Built Environment (P&T Committee) Period Ending 30th September 2020

Report of the Chamberlain.

 ...  view the full agenda text for item 23.

Minutes:

The Committee received a report of the Director of the Built Environment informing Members of arrears of invoiced income as at 30th September 2020.

 ...  view the full minutes text for item 23.

24.

NON-PUBLIC APPENDIX 1 TO AGENDA ITEM 6 - London Wall Car Park - partial repurposing for last mile logistics hub

To note the non-public appendix 1 to Agenda Item 6 – London Wall Car Park - partial repurposing for last mile logistics hub

 

 ...  view the full agenda text for item 24.

Minutes:

The Committee received a non-public appendix which was considered in conjunction with Item 6.

 

 ...  view the full minutes text for item 24.

25.

NON-PUBLIC MINUTES OF THE STREETS AND WALKWAYS SUB-COMMITTEE

To receive the non-public minutes and summary of the Streets and Walkways Sub-Committee held virtually on 15 October 2020.

 

 ...  view the full agenda text for item 25.

Minutes:

The Committee received the non-public minutes of the Streets and Walkways Sub-Committee meeting held virtually on 15 October 2020.

 ...  view the full minutes text for item 25.

26.

Non-Public questions on matters relating to the work of the Committee

Minutes:

A Member raised a question regarding the Beech Street Judgement.

 ...  view the full minutes text for item 26.

27.

Any other business that the Chairman considers urgent and which the committee agrees should be considered whilst the public are excluded

Minutes:

There were no additional, urgent items of business for consideration in the non-public session.

 ...  view the full minutes text for item 27.