Agenda and minutes

Apologies for absence were received from Jeremy Simons and the Revd. Dr Martin Dudley.

There were no declarations.

To agree the public minutes and summary of the meeting held on 22 February 2016

The minutes of the meeting held on 22 February 2016 were approved as an accurate record subject to the following amendments:

Pg.1:                Wendy mead to become Wendy Mead

            That the ward of those in attendance be added

Pg.2:                Item 2 – 4c) by virtue of being an Honorary Liveryman of Hackney Carriages to read by virtue of being an Honorary Liveryman of Hackney Carriages Livery Company

Pg.5:                Item 4.8 – “The Chairman proposed that Item 4.8 “North-South Cycle Superhighway” be heard at the beginning of the meeting. This was agreed” be added

Pg.6:                “If no decision was taken the Town Clerk advised that the project would not go ahead and the work with TfL would need to begin again” to read “If no decision was taken the Town Clerk advised that the project would not go ahead and the work with TfL would need to stop.”

                        “A Member proposed a motion that the Sub-Committee agree the proposals for a limited time only” to read “A Member proposed a motion that the Sub-Committee agree the proposals for an experimental order”

Pg.7:                Resolution d) to read “officers to undertake to chase for the further section of the letter received from TfL outlining the mitigation measures in the Tudor Street and Temple area”.

To receive the list of outstanding references.

The Sub-Committee considered a report of the Town Clerk outlining the outstanding references.

It was reported that the trial concerning the fatal collision at Ludgate Hill had found the driver not guilty. Although the junction had Trixi mirrors installed the driver had reported that he had not been trained in their use; officers undertook to speak to Transport for London (TfL) about the inclusion of the mirrors in safety training, as well as embedding their use into the Considerate Contractor Scheme. It was noted that the construction of the Cycle Superhighway had led to the redesign of the junction.

The Sub-Committee received a report of the Town Clerk outlining decisions taken under delegated authority or urgency since the last meeting of the Sub-Committee.

RECEIVED

The Sub-Committee considered a report of the Director of Built Environment detailing the works to the Angel Court area, due to commence in October-November 2016, with completion set for March 2017. In response to a query from Members it was confirmed that the proposed seating would include anti-skateboarding grooves. Members asked if the height of the benches could be raised, both to improve the comfort for less mobile users and to further deter skateboarding. Officers undertook to investigate the proposal.

RESOLVED – That the design as shown in Appendix 3 of the report and the implementation of the project at a total estimated cost of £333, 061 be approved, with works to be undertaken by the City’s highway term contractor, JB Riney.

The Sub-Committee considered a report of the Director of Built Environment seeking delegation for Officers to receive and manage any future funding from TfL for the works to Bank Junction.

RESOLVED – That:

-       the receipt from TfL of an additional £154K funding for the 2015/16 financial year be noted;

-       that as S106 funding previously approved for this project from 125 Old Broad Street (transport) and Mondial House (transport), £150K and £4K respectively, was substituted by the TfL allocation in 2015/16, that these S106 funds will  now be rolled forward into reaching Gateway 4 be noted;

-       the inclusion into the capital programme of a TfL funding contribution for 2016/17 financial year of £200K be authorised;

-       the total estimated budget needed to reach Gateway 4 of £1.179M

-       Authorise Officers to accept any further TfL funding allocations, specifically for the All Change at Bank project, in consultation with the Head of Finance, into the capital programme; replacing and rolling forward agreed s106 contributions, if applicable, up to the anticipated budget value of £1.179M.

-       the procurement route for additional design and traffic modelling services be noted.

The Sub-Committee received a report of the Director of Built Environment proposing an update to the Eastern City Cluster Strategy in light of the significant developments in the area. There was a discussion on the need for developers to take responsibility for coordinating their developments, both in planning and during construction (servicing, deliveries etc.) This also needed to be reflected in improved coordination between departments within the corporation.

RESOLVED – That the review and update of the area strategy be authorised at an estimated cost of £160,000, funded from the Pinnacle section 106 Agreement (£100,000) and Transport for London LIP (local Improvement Plan) funding for 2016/17 (£60,000)

The Sub-Committee received a report of the Director for Built Environment outlining the special events due to take place on the highway. Officers sought the views of Members of fast-tracking and waiving fees for applications for street parties to mark the Queen’s 90^th Birthday. It was agreed that parties that were community based and held on the weekends could be fast-tracked and it was asked that residents be encouraged to make an application as soon as possible. The following points were discussed:

-       Members asked that those hosting marathons/races in the city consider using Guildhall Yard as part of the course.

-       It was asked that the reference to bouncy castles in the report be treated sensitively in light of a recent fatal accident.

-       Officers confirmed that in the event of a major incident (for example a Tube strike) the City Corporation were consulted on whether planned events should go ahead.

-       The use of drones to film events was discussed. Members felt that any approval for their use should be in consultation with the Police and that safety was of paramount importance. It was asked that the finalised proposals be brought back to the committee.

RESOLVED – That members agree to support the events as outlined in the report and Appendix 1

The Sub-Committee considered a report of the Director of Built Environment detailing the plans for the upgrade of the City’s street lighting. This was to include the replacement of both the lighting units and the control transmitter. There was a discussion over whether the project could be combined with the plan to install 4G wireless hubs over the city. Members felt that this was an example of potential “joined up working” that had been missed. It was asked that details of the IT project and the work that would be required to fit the hubs be circulated to members of the Committee as well as included in the report for its consideration at Projects sub-committee.

RESOLVED – That:

-       Progression of the project to Gateway 5 be authorised subject to agreement of the funding strategy by Resource Allocation Sub-Committee at Gateway 4a, and that;

-       The requirements to roll forward the existing unspent balance on the project of £22,174 to Gateway 5 be noted.

The Sub-Committee considered a Gateway 4/5 report of the Director of Built Environment on the proposed work to Mitre Square. The public consultation had raised a number of issues for consideration, including alternative school drop off points and the placing of fixed play equipment (considered more appropriate on the Aldgate side of the school).

RESOLVED – That approval be granted for:

-       the project approach to deliver the works in two phases;

-       the design for Phase 1, as shown in Appendix 2 of the report;

-       the implementation budget for Phase 1 (£440,216), as set out in section 5 and Appendix 3 of this report, fully funded from the Section 278 agreement and Transport for London, and;

-       the release of £50,000 from the Sec.106 contribution to the Fees sub-task in order to continue with the detailed design process for Phase 2.

The Sub-Committee received a report of the Director of the Built Environment setting out the programme for the current and upcoming (Gateway 2) Transportation and Public Realm projects. Of the £164 million cost of the works £3.8 million had been contributed from the Corporation budget. There was a discussion on the scope of the Bus reliability project; officers confirmed that this had been developed under a directive from TfL. The use of finger posts for way-finding was also discussed and it was confirmed that way-finding review would be linked to the development of the Cultural hub

RECEIVED

The Sub-Committee received a report of the Director of Built Environment providing an update on the implementation of the Bank Area Enhancement Strategy. Members wished to record their thanks to officers for their work on the Austin Friars and Birchin Lane developments.

RECEIVED

The Sub-Committee received a joint report of the Director of Built Environment and the Commissioner of the City of London Police outlining the road danger reduction plan for 2016/17. In response to a query by Members, Officers reported that the updated Commercial Vehicle unit statistics were as below:

Vehicles stopped: 1313

Offences: 1533

Summons: 692

Fixed Penalty Notices: £61, 400

Vehicles Prohibited: 295

It was further reported that the number of lorries found to be in breach of the safer lorry scheme had fallen dramatically (from 32 in the first month of the scheme, to 17 over the following 6 months); it was felt this was a sign that the legislation was effective.

Members encouraged greater “joint working “between the Department for Built Environment and the City of London police on the issue of the location of traffic stops.

RECEIVED

Under Standing Order 40 the Chairman proposed to extend the time of the meeting. This was agreed.

There were no questions.

The Chairman raised a query in relation to Poultry Avenue. Officers confirmed this was a market operational issue.

MOTION – That under Section 100A(4) of the Local Government Act 1972, the public be excluded from the meeting for the following items of business on the grounds that they involve the likely disclosure of exempt information as defined in Part I of Schedule 12A of the Local Government Act :-

RESOLVED: That under Section 100A(4) of the Local Government Act 1972, the public be excluded from the meeting for the following items of business on the grounds that they involve the likely disclosure of exempt information as defined in Part 1 of Schedule 12A of the Local Government Act

To agree the non-public Minutes of the meeting held on 22 February 2016.

The non-public minutes of the meeting held on the 22 February 2016 were approved as an accurate record.

There were no non-public questions.

There was no non-public urgent business.