Agenda item

Barbican and Golden Lane Conservation Area

A Member stated that he had recently questioned when Members could expect to see the Management Strategy Supplementation Planning Document for the Barbican and Golden Lane Conservation Area, which was registered on 31 October 2018. He reported that he had been advised that this had been delayed due to resource constraint and expressed his disappointment at this which, in his view, should be regarded as a priority.

The Chief Planning Officer and Development Director agreed that the current position was regrettable and undertook to look at how this matter might be advanced.

London City Airport Masterplan Consultation

A Member referred to London City Airport plans to expand from 75,000 to 151,000 aircraft flights a year by 2035. He reported that their Masterplan was currently out for consultation until 20 September 2019 and questioned whether the City Corporation was planning to respond on this and, if so, whether Members could see a draft of the response before it was sent.

The Policy & Performance Director reported that a response would be co-ordinated by the deadline and that this would be considered by  the appropriate Committees which would depend on the nature of the response but would probably include Port Health and Environmental Services.   He also undertook to keep the Member informed of progress on this.

Ludgate Circus – RTA

A Member referred to a road traffic accident at Ludgate Circus that had taken place just yesterday, the details of which were communicated by another elected Member. He asked for further details on the incident.

The Transportation and Public Realm Director confirmed that a small van had lost control and run into a signal pole at the junction and that Officers had requested further details around this. He added that he believed that no one had been hurt as a result of the incident but that this highlighted the many problems with this dangerous junction. He undertook to keep the Committee informed of any further details once these were available.

Another Member questioned when TfL improvement works were due to commence here. The Transportation and Public Realm Director reported that a meeting to discuss progress on this was set to take place next week and that he currently had no reason to believe that the works would not go ahead according to plan.

Millennium Inclinator

A Member reported that the Millennium Inclinator had, once again, been out of service since this Committee had last met and requested further information on this latest outage.

The Chair clarified that a public lift report as well as an update on the Millennium Inclinator would be brought to the next meeting of this Committee on 30 July 2019.

Ocean Diva

A Member questioned whether Officers were able to update further on proposals around the Ocean Diva.

The Chief Planning Officer and Development Director reported that the additional information requested from the applicant of Swan Lane Pier around the Ocean Diva had not been received to date.

The Member requested that Officers now proactively chase this information on what he felt was a major issue coming forward.

Coopers Row and Pepys Street junction

A Member referred to two-way cycling at this unclear, undefined junction. She also questioned traffic speeds here and asked that Officers consider what steps could be taken to improve visibility and slow traffic here.

Officers undertook to respond to the Member directly on these points.

Conservation Area Advisory Committee for the City of London (CAAC)

A Member referred to an email that all Members of the Planning and Transportation Committee had recently received from the Chairman of the CAAC expressing concern at the fact that he believed that the City Corporation would no longer be supporting the work of this Committee. The Member questioned whether this was the case.

The Chief Planning Officer and Development Director underlined that this was not directly related to the Fundamental Review and had been raised as a result of staffing/resources issues. The Chair added that the City Corporation very much valued the outputs from this Committee but that, equally, there was a balance to be struck here in terms of resources.

Another Member stated that he had been made aware of this last month and was disappointed to note the current situation. He added that the CAAC met each month and was of enormous value. The Chair underlined that this Committee fully valued the work of the CAAC.

The Director of the Built Environment reported that the Chairman of CAAC had also written directly to her and the Chief Planning Officer and Development Director on this matter and that they were set to respond clarifying that there was no intention at this stage to withdraw any resources from the CAAC. The Director undertook to share the response with Members.

Construction noise/disturbance

A Member referred to the many construction sites within her Ward that were causing noise/disturbance issues by way of things such as alarms being set off on site or works commencing too early.  She asked if officers could look at how this matter might be improved and more effectively controlled and questioned whether any restrictions could be placed on construction when applications were first approved/granted consent.

The Chair reiterated that Members had also requested, at the last meeting of this Committee, that Officers consider what powers, if any, might be used with regard to construction time periods and how construction in any given area might ‘dovetail’.