It fully understands the pivotal location of the site and of its relationship between the town centre and Cannon Park in terms of design

							     CANNON PARK PLANNING FRAMEWORK AND INDICATIVE MASTERPLAN –
                  RESPONSE TO CONSULTATION DRAFT

 EXECUTIVE MEMBER FOR REGENERATION AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT -
                     COUNCILLOR DAVID BUDD

                     DIRECTOR OF REGENERATION - TIM WHITE

                                  Date: 19th August 2008


PURPOSE OF THE REPORT

1.     The purpose of this report is to:

       (i)    inform the Executive on the outcome of consultation on the Cannon Park
              masterplan; and,
       (ii)   seek approval of the masterplan as interim planning guidance and
              development framework for the regeneration of Cannon Park.

BACKGROUND AND EXTERNAL CONSULTATION

3.2.   The Executive approved the Cannon Park masterplan for consultation on 12th              Formatted: Bullets and Numbering
       February 2008. The aspiration of the masterplan is to create a new retail quarter
       for Middlesbrough town centre. This is to meet the need for new retail
       development and allow the town centre to grow and to fulfil its strategic role as the
       centre of the Tees Valley City Region. The masterplan provides a framework for
       investment, promotes high quality design and allows for the creation of a new
       urban boulevard approach to the town centre along Newport Road.

3.     The formal consultation period ran for six weeks from February 1st to March 14th
       2008. This included presentations to key stakeholders and consultation with on
       site businesses, the general public and external organisations. The details of how
       the consultation was undertaken are attached to this report at Appendix A.

4.     The masterplan was covered very positively in the local media during February,
       including on several occasions in the Evening Gazette, as well as in the Northern
       Echo, Middlesbrough News, Tees Pride, Visit Middlesbrough and Radio


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      Cleveland. The masterplan was also the featured item in national Regeneration
      and Renewal journal, where it received positive coverage, stating that the plan
      was ‘realistic, optimistic and works hard to deal with the existing constraints on
      site.’

RESPONSES

5.    In total, 15 written responses were received, 14 telephone responses and 5 visits
      in person to the Civic Centre. A summary of the responses and any resulting
      actions is attached at Appendix B.

General Support

6.    One NorthEast (ONE) welcomed the preparation of the masterplan, and regarded
      it as a logical response to the findings of the Middlesbrough Retail Study.
      Paragraph 26 provides a fuller explanation of the findings of this study. ONE
      welcomes the inclusion of Cannon Park within the town centre and supports the
      masterplan proposals. ONE, along with the North East Assembly (NEA), also
      welcomes the emphasis that the document places on the achievement of high
      quality development, particularly in respect of energy efficiency targets and other
      measures to secure sustainable development.

7.    NEA applauded the use of design guidelines in the masterplan as a means of
      securing high quality design and layout. This is considered to be essential to
      secure successful integration with the remaining areas in the town centre.

8.    Comments were also received from West Middlesbrough Neighbourhood Trust
      which were supportive of the proposals.

9.    There was support and approval for plans to improve the town from members of
      the public and some existing businesses on site. One comment from an existing
      business stated the plans should be ‘encouraged and applauded’. Other existing
      businesses wanted their company to be integral to the Council’s plans.

Implications for existing and future leases

10.   A number of concerns were expressed from owners and employees of businesses
      on site in respect of implications for existing and future leases. Some of the
      businesses on site have invested heavily in their premises. They have concerns
      that the implementation of the masterplan will see them lose this investment and
      the reputation they have established. Concerns were raised over relocation,
      whether leases will be renewed and if rents would increase. Respondents also
      wanted a definite answer as to whether the Council owned units would continue
      trading in the longer term.

11.   All the small business units on Cannon Park are leaseholders, with the Council
      having the freehold. The concerns raised by businesses have subsequently been
      addressed by Valuation and Estates, which has sent a letter to all existing Council
      tenants on site, confirming that it is not proposed that their units be part of the



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      redevelopment. The Council will progress lease renewals and new lettings in
      respect of all the units as normal.

Reduction in trade and improving units

12.   Concerns were expressed that the business units would suffer through decreased
      trade once redevelopment was implemented. Several respondents did not wish
      Cannon Park to lose its industrial element in favour of retail. It was felt that the
      Council should improve the existing units and advertise them more. Several
      businesses asked if grants were available to upgrade properties.

13.   The area is currently blighted by significant areas of empty and underutilised land
      and property. The masterplan proposals will encourage more development,
      improve the environment and the offer at Cannon Park and attract more people to
      the area and so businesses should see an increase in activity and future
      investment. Businesses will have a higher profile, which should benefit their
      performance. However, there are no plans to discourage small general businesses
      from operating from the dedicated units.

14.   In respect of business support, the Economic Development Service currently
      offers a range of financial support to businesses which includes start-up and
      growth funding as well as grants towards equipment, machinery and marketing. It
      also offers a Business Improvement Grant that aims to enhance the environmental
      quality of the estates within Middlesbrough and provides support to businesses for
      frontage improvements and security measures. These grants are offered on the
      basis that sufficient funding is in place to sustain provision. The funding for the
      above is expected to be in place until March 2011.

Acquiring freehold

15.   Several existing businesses commented that they would like to expand and
      acquire the freehold of their site.

16.   The Council currently owns the freehold and deals with the maintenance, letting
      and management of the units. Under normal circumstances for reasons of estate
      management, the Council would not consider disposing of the freehold of the
      units.

Timescale of development

17.   Several small businesses wanted to know exactly when and where redevelopment
      would commence.

18.   A more detailed timetable will be produced as proposals and development
      strategies evolve, and businesses will be informed accordingly.

Impact on highway network and parking

19.   The Highways Agency commented that the proposals are within the scope of the
      Local Development Framework (LDF) Regeneration Development Plan Document


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      (DPD) consultation process. The Highways Agency will require a more
      comprehensive traffic assessment to determine the implications on the main road
      network as part of any planning applications.

20.   Concerns were raised by the Town Centre Partnership about parking on the site,
      possible access points and congestion once a new supermarket is opened.

21.   Full details of all highways and access issues will be developed at a planning
      application stage. The masterplan states that a full Transport Impact Assessment
      will be required as part of any planning application. The masterplan sets out a
      movement framework that will be important to the realisation of the vision. It is
      envisaged that three junctions, provided along Newport Road, will serve the
      redeveloped site. It is proposed that the improvements along Newport Road will
      be of a nature that they will provide for a supercore public transport corridor. This
      will form part of the network, linking Middlesbrough and Stockton town centres.
      Furthermore, the North Middlesbrough Accessibility scheme will see a new access
      road into Riverside Park, taking traffic direct from Newport Roundabout, freeing up
      capacity on Hartington Interchange, thus assisting the accessibility of Cannon
      Park.

22.   Future car parking provision at Cannon Park must be sufficient to support existing
      businesses and new development.            The masterplan, therefore, seeks the
      reprovision of existing car parking on site either on or off site, through a developer
      providing a commuted sum or another financial instrument. Parking provision
      within the rest of the scheme will need to be sufficient to serve the various new
      retail and commercial uses and be assessed once more detailed proposals
      emerge.

Wider approach to regeneration

23.   West Middlesbrough Neighbourhood Trust raised an issue about the need for an
      inclusive approach to regeneration of both sides of Newport Road.

24.   The Boulevard and associated landscaping will incorporate both sides of Newport
      Road. Major regeneration schemes are currently being progressed on the south
      side of Newport Road. These include a new Erimus Housing development at St
      Paul’s, the Gresham Housing Market Renewal Area, and the new Aldi superstore
      and hotel in a key gateway location into the town. The masterplan proposes that
      there will be opportunities to provide enhanced access to the Newport/Gresham
      regeneration areas. Improvements to Cannon Park will generate an environment
      for investment in the wider area.

Concerns over vitality and viability with the town centre

25.   The North East Chamber of Commerce raised concerns regarding the location and
      type of retail at Cannon Park, as well as the competition and vitality and viability
      with the town centre.

26.   The Middlesbrough Retail Study found that whilst there is a strong high street
      comparison retail sector, focused in the town centre, the convenience (food


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      supermarket) sector is poorly represented. Just 42% of the expenditure by the
      town’s residents is retained within Middlesbrough. This is directly as a
      consequence of a comparatively low provision of supermarkets compared to the
      surrounding areas. There is also an under representation of bulky goods retailers
      in the town, with 68% of residents travelling outside the borough for such
      shopping. Much of the expenditure is leaking to out of town centre facilities, such
      as Portrack Lane and Teesside Park. A requirement therefore exists within the
      town for an additional superstore and for additional bulky goods provision to meet
      needs.

27.   Policy guidelines on suitable land uses at Cannon Park are given within the
      Regeneration Development Plan Document and reiterated within the masterplan.
      The eastern end is identified for convenience (supermarket) retail, as this will
      provide the greatest propensity for linked trips with the existing town centre. The
      western end is identified for bulky goods warehousing, in recognition that this
      format of retail development is likely to attract a higher proportion of car-borne
      users. High street retail provision will be strictly controlled in this area, in order that
      development complements rather than competes with the established core of the
      town centre.

Sainsbury’s

28.   As part of the consultation process, discussions have been held with Sainsbury’s
      regarding its aspirations for the future of their Middlesbrough store and its
      relationship with the Cannon Park redevelopment. Sainsbury’s is concerned
      about the prospect of another superstore being opened at Cannon Park, but is
      keen to positively progress options to enhance its own retail offer and to contribute
      more widely to the growth of the town centre as a whole. It fully understands the
      pivotal location of the site and of its relationship between the town centre and
      Cannon Park in terms of design, connectivity and potential for redevelopment.

29.   Further discussions will be held with Sainsbury’s and the outcome considered in
      further reports on property and development matters.

United Utilities

30.   United Utilities operate the gasholders on behalf of Northern Gas Networks.
      United Utilities advised that the gasholders are fully operational and there is no
      current proposal to decommission the facility.         However, it advises that
      redevelopment of the site, in part or whole, has not been ruled out should suitable
      redeveloped opportunities arise at some point in the future. However, the
      gasholders are not subject to any development proposals within the masterplan
      document.

31.   Further discussions will be sought with United Utilities and the outcome covered in
      a further report.




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Royal Mail

32.   In addition to the formal responses to the consultation exercise there has been
      ongoing dialogue with Royal Mail regarding the potential impact of the masterplan
      proposals on the sorting and delivery offices and possible relocation. Council
      officers have been working to identify suitable alternative locations for these
      facilities within the town.

Revising the masterplan

33.   The comments received from the consultation period have been noted and
      addressed within this report. However, it is not felt necessary to make any
      revisions to the masterplan document. This is because comments received
      required clarification, rather than seeking substantive changes to the strategy for
      development. Some comments have led to more detailed discussions but
      fundamentally no revisions are required.

PLANNING POLICY – UPDATED POSITION

34.   Since the last Executive report in February 2008, the LDF Core Strategy has been
      adopted. This sets out the broad principles for future development of the town
      centre. Policy CS13 identifies Cannon Park as an area for town centre expansion
      to provide opportunities for continued growth.

35.   The Regeneration DPD, which has now been submitted to the Secretary of State,
      provides a more detailed policy framework for the development of the town centre
      and Cannon Park. Policy Reg 21 requires that a masterplan be prepared setting
      out how the LDF policy criteria will be incorporated into the development
      proposals. It will need to act as guidance for subsequent planning applications.

36.   The Council cannot approve the masterplan as a formal Supplementary Planning
      Document (SPD) until after the Regeneration DPD has been through a public
      examination and is formally adopted. This is not likely until autumn 2009. An SPD
      would provide statutory weight in the determination of a planning application. It is
      therefore proposed that the masterplan be endorsed by the Council as an interim
      planning document. This will allow the Council to use it as a material consideration
      when assessing any planning application for the site, but this will have less weight
      in any consideration given by the Secretary of State if any proposal is subject to a
      public inquiry in the future.

Next steps

37.   If the Executive agree to adopt the masterplan as an interim planning document,
      the following steps will be necessary in order to progress implementation:

             i.   a separate report will be provided to look at the processes which will be
                  required to take the redevelopment forward and address the Council’s
                  own property interests; and,




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           ii.   Council officers will continue to work with potential development
                 partners to bring forward achievable proposals for the redevelopment of
                 the site.

OPTION APPRAISAL/RISK ASSESSMENT

38.   Options for the site were presented as part of the masterplan process and were
      reported to the Executive on 12th February 2008. As part of the consultation
      process, none of the comments received were against the principles of the
      masterplan. There is consequently no requirement to make any amendments to
      the document.

FINANCIAL, LEGAL AND WARD IMPLICATIONS

Financial implications

39.   There are no direct financial implications as a consequence of this report. As
      stated in the previous Executive report, the Council has considerable property
      interests in the area and whilst there have been broad discussions with potential
      interested development parties in respect of the proposals for redevelopment, no
      detailed development schemes or cost models have been carried out. This will
      form part of the next stages of the process of taking the scheme forward. A further
      report detailing the Council’s property interests, the process of how the scheme
      will be implemented and how best to optimise the benefits of the scheme will be
      reported back to the Executive following this report (see paragraph 37).

Legal implications

40.   There are no direct legal implications as a consequence of this report, which is
      mainly concerned with reporting back to the Executive the response to the
      consultation exercise.

Ward implications

41.   The production of the masterplan will have implications for the Gresham Ward in
      which Cannon Park is located. The area is directly south of the Middlehaven Ward
      and will be beneficial in terms of economic development, potential employment
      and environmental improvements.

RECOMMENDATIONS

42. It is recommended that the Executive:
              i. note the comments and responses to the consultation exercise;
             ii. approve adoption of the masterplan as interim planning guidance; and,
            iii. require that a further report on the Council’s property interests be made
                 to the Executive.
REASONS

43.   The recommendations are supported by the following reason:



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          i.   to ensure the comprehensive redevelopment of the Cannon Park area
               can proceed.


AUTHOR: Sophie White
TEL NO: 729055

sophie_white@middlesbrough.gov.uk




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