Planning (UK) articles from September 2003

Planning (UK) archives from September 2003

Case for staff relocation put by think-tank.(Brief Article)
September 5, 2003... Treasury proposals to relocate 20,000 civil servants from London to the regions are not far-reaching enough, according to a pamphlet that calls for entire Whitehall departments to be moved. The pamphlet, published by think-tank Catalyst and...

Case studies uncover housing barriers.(Brief Article)
September 5, 2003... Inconsistent and outdated planning guidance and inadequate resources are hindering the delivery of affordable housing in the South East, according to an ODPM report unveiled last week. The study, carried out by ERM Planning with CgMs,...

Delegates set for collision warning.(Brief Article)
September 5, 2003... A major geographical conference is set to hear how the competing interests of communities, developers and the government are putting the planning system on a collision course. Consultant Alan Gunne-Jones is due to tell delegates at the...

ODPM advised on mediation by academic.(Brief Article)
September 5, 2003... The government and local authorities must not shy away from conflict in the planning system, leading academic Cliff Hague will tell an ODPM seminar next week. The Heriot-Watt University professor of planning will tell the gathering that...

Vulcan redevelopment given go-ahead.(Brief Article)
September 5, 2003... An historic Portsmouth naval building will be brought back into use in a scheme incorporating an art gallery after the council rubber-stamped the proposal. Portsmouth City Council has granted permission for plans by the Berkeley Group and...

Committee launched to promote historic areas.( Department for Culture, Media and Sport and the Department for Education and Skills )(Brief Article)
September 5, 2003... A Whitehall-led committee is being created with a remit to promote the historic urban environment as an educational resource. The committee is to be led by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport and the Department for Education and...

Mayor seeks views for housing study.(Brief Article)
September 5, 2003... Views on the best way to carry out the next housing capacity study for London are being sought by mayor Ken Livingstone. A draft report published this week by consultancy Environmental Resources Management for the Greater London Authority...

Consultants at RPS Group PLC have been appointed to produce ..(Brief Article)
September 5, 2003... Consultants at RPS Group PLC have been appointed to produce a development brief and masterplan for the South Lake district in the new town of Craigavon in Northern Ireland. The firm will examine options for 60ha of land in council ownership...

Retail scheme dubbed last of its kind opens.(Brief Article)
September 5, 2003... Gallions Reach, dubbed London's last major out-of-town shopping park, opened this week. The Castlemore Securities development on a former gasworks in Beckton, east London, comprises more than 27,870 sq m of retail space and is expected to...

Assessments advice issued to authorities.(Brief Article)
September 5, 2003... Scottish planning authorities have been issued with advice on carrying out strategic environmental assessments (SEAs) by the Scottish Executive. The advice details how planners should assess the likely environmental effects of their local...

Cairngorms park deal row goes on.
September 5, 2003... The Cairngorms National Park Authority was formally invested with its powers this week amid continuing controversy over its boundaries and planning remit. The formal transfer of powers was completed at a ceremony near the summit of Cairn...

Transport research slams rural service.(Brief Article)
September 5, 2003... Rural communities are being failed by a lack of public transport, according to a report published this week. The study, published for Transport 2000, the Countryside Agency and Citizens Advice, finds that traffic congestion is rapidly...

Expert agency recommended for authorities.(Brief Article)
September 5, 2003... Complex urban regeneration proposals should be dealt with by an advisory body that can fast-track schemes through the planning system, according to a former government adviser. In an interview with Planning this week, Countryside Properties...

NEWS IN BRIEF: The annual Planning Summer School starts this week ..(Brief Article)
September 5, 2003... The annual Planning Summer School starts this week at the University of Bangor, north Wales. Today sees the start of the councillors' school, which runs until 13 September, to be followed by two main schools. The councillors' school includes...

NEWS IN BRIEF: The deadline for entries in the 2004 Civic Trust Awards ..(Brief Article)
September 5, 2003... The deadline for entries in the 2004 Civic Trust Awards is 19 September, applicants were reminded this week. This year's scheme is restricted to architectural entries from metropolitan areas and major cities. To be eligible, schemes must have...

NEWS IN BRIEF: Plans to build a hotel as part of the Leopold Square scheme ..(Brief Article)
September 5, 2003... Plans to build a hotel as part of the Leopold Square scheme in Sheffield have been resubmitted to Sheffield City Council. Ask Developments wants the council to consider design changes to a previously approved proposal now that the developer has...

NEWS IN BRIEF: Regeneration plans for Pier Hill in Southend town centre ..(Brief Article)
September 5, 2003... Regeneration plans for Pier Hill in Southend town centre have been approved by Southend-on-Sea Borough Council. The scheme, designed by the Ridley Smith Partnership and Stanley Bragg, includes a public space, small shops, a performance area and...

NEWS IN BRIEF: English Heritage and the British Marine Aggregates Producers Association ..(Brief Article)
September 5, 2003... English Heritage and the British Marine Aggregates Producers Association have issued a guidance note to help improve understanding of issues of archaeological importance when developing dredging areas. The guidance, produced by Wessex...

NEWS IN BRIEF: A former storage depot in Newbury is to be redeveloped ..(Brief Article)
September 5, 2003... A former storage depot in Newbury is to be redeveloped for residential uses, including sheltered accommodation and affordable homes. Airways Housing Group is creating the development after buying the Queens Road site from West Berkshire...

NEWS IN BRIEF: One in four local authorities have failed to improve recycling performance ..( Friends of the Earth )(Brief Article)
September 5, 2003... One in four local authorities have failed to improve recycling performance in the past year, according to Friends of the Earth (FoE). The campaign group's analysis of waste management figures published by DEFRA last week notes that only 20...

NEWS IN BRIEF: A review of the contribution of forests ..(Brief Article)
September 5, 2003... A review of the contribution of forests to the social, economic and environmental quality of life in Scotland was announced by forestry minister Allan Wilson last week. The review will be carried out by Forestry Commission Scotland, the...

Study finds test damages superstores.(Brief Article)
September 5, 2003... Abandoning retail warehouses in favour of smaller separate shops in town centres is completely impractical, according to a major DIY chain last week. Research carried out by CB Richard Ellis and Mayer Brown for B&Q claims that a typical...

Rural activists welcome Midlands sites decision.(Brief Article)
September 5, 2003... Environmental campaigners have welcomed an inspector's report that rejects plans for two major employment sites on green belt land around Birmingham. The inspector's report on the Birmingham unitary development plan (UDP), published last...

Pensioners' centre labelled a success.(Brief Article)
September 5, 2003... The UK's first continuing care retirement community has been labelled a success by residents, according to a report published this week. A three-year study for the Joseph Rowntree Foundation by researchers at the University of York found...

Developer Parabola Land has submitted a planning application ..(Brief Article)
September 5, 2003... Developer Parabola Land has submitted a planning application to the London Borough of Islington for King's Place, a mixed-use development on a 0.6ha site next to the Regent's Canal in King's Cross. The site is seen as key to the area's...

Minister sets out boost for biomass use.(Department of Trade and Industry)(Brief Article)
September 5, 2003... Measures to boost the use of biomass-powered generators to help meet renewable energy targets have been proposed by the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI). A consultation document launched by energy minister Stephen Timms last week...

Alliance slams environmental contradiction.(The Green Alliance)(Brief Article)
September 5, 2003... Double standards in corporate attitudes towards environmentally-friendly business have been criticised in a report published by an environmental group last week. The Green Alliance claims that many companies are keen to promote a green...

REGENERATION NEWS: Newcastle estate wins listed status.(Brief Article)
September 5, 2003... An award-winning 1970s housing estate in Newcastle is among the latest set of post-war buildings recommended for listing by the government last week. Ralph Erskine's Byker Estate in the city's East End will receive a grade II listing in...

REGENERATION NEWS: Cornwall developer blocked by council.(Brief Article)
September 5, 2003... A Cornwall developer has lodged a planning appeal in Braille in an attempt to convince Carrick District Council that its 'blindness' could stymie the regeneration of a former copper mine. Paul Isherwood wants to turn the Mount Wellington...

REGENERATION NEWS: Harbour plans submitted for Gosport yard.(Brief Article)
September 5, 2003... Plans have been submitted for a revamp of the historic Granary and Bakery building at the former Royal Navy victualling yard in Gosport, Hampshire. The application, submitted last week by Berkeley Homes, proposes to convert the building...

REGENERATION NEWS IN BRIEF: A website dedicated to the national business improvement districts ..( Association of Town Centre Managers)(Brief Article)
September 5, 2003... A website dedicated to the national business improvement districts (BIDs) pilot scheme has been unveiled by the Association of Town Centre Managers. It has been designed to ensure that best practice information from the 22 UK towns piloting BID...

REGENERATION NEWS IN BRIEF: Newcastle City Council has launched a competition ..(Brief Article)
September 5, 2003... Newcastle City Council has launched a competition designed to encourage and promote the best examples of architectural and environmental design in the city. The fifth biannual lord mayor's design awards recognise excellence in projects ranging...

REGENERATION NEWS IN BRIEF: A pounds 6.3 million deal has been agreed to develop a health centre ..(Brief Article)
September 5, 2003... A pounds 6.3 million deal has been agreed to develop a health centre on one of the country's most deprived estates. Leicester Housing Association has been appointed to develop a health and social care centre in the Braunstone area of Leicester...

REGENERATION NEWS IN BRIEF: Scott Wilson has been selected to draw up plans for Hastings town centre ..(Brief Article)
September 5, 2003... Scott Wilson has been selected to draw up plans for Hastings town centre station plaza as part of a pounds 400 million scheme to regenerate the town. The project will create 15,000 sq m of business space around a landscaped plaza along with two...

REGENERATION NEWS IN BRIEF: Plans for a 150-bedroom hotel and conference centre at a Plymouth ..(Brief Article)
September 5, 2003... Plans for a 150-bedroom hotel and conference centre at a Plymouth business park were submitted by the South West of England Regional Development Agency last week. The hotel is part of a 7ha scheme being developed by the agency and its partner,...

REGENERATION NEWS IN BRIEF: A pounds 60,000 grant has been awarded by the Energy Saving Trust ..(Brief Article)
September 5, 2003... A pounds 60,000 grant has been awarded by the Energy Saving Trust for a study into the potential for renewable energy in Bracknell town centre following its redevelopment. The pounds 141,000 study by Bracknell Forest Borough Council and TV...

REGENERATION NEWS IN BRIEF: Grant funding worth pounds 900,000 to support post offices ..(Brief Article)
September 5, 2003... Grant funding worth pounds 900,000 to support post offices in deprived and isolated areas of Wales was approved by the Welsh Assembly Government last week. The grants have been awarded under the assembly's post office development fund, which...

TRANSPORT NEWS: Engineers slam state of UK's highways.(Brief Article)
September 5, 2003... The nation's local roads are rapidly falling apart amid fresh doubts over the government's ten-year transport plan, according to a poll of engineers last week. This year's local transport survey of highway authorities by the Institution of...

TRANSPORT NEWS: Transport quango calls for more aviation taxes.(Brief Article)
September 5, 2003... Only a radical taxation shake-up will convince the airline industry to face up to its pollution and congestion responsibilities, the Commission for Integrated Transport (CfIT) claimed this week. A report by the government's transport...

TRANSPORT NEWS: Sheffield launches tram growth talks.(Brief Article)
September 5, 2003... The second round of consultation on proposals to extend the Sheffield Supertram network was launched by the South Yorkshire Passenger Transport Executive (SYPTE) last week. The extensions would link Dore with Hellaby via Sheffield city...

TRANSPORT NEWS: Section one of the Channel Tunnel Rail Link ..(Brief Article)
September 5, 2003... Section one of the Channel Tunnel Rail Link has moved closer to opening with Rail Link Engineering and client Union Railways signing the commissioning handover certificate and means the 74km section between the Eurotunnel complex at Cheriton...

TRANSPORT NEWS: Study reveals cost of crime and vandalism.(Brief Article)
September 5, 2003... Crime and vandalism is starving the public transport network of pounds 250 million a year, according to a report by crime reduction charity Nacro this week. Efforts to persuade people out of their cars and on to trains and buses are being...

BUSINESS BRIEFS: House builder Taylor Woodrow is set to buy rival company Wilson Connolly ..(Brief Article)
September 5, 2003... House builder Taylor Woodrow is set to buy rival company Wilson Connolly for pounds 480 million, making it the fourth largest house builder in the UK. The deal will be unanimously recommended to shareholders by Taylor Woodrow's board of...

BUSINESS BRIEFS: The Edinburgh office of Colin Buchanan and Partners has been appointed ..(Brief Article)
September 5, 2003... The Edinburgh office of Colin Buchanan and Partners has been appointed by the Scottish Executive to research good practice in developing an inter-agency approach to road safety. The study will review community regeneration projects and a range...

BUSINESS BRIEFS: RPS has been appointed by Derwentside District Council ..(Brief Article)
September 5, 2003... RPS has been appointed by Derwentside District Council to develop a town centre study for Stanley, a market town 20km from Durham. The study will focus on Stanley's core retail area, identified in a recent regeneration strategy for the town...

BUSINESS BRIEFS: Halcrow has been instructed by English Partnerships and Ashford Borough Council ..
September 5, 2003... Halcrow has been instructed by English Partnerships and Ashford Borough Council to carry out a strategic environmental assessment of the Ashford town centre and Greater Ashford development frameworks. It will consider links with the Ashford...

BUSINESS BRIEFS: Nathaniel Lichfield & Partners (NLP) and David Cumberland Housing ..(Brief Article)
September 5, 2003... Nathaniel Lichfield & Partners (NLP) and David Cumberland Housing Regeneration have been appointed by the Yorkshire and Humber Assembly to prepare a methodology for establishing the scale and distribution of housing provision in the region. NLP...

BUSINESS BRIEFS: Arup and Donaldsons have been commissioned by the London Borough of Burnet ..
September 5, 2003... Arup and Donaldsons have been commissioned by the London Borough of Barnet to write a development framework for Colindale in north London. Arup, with Pan Leisure Consulting and the Matrix Partnership, have won a commission from Isle of Wight...

BUSINESS BRIEFS: Steer Davies Gleave (SDG) has been appointed by the European Commission ..
September 5, 2003... Steer Davies Gleave (SDG) has been appointed by the European Commission to assess the impact of the opening of the market for international and possible domestic rail passenger services in the European community. SDG will work with consultants...

BUSINESS BRIEFS: Consultancy PMP has been appointed by Braintree District Council ..
September 5, 2003... Consultancy PMP has been appointed by Braintree District Council to prepare a parks and open spaces strategy for the district. The London Borough of Sutton has also appointed the consultancy to carry out a playing pitch strategy for the borough...

SCOTTISH NEWS: McConnell unveils reform extension.
September 5, 2003... A further 117 Scottish communities are set to be included in right to buy legislation following the extension of the Scottish Executive's flagship land reform policy. First minister Jack McConnell has announced plans to give rural towns...

SCOTTISH NEWS: Orkney pins hopes on port revival plan.(Brief Article)
September 5, 2003... Orkney Isles Council has unveiled an economic and environmental report into plans for one of Europe's largest container ports at Scapa Flow. The report claims that the project would reverse the decline in Orkney's population, create up to...

SCOTTISH NEWS: Committee to decide fate of waste project.(Brief Article)
September 5, 2003... Aberdeen City Council's planning committee will rule on controversial plans to build Scotland's largest incinerator on the outskirts of the city later this year. It follows a special planning hearing that lasted almost nine hours, at which...

ANALYSIS: Inequity on the home front.(Industry Overview)
September 5, 2003... A think-tank blames nimby pressure and under-investment for the housing crisis, says Marino Donati. As concerns over the UK's housing market continue to rise, so do the number of opinions on the best way to tackle them. So far,...

Northumberland aims to meet the challenge.
September 5, 2003... A draft rural strategy for Northumberland could pave the way for a brighter future, writes Rosie Niven. Northumberland's image-makers have long cashed in on its status as the most northerly and least densely populated county in England....

TANNER ON: Not letting the weather spoil the family holiday.(Column)
September 5, 2003... This year the Tanners decided to take their summer holiday in the home country - west Wales. Readers who also stayed in the UK this summer will recall that we enjoyed an uninterrupted spell of hot sunny weather with record temperatures....

OPINION: Fyson on the dangers of simplifying land-use classes.(Column)
September 5, 2003... A curious piece of revisionism has emerged from the ODPM in a release from the planning and land-use statistics division that could have profound consequences for the quality of major developments. Some 'experimental statistics' were published...

EDITORIAL: Roads maintenance lacks local direction.(Brief Article)(Editorial)
September 5, 2003... Robbing Peter to pay Paul is all part of the lottery that passes for managing public services in the UK. The revelation earlier this year that the planning delivery grant is being disgracefully siphoned off by one in five local authorities to...

INTERVIEW: Estate agency Midas.(Interview)
September 5, 2003... Alan Cherry's energy, ambition and no-nonsense outlook have put him at the top of the development tree despite leaving school at the age of 15, writes Rob Winkley. There is barely a street in the UK that has not been influenced directly or...

The car's key role in setting retail trends.
September 5, 2003... Smaller centres should ensure that their efforts to cut congestion do not harm vitality, warns John Lockwood. As the UK population becomes increasingly affluent and levels of car ownership rise, issues are emerging that may have a defining...

Community understanding.
September 5, 2003... Despite the communities plan, what makes for a sustainable community is still misunderstood, writes Greg Yager. For all those involved in the long-standing but reinvigorated drive for regeneration, the sustainable communities plan published...

Ire rises over roads malaise.
September 5, 2003... Transport wngineers are up in arms at the steady deterioration of the UK highways system, writes Huw Morris. John Sanders can barely hide his irritation at the state of the nation's local road network. In fact, like many engineers and...

NOTEBOOK: Catering for the car culture.
September 5, 2003... Cars can be a sustainable mode of transport if the conditions are right. Cliff Hague takes an ironic look at the measures that would be necessary to promote such a vision. Tory leader Iain Duncan Smith, driving his sporty soft-top, has...

CASEBOOK: Amusement centre held to be similar to retail outlets.
September 5, 2003... An amusement arcade proposed in a south London town centre has been held not to be significantly different from many retail activities, with an inspector seeing no requirement to confine this type of use to secondary retail frontages. The...

CASEBOOK: Homes approved despite affordable provision row.
September 5, 2003... A proposal for 19 dwellings and offices on a site in west London has been allowed despite the local planning authority's claim that the need for affordable housing provision should be based on the development capacity of the site rather than...

CASEBOOK: Court cases - Resident complaint overturns incinerator consent.(Brief Article)
September 5, 2003... The North Yorkshire Moors National Park Authority has agreed that its decision to grant planning permission for an animal carcass incinerator should be quashed, following a challenge by a local resident. The resident argued that the...

CASEBOOK: Appeal cases - Agricultural development - Dwelling denied lawful development certificate.
September 5, 2003... A lawful development certificate (LDC) requested for a dwelling in Cornwall has been denied despite arguments that an agricultural occupancy restriction had been incorrectly imposed on the original permission. Planning permission had been...

CASEBOOK: Appeal cases - Agricultural development - Farm worker's dwelling held to fail need test.(Brief Article)
September 5, 2003... The conversion of a chalet in the curtilage of a farmhouse in north Wales to an agricultural worker's dwelling has been turned down because there was no proven need for a second dwelling to serve the holding. The chalet had been erected...

CASEBOOK: Appeal cases - Commercial and industrial - Highway contribution dispute leads to costs award.(Brief Article)
September 5, 2003... A scheme for 4,645 sq m of class B1 office floorspace in Wokingham has been allowed with an award of costs to the appellant company because of the council's failure to substantiate its objection. The council had opposed the scheme on the...

CASEBOOK: Appeal cases - Commercial and industrial - Betting office allowed due to perceived attraction.(Brief Article)
September 5, 2003... The conversion of a vacant ground floor shop in a primary shopping frontage in St Austell town centre to a betting office has been allowed as it was judged likely to attract significant numbers of people into the centre. The inspector held...

CASEBOOK: Appeal cases - Energy development - Convertor approval judged to be in national interest.(Brief Article)
September 5, 2003... A proposal for an electricity convertor station together with underground cables in County Durham has been allowed on the grounds that to do so was in the national interest. The scheme, promoted by National Grid International Ltd, was opposed...

CASEBOOK: Appeal cases - Energy development - Substation permitted despite amenity concerns.(Brief Article)
September 5, 2003... A proposal by Manweb PLC for a 33KV electricity substation in Warrington has been supported on grounds of need. The site comprised part of a grassed verge in a suburb of the town. The council opposed the scheme on the basis that it would...

CASEBOOK: Appeal cases - Householder development - Restriction of roof access upheld as necessary.(Brief Article)
September 5, 2003... An enforcement notice on a condition preventing the use of a single-storey flat roof at a dwellinghouse in East Sussex as a balcony has been upheld as necessary and reasonable to protect the privacy of nearby residents. The condition was...

CASEBOOK: Appeal cases - Householder development - Sculptural character of boundary walls supported.(Brief Article)
September 5, 2003... The retention of existing boundary walls together with the erection of gates at a dwelling in north-west London have been allowed after they were considered not to harm the surrounding street scene. In acknowledging that the walls were...

CASEBOOK: Appeal cases - Householder development - Enforcement notice held to be beyond rescue.(Brief Article)
September 5, 2003... A listed building enforcement notice directed against the unauthorised creation of an opening in a wall associated with a ground-floor flat in West Sussex has been quashed because it was substantially flawed and went beyond the powers of an...

CASEBOOK: Appeal cases - Housing: New build - House held not prejudicial to expansion masterplan.(Brief Article)
September 5, 2003... A replacement dwelling on the edge of a Cornish seaside resort has been allowed despite objections that it would prejudice a proposed expansion of the town involving the use of the appeal site as open space. The site contained an existing...

CASEBOOK: Appeal cases - Housing: New build - Infill rejected due to strong rural character.(Brief Article)
September 5, 2003... Two appeals involving between five and six dwellings within the curtilage of an existing dwelling in Hampshire have been rejected because both schemes would have a significant impact on the character and appearance of the area due to the...

CASEBOOK: Appeal cases - Housing: New build - Dwelling allowed despite open space requirement.(Brief Article)
September 5, 2003... A replacement dwelling has been allowed at a site in Berkshire despite a council requirement for a financial contribution to be paid towards improved open space provision. The appellants had been granted permission for extensions and...

CASEBOOK: Appeal cases - Housing: New build - Safety risk supported in refusal of housing scheme.(Brief Article)
September 5, 2003... Barratt Eastern Counties Ltd has failed to secure permission for 77 houses at a site in Essex as the occupants would be placed at unacceptable risk from a potentially dangerous industrial use nearby. The site lay within a zone defined by...

CASEBOOK: Appeal cases - Leisure and entertainment - Caving club hut held to be intrusive in countryside.(Brief Article)
September 5, 2003... A proposed club hut for cave research and exploration in the Mendip Hillls has been rejected on the grounds that it would be a prominent and intrusive incursion into a largely undeveloped rural area. The hut was intended to replace existing...

CASEBOOK: Appeal cases - Leisure and entertainment - Lodges renewal rejected due to changes in policy.(Brief Article)
September 5, 2003... An extension of time for the submission of reserved matters associated with an outline permission for 14 holiday lodges and leisure facilities in Northamptonshire has been refused after material changes in planning policy were identified. ...

CASEBOOK: Appeal cases - Leisure and entertainment - Soft play facility allowed in industrial premises.(Brief Article)
September 5, 2003... A children's soft play facility within a modern industrial building located in County Durham has been allowed as it would create employment opportunities for local people and thereby accord with general employment policy objectives. The...

CASEBOOK: Appeal cases - Retail development - Tesco store allowed despite highway objections.(Brief Article)
September 5, 2003... A Tesco supermarket has been allowed in a local centre in Greater Manchester following a finding that it would preserve the character and appearance of a conservation area and would not harm highway safety. The 0.17ha site contained 16...

CASEBOOK: Appeal cases - Telecommunications - Phone equipment enforcement notice upheld.(Brief Article)
September 5, 2003... Enforcement action directed against mobile phone operator O2 (UK) Ltd in respect of antennas and supporting equipment on premises in east London has been upheld despite assertions that the development was permitted under class A, part 24,...