Agenda item

Leader's Statement

Minutes:

The Leader was pleased to report to Council that the Development Agreement with the consortium “Spirit of Sittingbourne” had ended. He said that this meant that the plans to build over 200 high rise apartments on three Sittingbourne town centre sites would not now go ahead, and that these sites had been been allocated free of cost to the developers by the previous Council. They included the Cockleshell Walk and Spring Street car parks and the land next to Fountain Street. The Leader said that Phase 2 of the Sittingbourne Town centre project, involving development at Swale House and around the centre of the town, near the Swallows Leisure Centre and library, was now cancelled and any pressure for further capital borrowing on unlikely projects had been avoided.  The Leader added that Spirit of Sittingbourne would complete the Cinema, restaurants and hotel development in the Forum but thereafter would not be involved in the regeneration of Sittingbourne.

 

In reference to the Development Agreement, the Leader said that the project was not the best way to regenerate Sittingbourne as a town, as it tried to do too much inside the confines of one project when a series of more specific plans might have been more productive. He said it was beyond the capacity of the Council to deliver, and too much control was handed over to one developer partner. The Leader said that, as a result, the Council, over the last 7 years or so, had been over dependent for delivery on that one partner and this had made the process too slow, with too many delays and, in reference to the roadworks, frustrating and below expectations.  He added that, from the start, there had been a lack of clarity and certainty about funding which eventually led to the Council, in 2017, deciding to become the main investor, with all the risks that that could entail. He said that the Council had borrowed a lot of money and must do all it could to ensure that this was not a financial burden over the next few years.  The Leader said that the Council had worked together in achieving its own Withdrawal Agreement with finesse.

 

In considering the potential benefits, the Leader said that it gave the Council, in consultation with the local community, the chance to take control again of how it wanted Sittingbourne to develop, to encourage the High Street in a realistic and responsible way and to preserve the heritage of the town and in the interests of local people.  The Leader went on to say that the Car parks in the Fountain Street sites should never have been handed over to the developers and it would be a relief to many local residents that the high-rise flats would not be built.  He said that the Council would now be able to use these sites in the best interests and needs of local people.

 

In reference to the rest of Phase 1 (the cinema, hotel and restaurants), the Leader said this was due to be completed in the early part of 2020, and progress was being closely monitored.  Looking forward, the Leader said that it was important that everyone, sometime doubters included, needed to generate a positive view of this development, in the interests of the Council, but also the wider community. He reminded Members that the departure from recent policy had the full support of the Coalition Cabinet but also, importantly, was condoned by the Scrutiny Committee. The Leader said that there was unity that this was in the best interests of the Council and the people it represented and the concern had been to negotiate a path that would:

 

·         Give everyone greater control over development in the town;

·         protect the financial interests of all Swale’s Council taxpayers; and

·         address some of the real needs of the whole of Swale and move the focus of regeneration into other parts of the Borough.

The Leader said that this outcome was the result of months of meticulous work by officers in close contact with key cabinet members and he thanked the Director of Regeneration, the Head of Housing, Economy and Community and the Chief Financial Officer for their input. He added that this change of direction was a signal moment which he hoped would be welcomed by residents.

 

Speaking of the future, the Leader said that there had been much preliminary discussion driven by local need and fiscal responsibility, and one part of these discussions has been a continuing drive to base further education in the centre of Sittingbourne. He said that this did not only matter considerably to the skills and employability agenda but that the daily presence of large numbers of students would add much to the viability of the town centre as a whole, including the Spirit of Sittingbourne development. The Leader said that there had been a number of meetings with further education providers and he had visited both the Sheppey College and Canterbury College. He highlighted that the main obstacle was that the retention of post 16 youngsters in the local Secondary schools allowed providers to argue that there was not a large enough cohort to justify the investment so it was strategically important that if and when the new school came on stream in North West Sittingbourne, its age designation be 11-16 and not 11-18. The Leader explained that, under the current Government, it would have to be a free school, with local authority influence being limited. He said there would be further visits and discussions with key figures at Canterbury College, also involving the MP for Sittingbourne and Sheppey.

 

The Leader advised that, with the help of the Local Government Association, there would be a review of the Management Structure in the next few months.

 

Finally, the Leader said he hoped all Members felt that they had a role to play in promoting a positive view of the Borough and he referred to the rich heritage and history, areas of outstanding natural beauty and a stunning coastline. He said there needed to be more positivity around Swale’s more urban areas and encouraged all Councillors to promote this.

 

In response, the Leader of the Conservative group thanked the Leader and encouraged all Members to join in celebrating the success of Phase 1 of the Sittingbourne Town Centre Regeneration project.  He gave his commiserations to those that were unsuccessful in the recent General Election and highlighted the overwhelming support of Mr Gordon Henderson MP.

 

The Leader of the Conservative group thanked Councillor Denise Knights for highlighting housing families at Christmas in her Council question, and stressed that no family should be in bed and breakfast accommodation at Christmas.  He congratulated the Cabinet Member for Housing for ensuring that as few families as possible spent Christmas in bed and breakfast accommodation.

 

In response, the Leader thanked the leader of the Conservative group and spoke of the diversity in local politics. He advised that he met with Mr Gordon Henderson MP monthly.