Saturday 26 January 2013

The Tale of two Labour Councils

The Tale of two Labour Councils, one what it believes to be a safe Labour area and one that knows they have to listen to local residents. Below is the story of Telford and Wrekin Council scrapping its plans for a lush new civic centre and opting for a modest refurbished building after moving out of its 1970’s HQ.

In January 2011 Telford Labour launched an e-petition against a new Civic Centre and group leader Councillor Keith Austin said early indications were that residents were outraged the Tory council was spending millions on lavish offices in a prime site in the light of the Government cuts, he added: "If the whole basis of the development was reliant on the building of civic offices then there would be cause for great concern, but we do not believe that is the case. What this Tory administration fails to tell everyone is that they are borrowing millions to build offices. This will impact on the revenue budget and will mean cuts to services and jobs."

In May 2011 Telford Labour were elected into power and Councillor Austin said plans to build multi-million pound civic offices at the heart of the £250 million Southwater development would be scrapped immediately. He said council staff could be relocated to existing council buildings in the town centre, including Darby House, to save cash. "We won't be building new offices in Southwater Square, which will save millions of pounds that would have had to be borrowed to fund it".

Following the election defeated former council leader Andrew Eade, has labelled Labour's plans to shelve the offices project as "economic vandalism" that could rob the borough of millions of pounds of private investment. He said the planned civic offices were the "lynchpin" that held the whole development together and warned developers would think twice about coming there without it.

January 2013 Building work starts on Southwater development which is due for completion early 2014. Cineworld has already been announced as operator of the new Southwater Square 's 11 screen multiplex cinema and chief executive Steve Wiener was in Telford today to meet council leader Kuldip Sahota. Now eight instantly recognisable names from the hotel and catering industry have also been announced as operators of surrounding buildings. They include Bella Italia, Chimichanga, Harvester, Nando's, Premier Inn, Pizza Express, Wagamama and Zizzi.

Separately Telford and Wrekin Council has also announced it has bought vacant office development Addenbrooke House in Telford Town Centre.  Telford and Wrekin Council is moving out of Civic offices where it has been based since 1976. Moving to Addenbrooke House will help it to save office space and more than £2m a year. He said: "It's £5m in total - the purchase of the Addenbrooke House, refurbishment, ICT improvement of the Darby house and the refurbishment of it. It is good value for money. It's a lot better than building a whole new office and trying to do it up and spending £20- £30m on it."

Why can’t Stoke on Trent City Council understand value for money? Telford and Wrekin had to move out of their ageing 70’s building but resisted wasting money on a plush new building, and still got the regeneration they wanted in the City. Stoke on Trent City Council have no need to even move, yet are still insisting on wasting money and ignoring the views of their residents.

Monday 21 January 2013

Councillor pulls out of Public Meeting


Cllr Alan Dutton (Labour - Burslem Central) Cabinet Member for Education Pulls out of a public meeting on the new Civic Centre, the meeting had been planned in Burslem for Wednesday 23rd January, he had this to say 

"John, after taking advise from officers and comments made, I feel that I am going to have to withdraw from the debate on Wednesday night, when you make comments like against our wishes and comments made by others then I feel that it is all determined and any debate will be one sided. So apologies but I will not be attending. Kind regards, Alan"

On Thursday 24th January he will be voting on the motion submitted by Cllr Paul Breeze (unaffiliated -  Birches Head and Central Forest Park) and Cllr David Conway (City Independents - Little Chell and Stanfield)

In view of the dire economic circumstances, globally, nationally and in particular, devastatingly, locally in Stoke-on-Trent, and in light of widespread public disapproval of the council’s previous decision to borrow £40m, and rising, of taxpayers money to relocate the civic headquarters from Stoke Town to Hanley, this council:

1) radically rethink it’s overall strategy of the future regeneration of the city centre and the city of Stoke-on-Trent as a whole, and whilst the strategy is revised, the £40m proposed borrowing for the Central Business District contained in the council approved capital programme be suspended.

2) request the Cabinet to rescind the decision to move the civic headquarters from Stoke Town to Hanley, and retain the civic centre building in its current location and for its current use in Stoke Town.


How will he represent his ward if he will not meet with them?

Sunday 20 January 2013

Polite request for leafleters and donations

Help us protect the identity of the six towns of Stoke-on-Trent, its villages and the quality of life of its residents by giving whatever you can to ensure that March on Stoke is a success!

A £1 donation from everyone on this page can pay for a leaflet drop to every household, and posters promoting the march, across the city. It will ensure that we continue to raise political awareness and get the message across loud and clear that it is the people of Stoke-on-Trent who hold ultimate power, not elected and unelected representatives.

Please send your donations, whatever you can afford, to marchonstoke@gmail.com






If you can offer to leaflet and area please draw on the below Map to show your area or contact an admin with the roads you can leaflet




View March on Stoke in a larger map

Saturday 19 January 2013

Council Administration Buildings

Map to show the Spread of Council Administration Building across the City all of which are being considered for closure and sale to enable the new Civic Centre, and for staff to relocate to Hanley


 

Saturday 12 January 2013

How to Object to the Planning Application

With the many petitions (910 as of 12th Jan) and petition2 (185 as of 12th Jan) ongoing against the Councils £55million proposed new Civic Centre building, its surprising the council planning department is reporting just 20 objection This is no doubt due to it being submitted over the Christmas period, so please click and send your objections


email planning.apps@stoke.gov.uk with the subject: 54398/FUL  or write to 
Email addresss for the Planning Committee are  

Planning, Civic Centre, Glebe Street, Stoke-on-Trent ST4 1RN quoting 54398/FUL

or to e-mail all members of the planning committee 

tom.reynolds@stoke.gov.uk, gurmeetsingh.kallar@stoke.gov.uk, Jack.Brereton@stoke.gov.uk,

janine.bridges@stoke.gov.uk, alan.dutton@stoke.gov.uk, terence.follows@stoke.gov.uk,  debra.gratton@stoke.gov.uk, peter.hayward@stoke.gov.uk, shazad.hussain@stoke.gov.uk, adrian.knapper@stoke.gov.uk, andy.platt@stoke.gov.uk, paul.shotton@stoke.gov.uk,  amjid.wazir@stoke.gov.uk

Friday 11 January 2013

Opposition Councillors Call for Rethink

Cllr Paul, Breeze (unaffiliated), and Dave Conway (City Independent) have submitted a motion asking for Council members to consider an urgent rethink on its proposal to build a new £55million Civic Centre in Hanley.

This comes on the back of massive community uproar with 3 petitons of getting close to 4,000 signatures requesting a rethink, and a March planned for 23rd February from Hanley to Stoke being organised on Facebook with close to 1,700 members already

The motion reads
 In view of the dire economic circumstances, globally, nationally and in particular, devastatingly, locally in Stoke-on-Trent, and in light of widespread public disapproval of the council’s previous decision to borrow £40m, and rising, of taxpayers money to relocate the civic headquarters from Stoke Town to Hanley, this council:
1) radically rethink it’s overall strategy of the future regeneration of the city centre and the city of Stoke-on-Trent as a whole, and whilst the strategy is revised, the £40m proposed borrowing for the Central Business District contained in the council approved capital programme be suspended.
2) request the Cabinet to rescind the decision to move the civic headquarters from Stoke Town to Hanley, and retain the civic centre building in its current location and for its current use in Stoke Town.


Thursday 10 January 2013

URBED Masterplan for Stoke Town Centre

In 2011 URBED publically consulted on a Masterplan for Stoke Town Centre  it was released in Oct '11 (just 15 months ago!!) at a cost of £160,00 and which on page 21 states - 

"The proposed vision for Stoke Town is therefore as a city centre quarter including the University, College, Station and administrative hub. The Town Centre and the former Spode Works will become the heart of this quarter and a focus for its activity. This activity does not need to be created, it already exists......"



In the UK we have become used to large conurbations with very small and compact city centres. This however would not be the case on the continent where the city centre is far larger and includes a series of quarters each mixing housing and employment with city centre functions such as a University Quarter, Administrative Quarter and Station Quarter.

Stoke is unusual in the UK being a polycentric conurbation that historically did not have a clear city centre. The Council has been right to promote Hanley as a city centre because there is a need for a clear focus for higher order retailing and cultural activities. However, given the unique structure there is no reason to assume that this means that Stoke must adopt the UK model of a compact centre in a big conurbation. Why not adopt a continental model that sees a large city centre with a series of quarters, and indeed a wider conurbation made up of a network of urban villages? The model for this in the UK is, of course, London which while being on a vast scale has successfully developed a polycentric village structure.

This suggests a vision for Stoke Town as a city centre quarter. This is already hinted at in the University’s vision for a ‘University Quarter’. It could also incorporate elements of an administrative quarter or indeed a station quarter like the area around the Eurostar terminal in Lille. This is compatible with the strategy for the City Centre that emphasises the importance of the University Boulevard in linking the station to the city centre. The small addition to this strategy that we are suggesting is that the access be continued for another few hundred meters so that the former Spode Works site and Stoke Town Centre is also perceived as a functional city centre quarter.

Tuesday 1 January 2013

Documents

Stoke-upon-Trent Masterplan by URBED October 2011

Adopted Core Spatial Strategy 
by Stoke on Trent City Council

Office Rationalisation Stratergy 
by King Sturge May 2011

Genr8 company reports


Labour MP calls for rethink over £150m Rochdale regeneration deal with Genr8 
by Rochdale  Observer


Genr8’s troubled plan for Stoke-on-Trent’s Central Business District by estatesgazette.com


Genr8 consultantion results


District Auditor


The Audit Commission’s role is to protect the public purse. We do this by appointing auditors, publishing analysis and comparing data, What’s important to us: Economy, efficiency and effectiveness – promoting and providing high quality and excellent value-for-money public services – recognising that public money, which is provided involuntarily by taxpayers, is special.

E-mail Mark C Stocks  at mark.c.stocks@uk.gt.com

Tel 0121 232 5437