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Agenda item

Post Covid Vision for the Town Centre

Cabinet Member: Cabinet Member for Culture & Regeneration, Councillor Oliver Lewis

Officer: Interim Executive Director Place, Sarah Hayward

Key decision: no

Decision:

The Leader of the Council delegated authority to the Cabinet to make the following decisions:

 

RESOLVED: To

 

1.               Agree the setting up of an Advisory Town Centre Board, in principle, with Council representatives being the Leader (Chair) and the Cabinet Member for Culture & Regeneration; and delegate authority to finalise the terms of reference to the Interim Executive Director of Place, in consultation with the proposed stakeholders, members and Chair.

 

2.               Agree the delivery of a community engagement programme for the town centre, and the North End area in particular to build on and help deliver the vision as set out in the Local Plan.

 

3.               Agree the setting up of a Croydon Urban Room within the town centre as a focus and platform for community, business and stakeholder engagement.

 

4.               Agree a budget of up to £50,000 funded from central Government’s Welcome Back Fund, to kickstart the community, business and stakeholder engagement.

 

5.               Agree the preparation of a Recovery and Regeneration Plan as a non statutory document for the town centre.

 

6.               Note the contents of the report and on the basis of the activities of Croydon Limited Partnership (CLP) in preparing short, medium and long term plans for the redevelopment of the Whitgift Centre, that legal instruction is initiated for the transfer to Whitgift Limited Partnership of land acquired through the Compulsory Purchase Order (CPO).

Minutes:

The Cabinet Member for Culture & Regeneration (Councillor Oliver Lewis) stated that the report set out the council’s approach to developing, with others, a new vision for the town centre. The global pandemic, it was noted, had caused significant changed to the global retail economy and as such the council needed to seize the initiative to achieve the town centre regeneration which was required. The Cabinet Member set out that the council wanted to work with local people and stakeholders to put together the new vision.

 

The development of the new vision, the Cabinet Member stated, would be undertaken through a new Advisory Board and community collective. It was noted that there were some great assets within Croydon and it was due to be the Borough of Culture in 2023. It was hoped the new vision would bring together all the positives within the town centre and would forge a new blueprint for the town centre.

 

The Cabinet Member stated the council had wanted to work with the Croydon Limited Partnership to redevelop the Whitgift Centre, and as a planning authority he stated the council had done all it could to support the development. It was suggested that it was up to the Croydon Partnership to take part in the visioning exercise and to come forward with their revised plans of the town centre which reflected residents’ needs. It was, however, stated by the Cabinet Member that everyone must be realistic as the redevelopment would take time but he stressed that he believed that Croydon would emerge stronger from the pandemic.

 

The Leader of the Council (Councillor Hamida Ali) reflected that the lack of progress in terms of the redevelopment of the town centre would be a concern for all. She stated that her conversations with the Croydon Partnership had reflected the content of a paper published in April 2021; that Croydon remained firmly in their development plans post pandemic. However, it was noted that any redevelopment would be to their timeframe which would not be of much comfort to Croydon residents. It was further stressed that the council had discharged all of its regulatory responsibilities to facilitate the development.

 

It was time, the Leader stated, for the council to speak to residents and to hear the views of the community in terms of their expectations for the town centre in the context of the economic climate post pandemic. That was notwithstanding that the current owners were the guardians of the site and they had, the Leader noted, responsibilities in that role whilst they developed new plans for the site which took into account the new economic realities. The Leader urged the Partnership to do what they could to ensure that the town centre remained a vibrant place.

 

The Cabinet Member for Sustainable Croydon (Councillor Muhammad Ali) thanked officer for their work on the report. It was felt that the new vision provided an excellent opportunity to shape the future of the town centre to be ambitious and creative to take advantage of the opportunities post pandemic. One such key opportunity, the Cabinet Member stated, was to embed the recommendations of the Croydon Climate Crisis Commission and he queried whether those recommendations would be integral to the new vision.

 

In response, the Cabinet Member for Culture & Regeneration stated that the council would be engaging with residents and stakeholders in developing the new vision. It was noted that recent polling had found that climate change had risen dramatically in the public’s consciousness and, as such, he was confident that it would feed into the visioning work from residents. He reflected that parks and open spaces may have increasingly important roles in town centres going forward which could support making walking and cycling more appealing. Additionally, it was noted that the materials used in the redevelopment were a further opportunity to ensure that the town centre was as environmentally sound as possible.

 

The Cabinet Member for Croydon Renewal (Councillor Stuart King) stated that it was right that the council consulted with residents through the proposed community engagement process although he suggested that many residents were fed up with the delay. It was noted that the retail sector had fundamentally changed which had meant the old redevelopment plans were no longer fit for purpose, however he raised concerns that there did not appear to be any urgency from the Croydon Partnership to develop and submit new plans in the near future.

 

Paragraph 3.11 of the report, it was noted, set out the next steps however the Cabinet Member stated that he hoped that there were more plans than had been set out in that paragraph and that there was more urgency. In particular he highlighted that by the end of 2021 the Partnership would begin work on the principles of a future master plan and suggested that if there was genuine commitment to the development of Croydon that he would expect progress to be quicker.

 

Whilst the council’s options were limited in terms of the retail centre, the Cabinet Member for Croydon Renewal highlighted the town centre was more than just the shopping centre and that there were opportunities to ensure it remained vibrant, welcoming and successful which the council, it was stated, was committed to supporting.

 

The Cabinet Member for Culture & Regeneration reflected that all involved were frustrated and had hoped the development of the town had come forward earlier. He stated that he hoped the Partnership would engage in the process and that it was act as a catalyst to pick up the pace in the development of a new master plan but also a meanwhile strategy. It was noted that there were a number of empty units in the town centre and the Cabinet Member suggested that those units could be used for interesting and creative opportunities.

 

Members were informed by the Chair of Scrutiny & Overview Committee (SOC) (Councillor Sean Fitzsimons) that a Task & Finish Group had been established to look at the town centre as it was felt that the council need to rethink its approach by taking into account the changing nature of the economy. Additionally it was suggested that it was important to ensure that a humane town centre was developed as it was felt the historic centre had been removed during the 1950s developments.

The Cabinet Member for Culture & Regeneration (Councillor Oliver Lewis) stated that the report set out the council’s approach to developing, with others, a new vision for the town centre. The global pandemic, it was noted, had caused significant changes to the global retail economy and as such the council needed to seize the initiative to achieve the town centre regeneration which was required. The Cabinet Member set out that the council wanted to work with local people and stakeholders to put together the new vision.

 

The development of the new vision, the Cabinet Member stated, would be undertaken through a new Advisory Board and community collective. It was noted that there were some great assets within Croydon and it was due to be the Borough of Culture in 2023. It was hoped the new vision would bring together all the positives within the town centre and would forge a new blueprint for the town centre.

 

The Cabinet Member stated the council had wanted to work with the Croydon Limited Partnership (CLP) to redevelop the Whitgift Centre, and as a planning authority he stressed the council had done all it could to support the development. It was suggested that it was up to the CLP to take part in the visioning exercise and to come forward with their revised plans of the town centre which reflected residents’ needs. It was, however, stated by the Cabinet Member that everyone must be realistic as the redevelopment would take time but he stressed that he believed that Croydon would emerge stronger from the pandemic.

 

The Leader of the Council (Councillor Hamida Ali) reflected that the lack of progress in terms of the redevelopment of the town centre would be a concern for all. She stated that her conversations with the CLP had reflected the content of a paper published in April 2021; that Croydon remained firmly in their development plans post pandemic. However, it was noted that any redevelopment would be to their timeframe which would not be of much comfort to Croydon residents. It was further stressed that the council had discharged all of its regulatory responsibilities to facilitate the development.

 

It was time, the Leader stated, for the council to speak to residents and to hear the views of the community in terms of their expectations for the town centre in the context of the economic climate post pandemic. That was notwithstanding that the current owners were the guardians of the site and they had, the Leader noted, responsibilities in that role whilst they developed new plans for the site which took into account the new economic realities. The Leader urged the Partnership to do what they could to ensure that the town centre remained a vibrant place.

 

The Cabinet Member for Sustainable Croydon (Councillor Muhammad Ali) thanked officers for their work on the report. It was felt that the new vision provided an excellent opportunity to shape the future of the town centre to be ambitious, creative and to take advantage of the opportunities post pandemic. One such key opportunity, the Cabinet Member stated, was to embed the recommendations of the Croydon Climate Crisis Commission and he queried whether those recommendations would be integral to the new vision.

 

In response, the Cabinet Member for Culture & Regeneration stated that the council would be engaging with residents and stakeholders in developing the new vision. It was noted that recent polling had found that climate change had risen dramatically in the public’s consciousness and, as such, he was confident that it would feed into the visioning work from residents. He reflected that parks and open spaces may have increasingly important roles in town centres going forward which could support making walking and cycling more appealing. Additionally, it was noted that the materials used in the redevelopment were a further opportunity to ensure that the town centre was as environmentally sound as possible.

 

The Cabinet Member for Croydon Renewal (Councillor Stuart King) stated that it was right that the council consulted with residents through the proposed community engagement process although he suggested that many residents were fed up with the delay. It was noted that the retail sector had fundamentally changed which had meant the old redevelopment plans were no longer fit for purpose and raised concerns that there did not appear to be any urgency from the CLP to develop and submit new plans in the near future.

 

Paragraph 3.11 of the report, it was noted, set out the next steps however the Cabinet Member stated that he hoped that there were more plans than had been set out in that paragraph and that there was more urgency. In particular he highlighted that by the end of 2021 the Partnership would begin work on the principles of a future master plan and suggested that if there was genuine commitment to the development of Croydon that he would expect progress to be quicker.

 

Whilst the council’s options were limited in terms of the retail centre, the Cabinet Member for Croydon Renewal highlighted the town centre was more than just the shopping centre and that there were opportunities to ensure it remained vibrant, welcoming and successful which the council, it was stated, was committed to supporting.

 

The Cabinet Member for Culture & Regeneration reflected that all involved were frustrated and had hoped the development of the town had come forward earlier. He stated that he hoped the Partnership would engage in the process and that it was act as a catalyst to pick up the pace in the development of a new master plan but also a meanwhile strategy. It was noted that there were a number of empty units in the town centre and the Cabinet Member suggested that those units could be used for interesting and creative opportunities.

 

Members were informed by the Chair of Scrutiny & Overview Committee (SOC) (Councillor Sean Fitzsimons) that a Task & Finish Group had been established to look at the town centre as it was felt that the council need to rethink its approach by taking into account the changing nature of the economy. Additionally it was suggested that it was important to ensure that a humane town centre was developed as it was felt the historic centre had been removed during the 1950s developments.

 

Concerns were raised in relation to the section of the report which discussed permitted development as the Chair of SOC felt that the policy had removed council’s ability to ensure high quality housing was provided in old office blocks and had instead led to units being created which did not meet planning standards. It was noted that the Article 4 expired in 2022 and concerns were raised that it posed a severe risk on the town’s future prosperity. In light of this, the Chair of SOC urged the council to start considering whether to apply for new Article 4.

 

The Cabinet Member for Culture & Regeneration welcomed scrutiny’s involvement and stressed that the visioning exercise was due to be an open process. In terms of permitted development, the Cabinet Member stated that he agreed that all too often office facilities were being converted into poor quality housing, however he stated that the council had to be realistic in terms of the resources required for an Article 4 submission and the likely success.

 

The Shadow Cabinet Member for Culture & Regeneration (Councillor Jeet Bains) suggested the report was a catalogue of failures and queried whether the Cabinet Member should admit that the Administration had run the town into the ground. In response, the Cabinet Member stated that the council had done all it could as a planning authority; it had delivered planning consents and compulsory purchase orders. He stressed that it was private companies who had failed to act on those consents and bring forward the development. The report, it was noted, sought to ensure an open process to help with creating a new vision for the town centre and the Cabinet Member reiterated that all were invited to be involved in the process.

 

The Leader of the Council delegated authority to the Cabinet to make the following decisions:

 

RESOLVED: To

 

1.               Agree the setting up of an Advisory Town Centre Board, in principle, with Council representatives being the Leader (Chair) and the Cabinet Member for Culture & Regeneration; and delegate authority to finalise the terms of reference to the Interim Executive Director of Place, in consultation with the proposed stakeholders, members and Chair.

 

2.               Agree the delivery of a community engagement programme for the town centre, and the North End area in particular to build on and help deliver the vision as set out in the Local Plan.

 

3.               Agree the setting up of a Croydon Urban Room within the town centre as a focus and platform for community, business and stakeholder engagement.

 

4.               Agree a budget of up to £50,000 funded from central Government’s Welcome Back Fund, to kickstart the community, business and stakeholder engagement.

 

5.               Agree the preparation of a Recovery and Regeneration Plan as a non statutory document for the town centre.

 

6.               Note the contents of the report and on the basis of the activities of Croydon Limited Partnership (CLP) in preparing short, medium and long term plans for the redevelopment of the Whitgift Centre, that legal instruction is initiated for the transfer to Whitgift Limited Partnership of land acquired through the Compulsory Purchase Order (CPO).

Supporting documents: