Agenda and minutes

To receive any apologies for absence

No apologies for absence were received at the meeting.

To receive any declarations of interest

No declarations of disclosable pecuniary interests were made at the meeting.

Councillor Bill Trite having considered that, by virtue of his involvement as an elected member in the process for the development of the scheme, could be seen to have predetermined what was being proposed. On that basis he had decided not to play any part in the Committee debate or vote on the item, but to speak only as a local Member and as a local Swanage resident.

To confirm the minutes of the meeting held on 8 January 2020.

The minutes of the meeting held on 8 January 2020 were confirmed and signed subject to an amendment - for clarification purposes - being:-

·        That reference be made in the penultimate paragraph of the body of the minute 61 text to the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) provisions at Paragraph 12 stating “Where a planning application conflicts with an up-to-date development plan (including any neighbourhood plans that form part of the development plan), permission should not usually be granted”.

Members of the public wishing to speak to the Committee on a planning application should notify the Democratic Services Officer listed on the front of this agenda. This must be done no later than two clear working days before the meeting. Please refer to the Guide to Public Speaking at Planning Committee.

Representations by the public to the Committee on individual planning applications are detailed below. There were no questions, petitions or deputations received on other items on this occasion.

To consider a report by the Executive Director of Place.

The Committee were being asked to consider proposed changes to Traffic Regulation Orders (TRO’s) governing the use and positioning of loading bays on Institute Road, Swanage to complement and ensure that a footway improvement scheme could be readily accommodated.  Institute Road was a one-way road bisecting the south eastern part of the town and formed part of its main retail and commercial centre, being the only vehicular access to the southern half of the town, serving the harbour, quay and Durlston Country Park, as well as residential areas. The proposals for the changes to be made to the TROs had received the full support of the Swanage Town Council and both Dorset Council ward Councillors. The principle of the footway improvement scheme had been agreed and approved by both Dorset Council and Swanage Town Council, with funding being readily available, with contributions being allocated to this between the two councils and from the Local Transport Plan and from local development.

With the aid of a visual presentation, officers explained the reasoning behind the need for the TRO modifications to be made and the basis of the objections received. Photographs and plans were shown to the Committee by way of illustration. This showed what the changes would be; how they would affect the traffic management of the road; what alternative arrangements were being proposed; and how the general situation currently looked. The characteristics, configuration and topography of the road and its setting within the townscape were drawn to the attention of the Committee, giving an idea of the relationship between the traffic using the road, pedestrians using the footways and the proximity of the commercial and retail properties.

As the road was relatively narrow - at 5m wide – this being further  exacerbated by a loading bay running its entire eastern length, access along the road was only some 2.5m in width, which was evidently too narrow for larger vehicles trying to pass vehicles parked in the loading bay, as had proven to be the case on numerous occasions. This had habitually resulted in vehicles having to mount the footway to pass - made easier to do given their height was little more than the road surface - which invariably conflicted with pedestrian movements. There had been evidence of incidents occurring which significantly compromised road safety. Moreover, parts of the available footways were privately owned by shops and used by them for displaying merchandise, further limiting the available space for pedestrians.

So as to improve the safety of pedestrians, it was now being proposed to widen the footways on both sides of the road, allowing satisfactory access for them. In order to facilitate and complement this however, it was necessary for the loading bay traversing the length of the road to be removed and repositioned, requiring changes to the Traffic Regulation Orders (TROs) governing its use. What other traffic management measures were to be implemented to complement the scheme was described by officers, including the upgrading of a puffin crossing.

Following  ...  view the full minutes text for item 70.

To consider any items of business which the Chairman has had prior notification and considers to be urgent pursuant to section 100B (4) b) of the Local Government Act 1972

The reason for the urgency shall be recorded in the minutes.

There were no urgent items for consideration at the meeting.