Infrastructure, Housing and Economic Development Committee - 17 January 2023

NOTICE AND AGENDA

For a meeting to be held in the Penn Chamber, Three Rivers House, Northway, Rickmansworth, WD3 1RL on Tuesday 17 January 2023 at 7.30pm.

Members of the Infrastructure, Housing and Economic Development Committee:-

Councillors:-

Paul Rainbow (Lead Member Transport and Economic Development) (Co Chair)

Stephen Giles-Medhurst (Lead Member Infrastructure and Planning Policy) (Co Chair)

Andrew Scarth (Lead Member for Housing) (Co Chair)

Dominic Sokalski

Philip Hearn

Lisa Hudson

Abbas Merali

Reena Ranger

Khalid Hussain

Kevin Raeburn

Joan King

Joanne Wagstaffe, Chief Executive

9 January 2023

Lead Member Responsibilities:

Transport and Economic Development – Community Toilet Schemes, Cycling Policy and Cycleway Provision, Economic Development, Highways, Parking, Public Transport, Rivertech, Town and Village Centre Improvements

Infrastructure and Planning Policy – Brownfield Register, Building Control, Conservation Areas and Local Listing, Community Infrastructure Levy, Development  Management Policy, Heritage, Infrastructure Schemes, Land Charges, Land Drainage, Listed Buildings, Neighbourhood Planning, Right to Build Register, Tree Protection

Housing – Housing Policy, Homelessness and Housing Advice, Housing and Disabled Facilities Grants, Management of Traveller Sites, Private Housing and Houses in Multiple Occupation, Residential Environmental Health, Temporary Accommodation.

The Council welcomes contributions from members of the public to aid discussions on agenda items at the Infrastructure, Housing and Economic Development Committee meetings. Details of the procedure are provided below:

For those wishing to speak:

Members of the public are entitled to register and identify which item(s) they wish to speak on from the published agenda for the meeting.  Those who wish to register to speak are asked to register on the night of the meeting from 7pm.  The constitution allows for only one person to speak for an item and one person to speak against an item.

Please note that contributions will be limited to one person speaking for and one against each item for not more than three minutes.

In the event of registering your interest to speak on an agenda item but not taking up that right because the item is deferred, you will be given the right to speak on that item at the next meeting of the Committee.

Those wishing to observe the meeting are requested to arrive on the night of the meeting from 7pm.

In accordance with The Openness of Local Government Bodies Regulations 2014 any matters considered under Part I business only of the meeting may be filmed, recorded, photographed, broadcast or reported via social media by any person.

Recording and reporting the Council’s meetings is subject to the law and it is the responsibility of those doing the recording and reporting to ensure compliance.  This will include the Human Rights Act, the Data Protection Legislation and the laws of libel and defamation.

The meeting will not be broadcast/livestreamed but an audio recording of the meeting will be made.

1.    APOLOGIES FOR ABSENCE

2.   MINUTES

To confirm as a correct record the minutes of the Infrastructure, Housing and Economic Development Committee meeting held on 15 November 2022.

3.   NOTICE OF OTHER BUSINESS

Items of other business notified under Council Procedure Rule 30 to be announced, together with the special circumstances that justify their consideration as a matter of urgency. The Chair to rule on the admission of such items.

4.  DECLARATION OF INTERESTS

To receive any declarations of interest.

5. PARKING SERVICES AND PARKING ACCOUNT UPDATE

This report provides an update on the Council’s Parking Service including the parking account and the parking enforcement service and includes some suggestions for modifications to the Council parking permits.

6.  THREE RIVERS PARKING MANAGEMENT PROGRAMME (2023/24)

This report requests that the Committee agrees the current work programmes of scheme to deliver cycling and walking improvements and Parking Management improvements in the Three Rivers District. Both programmes are promoted by the District Council working with its partners.

Both programmes are set biannually but the Cycling and Walking Programme has not been updated since 2021, awaiting development of the overlapping Local Cycling and Walking Infrastructure Plan which was completed in draft in September 2022 and has been agreed for consultation. Equally the delivery timeframes for the Parking Management Programme (2021-23) were rescheduled due to unplanned additional work during the pandemic and unexpected staffing reductions throughout the programme period. This report therefore recommends that both programmes be extended to 2024 subject to the necessary staffing resource being maintained. There are no new proposals added to these programmes to those already agreed.

7. COUNCIL MOTION REFERRED TO THE COMMITTEE UNDER RULE 11(5)

At the Council meeting on 13 December 2022 it was noted that the motion below had been referred to the Infrastructure, Housing and Economic Development Committee meeting on 17 January 2023 under Rule 11(5) of the Council Constitution

Councillor Philip Hearn, seconded by Councillor Ciaran Reed to move under Notice duly given the motion as follows:

Three Rivers District Council recognises the incredible value of Chorleywood Common to our area. Chorleywood Common is a County Heritage Site, a Conservation Area, a Local Nature Reserve and home to a rich range of fauna, flora, fungi, birds and wildlife. Chorleywood Common is a vital source of open green space that allows people from across the area to access rural beautiful scenery. Cycling is not currently allowed anywhere on Chorleywood Common.

This Council fully supports efforts to improve cycling routes across the District and acknowledges the physical constraints on achieving this. However, this Council cannot support any proposal to introduce a cycling path on Chorleywood Common, especially any path that includes lights or tarmacked surfaces. Such proposals would irreparably damage the wildlife and rural nature of this precious asset.

Three Rivers District Council resolves that Chorleywood Common will be protected from any cycle path on it to preserve this precious green space for future generations.

8.  WORK PROGRAMME

To agree the Committee’s work programme.

9.  OTHER BUSINESS – if approved under item 3 above.

10.  EXCLUSION OF PRESS AND PUBLIC

If the Committee wishes to consider the remaining item in private, it will be appropriate for a resolution to be passed in the following terms:-

“that under Section 100A of the Local Government Act 1972 the press and public be excluded from the meeting for the following item(s) of business on the grounds that it involves the likely disclosure of exempt information as defined under Paragraphs 1 to 7 of Part I of Schedule 12A to the Act. It has been decided by the Council that in all the circumstances, the public interest in maintaining the exemption outweighs the public interest in disclosing the information.”

(Note: If other confidential business is approved under item 3, it will also be necessary to specify the class of exempt or confidential information in the additional items.)

1.   OTHER BUSINESS – if approved under item 3 above.

General Enquiries: Please contact the Committee Team at  committeeteam@threerivers.gov.uk