UPSVLP 2570
The emerging local plan is failing to take up a clear opportunity to promote the redevelopment of brownfield sites in the town centre and core urban areas. The masterplan is not an adopted policy document and so it does not currently carry any material weight in decision making (as it does not form part of the development plan).
In order to give increased confidence to the market and promote redevelopment of these urban locations, a bespoke allocation for the site(s) would be both welcome and encouraged.
Amendment to Fig 8 - Bridgefoot Link to remove land adjacent to Go-Outdoors site (illustrated and outlined in green on the map extract on page 18 of the representation letter) from the safeguarding policy diagram.
Some of the land identified at Wilson Patten Street and proposed for safeguarding under policy INF2 appears to include land that no longer needed to be safeguarded because the road improvements to Slutchers Lane have already been completed. The Centre Park Link Compulsory Purchase Order 2018 was brought into effect and in so doing, the land necessary to enable the improvement works has been obtained. Doing so will provide increased flexibility to bring forward the redevelopment of land south of Wilson Patten Street for residential uses in the town-centre and remove a potential impediment to these proposals.
2(a)
The emerging local plan is failing to take up a clear opportunity to promote the redevelopment of brownfield sites in the town centre and core urban areas. The masterplan is not an adopted policy document and so it does not currently carry any material weight in decision making (as it does not form part of the development plan).
In order to give increased confidence to the market and promote redevelopment of these urban locations, a bespoke allocation for the site(s) would be both welcome and encouraged.
It is acknowledged that the areas around Bank Quay are located both within Inner Warrington and the Town Centre (policies DC1 and TC1 respectively). However, there is no bespoke allocation proposed within the development plan to give effect to the Town Centre Masterplan aspirations.
It is not reasonable or necessary to safeguard land within the town centre boundary (policies TC1 and DC1) for potential mineral extraction
Policy EV3 should be amended to add exclusion no, xiii) to Table 9 so that residential and commercial developments within the Town Centre TC1 do not need to consider Minerals Safeguarding.
Policy ENV3 is a protective policy which seeks to prevent mineral resources being sterilised by other forms of non-mineral development. Within the draft plan, swathes of the town centre are shown as being included within policy ENV3. Whilst there is a list of exceptions to the policy within Table 9 of the draft plan (para 9.3.12), the criteria are unnecessarily narrowly defined. The reality is that mineral extraction works in these town centre locations are unlikely, certainly for longer term extraction. The implications for traffic, air quality, noise, dust and vibration make long term extraction in these locations a challenging proposition.
It is acknowledged that the areas around Bank Quay are located both within Inner Warrington and the Town Centre (policies DC1 and TC1 respectively). However, there is no bespoke allocation proposed within the development plan to give effect to the Town Centre Masterplan aspirations.