Agenda, decisions and minutes

To receive Apologies for Absence from Cabinet members. 

Councillors Francis Burkitt and Robert Turner sent Apologies for Absence.

To authorise the Leader to sign the Minutes of the meeting held on 13 July 2017 as a correct record.

The Leader withdrew from the agenda the Minutes of the meeting held on 13 July 2017. This would allow them to be presented in a more complete manner.

There were no declarations of interest.

There were no announcements.

There were no public questions.

Cabinet approved unanimously

Option1:         the sale of land identified on Plan ‘A’ (access land) for the price of £200,000.  This will include an overage clause to secure a further capital receipt of 50% of the uplift if further development was granted.  Heads of terms to be agreed by the Head of Housing Strategy.

and

Option 2:        the sale of garden land identified on Plan ‘B’ for the price of £5,000 subject to improvements to fencing and car parking for the tenant at no.31 Station Road.  Heads of terms to be agreed by the Head of Housing Strategy.

Cabinet considered a report setting out several options for dealing with District Council-owned land identified as Option 1 on the attached Plan ‘A’ and a further option for the sale of garden land at no.31 Station Road (identified as Option 2) on the attached Plan ‘B’.

The Leader set out the process he intended to follow in order to allow all interested parties a reasonable opportunity to express themselves.

Councillor Lynda Harford (Housing Portfolio Holder) referred to paragraph 4 of the report and said that  the Authority’s aspiration, as landowner, was to support Options 1 and 2 set out in the report.  She explained that a decision in principle had been made by officers to sell the land at Option 1, prior to a formal planning application being submitted by Endurance Estates, but that the possibility of including the land in Option 2 had been deferred until that application had been made, and would only be discussed in the event of planning consent being granted.  The reason for this was that South Cambridgeshire District Council should not do anything that might be interpreted as interference in the planning process. Valuations had been obtained. Foxton Parish Council had expressed concern that Option 2 would allow Endurance Estates to widen the access road, thus bringing it up to adoptable standard and giving rise to possible future development on the site. Councillor Harford understood the local sensitivities, and assured those present that her duty was to ensure the prudent management of Council assets rather than to seek financial gain.

Councillor Deborah Roberts (the local Member) addressed Cabinet. She expressed disappointment that this matter had not first been discussed by the Scrutiny and Overview Committee. Councillor Roberts said that what she had to say should not be taken as NIMBY-ism – on the contrary, Foxton had always been in the vanguard of securing local support for affordable housing. She summarised the history of the site, and emphasised its value to the community. The specific land in question had been put forward for designation as Local Green Space in the emerging Local Plan. Councillor Roberts summarised the background, including planning history. She informed Cabinet that Endurance Estates had seemingly not been concerned by the access width when they made their original planning application, and queried what had now changed. An unadopted road was sometimes valued by residents, and maintenance could be secured by establishing a management company, possibly using a commuted sum. Councillor Roberts noted the availability of an alternative access point to the site. She referred to an e-mail dated 31 March 2017 in which South Cambridgeshire District Council wrote to the Highways Department enquiring as to whether a widened access would facilitate future development.

Councillor Ronald McCreery (Chairman, Foxton Parish Council) addressed Cabinet. He reiterated residents’ acceptance some development was inevitable. However, in the case in question, there was local concern about extra traffic, neighbour amenity, and road safety. The site lay outside the village framework (and was not an exception site), and  ...  view the full minutes text for item 6.

Thursday 14^th September 2017 at 6pm.

The next scheduled Cabinet meeting would be on Thursday 14 August 2017 at 6.00pm.