Retail Strategy

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"The retail offer of Herne Bay, also dominated by independents, should benefit from regeneration efforts identified in the Herne Bay Area Action Plan, which seeks to improve the retail offer and increase the amount of consumer spending retained in the town." [Draft Local Plan 4.9]

The Herne Bay Area Action Plan (HBAAP) was written over a period of a couple of years, ending in 2009. In 2009 the Council appointed developers to develop the Central Development Area (the area that centres on William Street and Morrisons). The Council and the developers have failed to interest any major retail player in their plans in the years since then. We are nearly four years on and the Central Development Area plan is dead in the water. Despite this, the Council is still clinging to this plan as its only idea to regenerate Herne Bay. This means that our retail centre will continue to struggle whilst Canterbury's is expanded and improved. Our fear is that this will mean that Herne Bay will become a dormitory town, surrounded by housing estates, with no town centre to speak of, and all the consumer spending will be bled out into Canterbury.

"… Where the growth of non-retail uses reduces the availability of choice for customers and creates 'dead frontages', there is a loss of vitality of the centre and attractiveness to customers. This is particularly marked in Herne Bay town centre, where strict application of the Primary Shopping Frontage policy will assist with consolidating the main shopping streets, and ensure there is an accessible central core of shopping for Comparison and choice and which supports the planned regeneration activities. The Herne Bay Area Action Plan includes specific development proposals for the town centre, including significant retail provision." [Draft Local Plan 4.17]

This means that, whatever happens to our town's shops, in some areas owners will not be able to convert a shop into a restaurant or bar. This seems unnecessarily restrictive when the Council is doing nothing to enhance the town's retail offer.

Local shops such as:

Herne Bay Road/ St Johns Road, Swalecliffe;
Sea Street, Herne Bay;
Canterbury Road, Herne Bay;
Reculver Road, Beltinge;

will be protected from "damaging development elsewhere". [Draft Local Plan 4.25]

We think that this has huge implications. The Central Development Area dream has already failed. The Council will oppose the Sainsbury at Altira. We are not going to be allowed to have more "comparison shopping". At the same time, the town's population will increase by thousands. We cannot picture the town's much bigger population all driving into town to shop at Morrison's or the Co-op. the Local Plan will drive even more Herne Bay people to spend their money outside the town.  

"… Herne Bay has an under-performing town centre, due to the limited range of comparison goods retailing and the strength of Canterbury. Once completed, significant comparison retail in the Central Development Area, as well as other allocations in the Herne Bay Area Action Plan, will use and indeed exceed, any available capacity for additional floor space for the foreseeable future." [Draft Local Plan 4.32]

This paragraph claims that, once the Central Development Area has been redeveloped, that will soak up the entire town's demand for stuff like clothes, household goods and bigger purchases. There are two problems with this.

• One, there's no prospect of any large retailer wanting to take space in the Central Development Area.
• Two, the town's population is going to expand by an additional 37 to 47%.

Even if the Central Development Area did happen, we don't see how it can handle Herne Bay's shopping needs. The Council's insistence on flogging this dead horse means that we won't get any new retail space in the town centre at all. This will do nothing to regenerate our town and support our independent tradespeople.

"…For Herne Bay, the retail study identified very modest levels of capacity. Implementation of the foodstore envisaged in the Adopted Masterplan for the Central Development Area would use this remaining capacity, as well as those increases in capacity that result from increasing Herne Bay Town Centre's market share for convenience good expenditure. […] Any out-of-town capacity would be removed by the provision of food retail floor space in the Central Development Area, since Herne Bay would become more self-sufficient in convenience goods terms. Regeneration activities identified in the Area Action Plan are key to ensure additional retail capacity is generated. The Council will resist any out of town development that would threaten implementation of the Area Action Plan and regeneration of the Herne Bay Town Centre." [Draft Local Plan 4.34]

In this paragraph, the word "capacity" means "demand". The Council says that all Herne Bay's future food shopping needs for the new, massively expanded, population will be met by the supermarket planned in the Central Development Area. The trouble is, none of the major supermarket chains wants to open a store in that area. This means that we will not get a local supermarket to meet our food shopping needs.

"…Herne Bay will undergo significant changes over the life of the Local Plan. Regeneration schemes as set out in the Area Action Plan are attracting significant new investment through the implementation of Development Principles Supplementary Planning Documents for:

Central Development Area (Policy HB1);
Beach Street (Policy HB2);
Bus Depot (Policy HB3)."
[Draft Local Plan 4.50]

We know that nothing has happened on the Central Development Area for nearly four years. There is not so much as a whisper of possible investment for the Bus Depot site. Bill Murray has plans – mainly housing – for Beach Street. We think that the Council is being overoptimistic when it says that these areas "are attracting significant new investment." If they really were, the Council would have wanted to tell us all about it.  

"As well as enhancing the retail and cultural offer, status and trading performance of Herne Bay, these will help to retain a higher proportion of residents' expenditure within the town, much of which has been lost to nearby centres of Westwood Cross and Canterbury. There is no significant capacity beyond the floor space on these identified sites and it is imperative that regeneration of the town is not threatened by development of out-of-town floor space." [Draft Local Plan 4.51]

The Council tells us regularly that 70p in every pound leaks out of Herne Bay to be spent elsewhere. Then in the paragraph above it says that all our demand for shops and shopping can be met by the sites already identified in the existing, dormant or failed, plans. We simply do not see how both these statements can be true.  

"Herne Bay is a traditional seaside resort in a desirable position with reasonable transport links, improving beaches and a nostalgia factor that draws people to the town in the summer season. However, during the rest of the year there is insufficient tourist income to maintain a basic level of tourist infrastructure. Planned investment in the sea front will improve the town's tourism prospects. In addition to this, a major events programme has provided new reasons to visit in recent years and there are modest signs of a recovery in business." [Draft Local Plan 6.45]

The Council recognises the problem that the town has little tourist trade in the winter but seems to think that we can overcome this by having a few new benches and some events. We don't think that this provides us with a stable tourist income for October to May. The Local Plan needs to recognise that Herne Bay needs a proper strategy for tourism

Shopping

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50,000 m² new "comparison shopping" retail space is set aside for Canterbury and 3,250 m² for Whitstable. "Comparison shopping" includes clothing; household goods; and other purchases where people will wander about and look at alternatives before buying. It does not include food shopping (convenience shopping). There is to be no new "comparison shopping" for Herne Bay even though our population is set to soar. This suggests we are all expected to spend our money in Canterbury. [Draft Local Plan 1.53]

It is proposed that there will be 15,000 m² of new employment land at Strode Farm and 33,000 m² at Altira. Other Herne Bay employment sites "identified and protected" are at Eddington (8.2ha), Altira (1.6ha) and Metric Site (0.2ha). The Council will not allow retail businesses on these sites, which suggests an end to the Sainsbury's proposal for Altira.  [Draft Local Plan 3.36]

The Council wants to protect Canterbury's pre-eminence as a retail centre. [Draft Local Plan 4.6]

"…the district centres (Herne Bay and Whitstable) have a complementary role as part of the established retail hierarchy, serving the local population. They ensure a sustainable focus and pattern for development and their position within the retail hierarchy will continue to ensure they have opportunities to enhance and strengthen their role. The distinctive characteristics of each centre will be promoted, and there is clearly scope within both centres for making improvements to the public realm and shopping environment." [Draft Local Plan 4.7]

What this means is that the retail centre is Canterbury. The plan remains for Herne Bay people to shop in Canterbury and boost the City's coffers. Our local shopping offer is to be lower key, local shopping only. 

Canterbury district's local plan discussed in public for the first time

 ... and guess what - Herne Bay gets screwed. To pay for treats for Canterbury. 

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Canterbury City Council's draft local plan was discussed in public for the first time last night, amid accusations one of the key sites was "undeliverable" and uncosted.

At a meeting of the council's overview committee, Lib Dem Nick Eden-Green said the proposal for 4,000 homes on farmland at south Canterbury was in the wrong place and would not work. Mr Eden-Green, part of the group involved with putting the plan together, argued fewer new homes were needed than included in the plan. He said:

"There is a lot that is excellent but it is not community led and that has been a fundamental initial failing. We should put houses where we need economic development, Herne Bay and Hersden, not south Canterbury."

Studies commissioned by the council suggested most people's preferred choice for more developments was Herne Bay, then larger villages, then Whitstable, with Canterbury last on the list. [This is a lie - click here to see the truth.] But 70 per cent of people did not support building on greenfield sites.

Mr Eden-Green won applause as he added:

"South Canterbury is barely costed and possibly undeliverable. This site and this plan have been hijacked by that development and the need to put the junction in for economic development."

But both a proposal to refer the plan back to the steering group, and to extend the public consultation, were defeated.

Lib Dem leader Alex Perkins said:

"It is quite clear that publishing this draft plan has caused a great deal of disquiet and discomfort. To cram 4,000 homes in South Canterbury when we know it is only to pay for new roads is wrong. The working group should work with local residents and residents association to find their vision of what local people would like to see in the district because the danger is we are simply going to get this wrong."

In Herne Bay, hundreds of homes planned will also help pay for improvements to roads across the district, officials revealed. The developments at Altira Park, Strode Farm and the former golf club as well as near Briary school in Greenhill would bring in vital cash to pay for a new crossing at Sturry.

Developers would also be asked to fund a 'relief route' for Herne - but opponents said it did not go far enough and a bypass was needed. Canterbury City Council's head of regeneration Ian Brown said:

"We are trying to build communities, not just individual housing estates. The Herne Bay sites will provide a new regenerative beginning for the town, a new focus and will contribute to new transport infrastructure. In part that will help to fund routes through and the Sturry bypass."

But town stalwart Dick Eburne said the plan to improve Bullockstone Road as the relief route did not go far enough. He raised concerns about transport, and said the public transport system would need significant investment in order to meet the target of more people choosing to travel sustainably within three years. He said Herne needed a bypass, and Bullockstone Road was not suitable, and that through traffic on the A28 should be diverted.

But Whitstable Tory Ashley Clark urged people to get involved. He said:

"Canterbury has got off lightly in the past. Whitstable has taken a lot of pain. I want all of you who are not happy with things to participate. Look at what is there and see what you think and if you genuinely can be constructive about it please take part and participate."

Whitstable has been earmarked for 400 new homes alongside Duncan Down, between St Luke's Close and the Thanet Way, with a new junction off the Thanet Way. There is also a proposal for a green burial site on part of Duncan Down as well as more pedestrian access.

Consultation is expected to start in June for eight weeks and the plan is due to be revised by councillors in December, with a public inquiry due to take place next summer before the document is finalised.

Comments sent in before the official consultation starts will not be valid.

Planning Cockup

CCC's slapdash use of their own website has limited our opportunity to comment on a couple of major local issues.

When it comes to advertising any planning applications in the district, our Council is only obliged to put public notices near the site in question, and in a local paper. They use Kent on Sunday, so that must be OK, because everyone in Herne Bay reads Kent on Sunday. Right?

The Council does have a section on its website dedicated to publishing Public Notices such as planning applications. However, they didn't publish any of December's planning applications on their website (in the Public Notices section) until 20th December.

So, what did we miss out on during this period of cyber-silence? The Altira Sainsbury application, and the mini golf on the Pier application. The closing date for comments on the mini golf on the Pier application is Monday 14th January, so if you've got something to say, say it soon.

Survey shows huge support for Sainsbury's

Sainsbury's plans for a £40 million out-of-town shopping complex at Herne Bay have received the thumbs up from residents.

According to figures released today (31st October) by developers, 84 per cent of locals support the scheme at the Altira Business Park. This follows a display of the plans at the Premier Inn's TableTable restaurant earlier this month which attracted nearly 600 visitors.

Nigel Wakefield, development director at developers Terrace Hill, said: "We are obviously delighted with the response. We would like to thank the people of Herne Bay for the interest they have shown in our plans.

"We are now working through the comments before submitting a planning application to the city council. We are fully committed to delivering our plans, which represent a real opportunity for increased supermarket shopping choice and local job creation.This could act as a catalyst for further investment in Altira Park and Herne Bay town centre."

The scheme at Beltinge includes business starter units and a footbridge across the Ramsgate to London railway line at Blacksole Bridge.

By Friday, October 19, 682 comment forms had been completed. 11 per cent objected to the idea. The remaining five per cent were undecided.

Herne Bay Times

Is a superstore super news?

A huge Sainbury's and petrol station on the edge of Herne Bay - this would be on the ill-fated and currently languishing Altira site.

There's no indication in the press reports as to where exactly, but I assume it would be east of the existing developments at Altira, between the A299 Thanet Way and the railway line.

Big news for a small town, and not all of it good news.

Up:

• employment opportunities for Herne Bayers (and for anyone else who can travel along the A299)
• their salaries would inject money into the local economy
• Herne Bayers who usually shop in a supermarket will have one nearer to home - time saved, fewer miles travelled, reduced pollution
• a decent supermarket can give the town a lift, making it more attractive to people and businesses looking to relocate
• the superstore would take Altira up to the occupancy level which would oblige Kitewood to make good on its contractual obligation to build a pedestrian bridge at Blacksole
• ... do feel free to suggest more

Down:

• having a single large employer leaves the town vulnerable to the eggs-in-one-basket problem... think Pfizer
• Sainsbury's would be exporting their profits to Galactic HQ, wherever that is, and converting it into shareholder dividends
• the small petrol stations in town couldn't hope to match Sainsbury's prices and discounts
• the small food retailers - butchers, bakers, greengrocers and so on - would be in serious jeopardy, and they're having a hard enough time as it is
• ... do feel free to suggest more 

Then, of course, there is the impact on the CDA - the Central Development Area proposal to convert the William Street car park area into a small-scale clone town. This has been a shining example of greedy stupidity (on the part of both the Council and the developers) from the outset, and has centred on building a large new supermarket next to, er, a medium-sized old supermarket. The Council and the developers egged eachother on into believing this was great plan, and are now shaking their heads in bewilderment, having run into the brick wall of commercial reality.

Even before "austerity" became a freshly recycled buzzword, times were hard in retail. Any major operator thinking of investing millions in a store that they would want to last for a decade or two, would want a healthy catchment area, and they would want it to themselves. Why move in next door to one of your major competitors? And if Morrisons up-sized and moved into the new store, who would want their cast-offs?

For these (and probably a number of other good reasons), the negotiations between the Council and whoever was interested faltered and fell, leaving the whole project in suspension, and everything around it in confusion, uncertainty and blight. If Sainsbury's open a superstore on the edge of town, that will restrict the number of operators who might be interested in the CDA.

If we broadly divide the national chains into "upmarket" and "budget", Sainsbury's fall into the upmarket end. Commercial reality dictates that another upmarket operator in the CDA would have to compete directly with Sainsbury's for their customers. On the other hand, a budget operator would be serving a different "market segment", and might be able to make a go of it. A budget supermarket will do little if anything to lift and regenerate the town centre.

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Supermarket giant Sainsbury’s have drawn up plans to build a superstore on the outskirts of Herne Bay three years after talks to build a town centre store. The supermarket chain is looking to build a 95,000 square feet store - equivalent to nine football pitches - and filling station at Altira Park.

They were thought to be one of three supermarkets looking to build at the Kings Road car park as part of £35 million plans to regenerate the town centre. However, the latest plans were revealed by property developers Terrace Hill who announced the Altira Park development as part of a six-month report.

They said they had signed a pre-letting agreement with Sainsbury’s and hope to submit plans to Canterbury city council at the end of the year. They added that they wanted to complete the development midway through 2014.

Herne Bay coastal manager Chris West said he had not been aware of the development but said it was not likely to detract from plans for a supermarket in the town centre. He said: 

"It is difficult to comment until we can look at the plans and decide whether it will be a good thing for the town or not."

However, he did cite Tesco on the edge of Whitstable as an example of an out-of-town supermarket which had not hindered the town centre.

However, one resident has voiced concerns saving the regeneration of the town centre needs to be the priority. Geoff Wimble, 64, of Sea Street, said: 

"I’m not impressed to be honest. Over the last 20 years they have hastened the degeneration of this town with the closure of recreation and caravan sites. When we were told we were getting Sainsbury’s in the town we were happy but it was shielded by Canterbury city council and Southern Water because it was a flood risk.

If that’s the case then the whole regeneration footprint is a flood risk, they are blocking out what they don’t want to deal with. It would have been good to open it in the town centre but they dropped out of the deal when they couldn’t get the Stagecoach site."

HB Gazette 14th June 2012 - Jamie Bullen jbullen@thekmgroup.co.uk

Terrace Hill

Sainsbury’s store programme lifts Terrace Hill

Specialist retail developer Terrace Hill said today it was pressing ahead with 600,000 sq ft of new schemes in spite of the supermarket slowdown. Chairman Robert Adair said:

"Whilst there has been some slowdown in the expansion of Tesco we are continuing to receive good interest in our sites from the other major operators. We continue to make good progress with all our committed foodstore development sites and are advancing a number of new opportunities."

The firm said it had no prospective deals with Tesco and Marks & Spencer, which have curbed expansion plans, but was still seeing strong demand from other food retailers.

Development pipeline

London Road, Whitchurch
Site sold to Sainsbury’s with the benefit of a detailed planning consent for a 55,000 sq ft foodstore and petrol filling station.

Wessington Way, Sunderland
Construction of 99,000 sq ft Sainsibury’s now well under way with completion scheduled for early Spring 2013.

Skelton, East Cleveland
Detailed planning permission for this 42,000 sq ft Asda development finally granted. Forward funding has been secured at £13.5m with construction due to start this month.

Sedgefield, Co. Durham
Construction to start shortly on 50,000 sq ft Sainsbury foodstore plus a petrol filling station.

Altira Park, Herne Bay, Kent
Achieved a pre-lett agreement with Sainsbury’s for a 95,000 sq ft store plus petrol filling station. Planning application due to be submitted towards the end of this year.

Middlehaven, Teesside
Application will go in for a large Sainsbury’s foodstore at the end of this year. Also agreed terms for the sale of land to a pub operator and two fast food outlets on the 16 acre site.

Hyde, Greater Manchester
Subject to planning consent, terms agreed with retailer for strategically located site adjacent to the M67 to the South East of Manchester.

Prestwich, Greater Manchester
A planning application for a foodstore-led development expected by the end of this year.

St Austell, Cornwall
Development partner for Cornwall Council for a large foodstore for either Morrisons or Sainsbury’s. A detailed planning application will go in this autumn.

Construction Enquirer 12th June 2012

Public meeting: Kitewood development at Hillborough

A public meeting next week will discuss plans to redevelop land between Hillborough and the Altira Business Park. Residents and stakeholders living around the site, which has been earmarked for more than 1,300 homes, are being urged to attend to have their say and learn more about the proposals.

Reculver and Beltinge Community Hall, Reculver Road, hosts the meeting from 7pm next Wednesday, the first of its kind since the scheme was first confirmed in August.

Laura Calder will speak on how people can get their views across as the planning process progresses. The 47-year-old IT business consultant, from Sanderling Road said:

"I want to try and help residents articulate their concems. Should something like this get the go ahead, it needs to be done in the right manner with the local community being consulted on what they want to see."

The £240 million scheme has been drawn up by Kitewood Estates and would be delivered in three phases. Facilities would also include a primary school, shopping centre and a long-awaited footbridge across the railway at Blacksole Bridge.

The first phase of the development, costing £60m, would build 375 homes and extend Altira Business Park. Work could begin by the end of 2012. The primary school and shopping centre would be built in phase two alongside another 500 homes, while phase three would see the final 500 homes constructed.

Kitewood director Mike Dolan welcomed news of next week’s meeting after a public exhibition at Reculver Primary School last month - www.hillboroughextension.com. He said:

"We’ve put forward our own ideas but if people have their own views, we’re keen to work together on a package that allays some of their fears and moves the development forward in a positive manner."

HB Gazette 6th Oct 2011

Click for more: Kitewood

 

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Visit www.SaveHillborough.info for more

Kitewood Hillborough Extension

Property developer Kitewood has unveiled plans to develop a new primary school, shopping centre and up to 1,375 homes on the outskirts of Herne Bay, on land between Hillborough and the Altira Business Park in Broomfield. This idea first surfaced in July 2010, when everyone was up in arms about the increasing risk of death on Blacksole Bridge. Click here to read up on the back-story, and find out who the bad guys are.

The plans for the proposed development will go on show during a public exhibition at Reculver Primary School

• between 12 noon and 8pm on Wednesday, August 31, and
• between 10am and 4pm on Saturday, September 3.

Kitewood have also set up a website to keep people updated on the plans, and say they intend to compile reports on the feedback and use them if proposals need re-shaping. Visit: www.hillboroughextension.com

The 190 acre, £240m scheme is planned in three phases.

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Phase 1

• Would use the land which lies to south of the railway line and north of the Thanet Way, all of which is controlled by Kitewood.  The land adjoins Altira Business Park at Bogshole Lane, and is crossed by the un-made Maystreet Road which goes over the railway line at Maystreet Bridge.
• Phase 1 land covers 25.5 hectares (63.3 acres):
  • 6 hectares (15 acres) of the land for employment use as an extension to Altira Business Park, providing 300 new jobs.
  • 12.5 hectares (31 acres) for 375 houses.
  • 7 hectares (17.3 acres) for landscaping and public open space.
• Will include a footbridge over the Blacksole Bridge railway crossing, and a new link road between Altira Business Park and Sweechbridge Road which will enable access to the Thanet Way at both the Margate Road and the Heart in Hand Road junctions.
• Planning application in early 2012 - if it's successful, work could begin as early as the end of 2012, and finish in 2016.
• Kitewood say: "It will cost in the order of £60 million - an enormous vote of confidence in Herne Bay".

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Phase 2

• Would use land which lies to the north of the railway line and extends to the existing commercial and residential areas of Hillborough, all of which is controlled by Kitewood.
• Phase 2 land covers 27.4 hectares (67.7 acres):
  • 4 hectares (10 acres) of the highest area of land to the west of the site would be used for a new primary school (to be donated to CCC) and a shopping centre.
  • 16 hectares (39.5 acres) for up to 500 houses.
  • 7.4 hectares (18.3 acres) for wildlife habitats and parkland.
• Realignment of Sweechbridge Road to the north of the railway to improve the existing dangerous layout.
• Preservation of the historical pedestrian and cycle links via Maystreet Bridge.
• Design of a traffic system to discourage non-local traffic from passing through Hillborough.
• Kitewood anticipate Phase 2 happening between 2016 and 2026.

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Phase 3

• Would use land lying to the west of phase two and north of the railway line.
• Development of this land would require an additional bridge over the railway because the Maystreet and Sweechbridge Bridges wouldn't be sufficient.
• Approximately 16 hectares (39.5 acres) could be developed to provide an additional 500 houses if the need exists.
• 7.7 hectares (19 acres) would form an extension to the central park on the higher ground in the middle of the scheme.
• The two wooded areas on the northern part of the site would be retained for landscaping and wildlife purposes.
• The central part of this land would be landscaped and planted with trees.
• Pedestrian and cycle links and possibly a bus link would also be provided to Osborn Gardens, Churchill Avenue and Highfield Avenue, enabling residents of Beltinge to access the site whilst preventing traffic from entering Beltinge.
• It is not anticipated that Phase 3 would start before 2026.

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If you have any comments on this proposal, you can add them below, or you can visit www.hillboroughextension.com, or contact your councillors or MP.

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Visit www.SaveHillborough.info for more

Waitrose gets 20-year lease in Canterbury

HB Gazette 23rd Jun 2011

Altira supermarket

HB Gazette 23rd Jun 2011

Blacksole Bridge solution?

Here's a thought: our beloved Council might be able to pluck victory from the jaws of self-inflicted defeat by the careful use of some of its special powers. Not super-hero special powers, you understand, but good old-fashioned statutory powers.

Applying some judicious pressure to our friends at Kitewood (masters of Altira) might just encourage them to get cracking on their promised bridgework. It could be argued that it would be perfectly reasonable of CCC to set about resolving this knotty problem by slapping a compulsory purchase order on a strip of land running from the end of Mickleburgh Hill through to the roundabout in the middle of Altira Tumbleweed Park.

click it to big itThis 200 yard new road (and bridge) would provide a clear run through for traffic to and from the Thanet Way, and provide the option of making the existing Blacksole Bridge and the curve of Margate Road pedestrian only (or pedestrian and bicycles). Smooth-flowing traffic, and safe passage for people - what's not to like?

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Visit www.SaveHillborough.info for more

Altira

Sounds like a star, works like a black hole.

One point three million pounds... vanished.

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By the north-east Kent coast, in the fine town of Herne Bay,

nestling between the railway line and the A299,

lies the undersubscribed Altira Business Park.

It has a potential 46,450 m² of commercial space.

The contractual trigger for building a new Blacksole Bridge is having 17,000m² leased. They have leased some plots - Premier Inn, DSA, etc - totalling about 2,500m², but are still short of the required 17,000 m² . Otherwise we would have a new bridge.

Mind you, in their soft focus vision of the future when the business park looks full, there's no sign of a new bridge. An oversight, presumably.

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Visit www.SaveHillborough.info for more

Empty promises: just rinse and recycle

Kitewood, the creators of Altira Tumbleweed Park, want to recycle their unused "Blacksole Bridge commitment" as a lever for winning another planning consent, thus reducing their average costs to half-an-imaginary-bridge per consent.

The photo accompanying the Gazette article shows the outline of the area covered by the planning consent Kitewood want. It's huge.

The tilted angle gives a foreshortened view, which doesn't really do credit to Kitewood's territorial ambitions.

click it to big it

In refusing to build the new bridge at Blacksole, Kitewood are entirely and exactly within the letter of their contract with CCC. The bridge-building is triggered by  a certain level of occupancy, and to my mind CCC were completely daft to allow this clause anywhere near the contract. (Apart from anything else, it's open to abuse. In some Mediterranean countries, construction tax is levied only when the building is complete: result - a lot of 98% complete, but fully functional, buildings.) The new bridge was (rightly) viewed as a necessity to ensure our safety in the face of increased traffic. The level of traffic started increasing from Day One of Altira's development, so it would have made sense to build the new bridge right at the beginning.

What boggles me (and I only learned it from this Gazette article) is that Kitewood have already trousered a £1.3m up-front subsidy! Despite their best efforts, they've not met their occupancy targets, and that presumably hurts them in the wallet. But they're under no contractual obligation whatsoever to build the bridge. Yet. They've got their (our?) £1.3m, and nobody has mentioned giving it back. They're laughing! They must have thought our negotiators were idiots. I do.

And now Kitewood are offering to enter into a legally binding agreement (just as they already have for the Altira development) committing them to building a new bridge IF (and only if) they are given planning consent for a very large development. In Kitewood's shoes, I would be falling over myself to strike deals with Canterbury - win a million quid and do sweet F.A. is a great start! It's very easy to paint Kitewood as being the bad guys in this long and sorry tale, but they are actually just playing by the rules that CCC set and signed up to.

I'm afraid the villains of the piece appear to be those officers/members in CCC who drew up, and signed off, the dismally flawed S106 agreement. They really screwed up.

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Safety fears over delay for planned pedestrian bridge

Developers have been accused of "holding a gun" to the heads of city councillors in a row about a pedestrian footbridge in Broomfield. At a special meeting on 7th July, Kitewood - which owns the Altira Business Park in Margate Road - said it would build a new bridge over the nearby railway crossing within a year, but only if it was given consent for a 700-home development in Hillborough. Kitewood director Michael Dolan called for councillors and planning officers to support the proposal, describing it as a "trade-off".

The unofficial meeting, which dismissed the idea of traffic lights on the current Blacksole Bridge, was called by Bay councillor Peter Vickery-Jones following years of concerns over safety. Due to a condition agreed by the city council, Kitewood - which negotiated £l.3 million off the purchase of the land to pay for the bridge - is not obliged to build it until 17,000 square metres of the site is occupied. Mr Dolan told the meeting this could take as long as four or five years. He said:

"There is not the money in the pot to build the bridge now but it’s not for want of trying. There has to be the generation of wealth first. And for that there will need to be planning consent for further developments. I can promise we will enter into a legally bound commitment to press forward with this bridge if we receive support for the housing scheme at Hillborough. The uplift in the value of the land will provide funds to build a new bridge within a year. And you can have any lawyers you want draft that commitment up and we will sign it."

Bay MP Roger Gale slammed the situation, saying:

"A harsh man would say Altira have already had their money as £1.3 million was knocked off the asking price for the land. The reality is someone at the city council put this ludicrous condition into the plans which says you will have your bridge when 17,000 square metres is occupied. But that could be in four to five years, in which time one or two people could be killed. And if that happens the county council, city council and, most importantly the developers should be held accountable. You could say it looks like they’re holding a gun to our heads. They are saying 'we will give you our undertaking to build the bridge if we get consent' - and there’s the gun."

Kitewood confirmed it is committed to building the bridge when the 17,000 square metre limit is passed. City councillor Peter Vickery-Jones said he was disappointed with the Kitewood proposal, but understood the reasons for it:

"There has to be an opportunity for the developers, and I'm all for getting the situation resolved as early as possible. I would hate to think something would happen on that bridge and I hadn't done my utmost to address the problems. But this proposal is undeliverable. Every planning application has to be judged on its own merit. It's a shame we've found ourselves in somewhat of a hostage situation."

HB Gazette 8th July 2010

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Blacksole Bridge is a daily risk

Call for footbridge at crossing

A busy road bridge has been described as a "death trap" by a Beltinge walking group. Blacksole Bridge, which links Altira Business Park and Beltinge, has no footpath, but is the only pedestrian access across the railway line. Veronica Kemp, who organises the Beltinge Happy Strollers' weekly walks from the nearby Miramar Care Home, is greatly concerned by the risks pedestrians face on a daily basis as they cross the busy bridge. She said:

"When the business park was granted planning permission in 2003, among the conditions was the construction of a shared walking and cycling bridge. This was agreed to be done when 17,000 sq metres of commercial floor space had been completed, but currently only 2,500 sq metres have been completed."

Miss Kemp, of The Horshams, has watched traffic levels increase across the bridge since 2003.

"The bridge has been a danger to cross for years, but ever since more people have been using Altira Business Park and more buildings have gone up, the situation has got a lot worse. Why the council ever agreed planning permission before this was dealt with I can't imagine. I personally refuse to cross the bridge now that it has become so very busy, and before very long there is going to be a very bad accident there."

The park has also been earmarked as a site for hundreds of new houses to be built, alongside more commercial and retail premises. City council spokesman Rob Davies confirmed provision of a new bridge still remains a condition of the original planning permission for Altira Business Park's development. He said:

"The applicant has put forward a new proposal to provide traffic management on the existing bridge through a traffic light system, as an alternative to a new bridge. This would be a single file system for cars alongside a shared footpath/cycleway. The details are currently being considered by Kent County Council and the applicant's transport advisers."

HB Gazette 2010-02-25

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Gale's View: Blacksole Bridge

Blacksole Bridge has become an accident waiting to happen.  That is not only my view, it is a concern shared by the Bay's three County Councillors, David Hirst, Jean Law and Alan Marsh, and also by many of the City Councillors representing the Town.

The development of  new housing between the bridge and the Thanet Way, the opening of the Harvester pub and a new hotel and the re-location of the driving test centre - of which more in a moment - have led to a dangerous mix of increased pedestrian and motor traffic.  It is for precisely this reason that when the City Council granted planning consent for the development of Blacksole Farm it attached a condition requiring the construction of a footbridge alongside the road bridge over the railway.

The developer now wishes to have the planning condition lifted and traffic lights installed instead.  The reasons for this are not difficult to see: a footbridge will be expensive and traffic lights, installed by the Highways Department, will be cheaper.  Lights will not, though, make provision for the pedestrians and cyclists who now daily cross the railway at this point. I hope and believe that the Highways Authority (Kent County Council) and the Planning Authority (Canterbury City Council) will use all of the powers at their several and collective disposal to resist a cheapskate option that will not solve the problem.

I take no pleasure at all in saying that unless the footbridge is constructed in the immediate future we shall find ourselves faced with a serious injury or death.

Part of the traffic problem has been caused by the Driving Test Centre on Altira Park.  It was clear at the time that the proposal was mooted that the Driving Standards Agency was determined to blunder ahead without sufficient attention to the possible consequences for local car and pedestrian traffic.  Neither was any attention paid to the environmental impact of the additional mileage and cost incurred by instructors and candidates having to travel to Herne Bay from Canterbury and Margate to, first, learn the routes and then take the test.

In a parliamentary question tabled in November 2008 I asked the Department for Transport what estimate had been made of the effect of multi-purpose practical driving test centres on levels of (a) car and motorcycle mileage and (b) carbon dioxide emissions. The Ministerial answer from this Government was "none".  So much for "green government"!  Parliamentary correspondence on this issue has revealed that not only in the Bay but nationwide the opening of "Multipurpose Test Centres" has led to increased mileage and emissions, increased costs for those seeking to take and pass their driving tests and, as in the Bay, roads in the area clogged up by crawling learner drivers.

We have all, at one time or another, had to bear L-plates on our cars and have had to stutter through the gears and stall on hill-starts and three-point turns and have nothing but sympathy for those preparing, at vast expense, to put themselves through this ordeal.  I also have huge admiration for those brave men and women who, daily, take their lives in their hands as they coach nervous learners.  I do not believe, though, that the concentration of all of this effort at a Centre on a business park on a roundabout off a flyover adjacent to a busy dual carriageway and approached by a narrow one-lane road over a railway bridge on a sharp bend leading to a very busy pub is necessarily the best choice of site.  I wonder what genius dreamed up this lunacy and why nobody within the planning authority recognised, as some of us did at the time, that this might just not be a clever idea!

The air is now thick with the sound of chickens coming home to roost.

Roger Gale M.P. (May 27th 2009)

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