Agenda and minutes

The Chair outlined the role and purpose of the Development Control Forum.  She stated that no decisions would be taken at the meeting. 

To receive any apologies for absence.

Apologies were presented on behalf of Councillors Hipkin, Price, Smart and Turner.

Members are asked to declare at this stage any interests that they may have in an application shown on this agenda. If any member of the Committee is unsure whether or not they should declare an interest on a particular matter, they should seek advice from the Head of Legal Practice before the meeting.

Application No:  C/5007/16/CC

Site Address:      Land between Coldham's Lane and River Cam, through Coldham's Common, Barnwell Junction Pastures and Ditton Meadows Cambridge

Description:        Phase 1 of the Chisholm Trail, a north-south pedestrian and cycle path from the River Cam to Coldhams’s Lane broadly parallel to the railway line. Including widening of the walkway beneath River Cam railway bridge, new underpass under Newmarket Road, bridge across Coldham’s Brook, replacing culvert with bridge on Coldham’s Common, new paths and improvements to existing paths

Applicant:            Cambridgeshire County Council

Agent:                  Ralph Lewis, Atkins

Address:             Euston Tower, 286 Euston Road, London, NW1 3AT

Lead Petitioner Against: Resident of Brampton Road, Cambridge

Lead Petitioner Support: Resident of Perne Road, Cambridge

Case Officer:      Elizabeth Verdegem

Text of Petition Against the application

Title: Save our rivers and meadows Lite

Statement:

We the undersigned petition the council to - for the submitted application for the north Chisholm Trail that we ask for the application to be withdrawn, and that they request the applicant : 1. recognises the significant environmental, social and landscape impacts of the present application; 2. confirms that they do not believe there is evidence that cycling benefits outweigh these impacts; 3. supplies additional information to be presented to address deficiencies; 4. explores the alternatives, such as the Cheap as Chips Trail 5. submits an Environmental Impact Assessment for the Chisholm Trail to allow consideration of in-combination and cumulative effects with other projects; 6. applies at least “No net loss” approach to biodiversity within this scheme.

Justification:

Explanatory text

We the undersigned object to the Chisholm Trail application as submitted. We ask that the application be withdrawn and the noted requests made of the applicant.

We believe that their location in two highly sensitive river valleys will irrevocably degrade this meadow landscape, and adversely affect the character of eastern Cambridge.

We assert that it is inseparably intertwined with that of the Abbey-Chesterton Bridge and its effects cannot be considered separately and requires an EIA.

We reach our position on it being contrary to policy, on our experiences of issues with the process and the obvious overlap of the two projects. The following are informative to this, and do not require a response.

Contrary to policy

We note the present application is contrary to Cambridge City Council development control policies and the National Planning Policy Frameworks, in particular but not exclusively that:
1. it has an adverse effect on protected and priority species e.g. otters and bats ;
2. its footprint of close to 5ha has an adverse effect on protected sites and priority habitats e.g. 4 Local Wildlife Sites and floodplain grassland;
3. it constitutes inappropriate development in a Green Belt;
4. it has an adverse effect on the landscape and character of the area, including the setting of the Riverside and Stourbridge Common and Fen Ditton Conservation Area;
5. it constitutes inappropriate development in a floodplain and increases flood risk;
6. the design quality of the bridges and scheme are poor;
7. it involves the development  ...  view the full agenda text for item 16/4JDCCF