Agenda item

Councillor Rob Appleyard will provide feedback from the latest Neighbourhood CIL for Bath Panel which took place on 14^th January 2019.

Councillor Rob Appleyard provided feedback from the last meeting of the Neighbourhood CIL for Bath Working Group which was held on Monday, 14th January, 2019.

Update on previously recommended projects

Four projects have received a single member decision. These are; Sydney Gardens, Student Community Partnership, Bathwick Road Safety and Moorland Road Library. These will be free to implement from 5^th February 2019.

The Sydney Gardens Project has received notification that the Heritage Lottery Funding Application has now been agreed. This will allow the Changing Place Toilet Project to go ahead as planned.

Four projects that have been passed by the Bath City Forum as recommendations have not yet been passed for a single member decision as they are presently awaiting further advice from the Councils Legal Team. These are; Bath City Farm, Widcombe Subway, Parade Gardens Bandstand and Bath Carnival. The advice that has been given by the legal team has been interpreted differently to the guidance that has been used previously for the use of neighbourhood CIL receipts. A response is being prepared and will be submitted this week requesting further discussion around these issues.

Financial Summary Update

The next receipts for Neighbourhood CIL for Bath will be received in April 2019. The receipts are paid every six months in April and September.

The present balance table for Neighbourhood CIL for Bath receipts is set out below:

The Urban Garden BA060

The panel spent a considerable amount of time discussing this application from Genesis Trust requesting a contribution of £50,000 towards The Urban Garden project. The panel were not prepared to agree funding at this stage. B&NES Officers were asked to arrange to meeting with Genesis and B&NES Parks to investigate the points that need to be addressed. The application will need to be brought back to the panel once with any additional information has been gathered. 

Bathwick Towpath Improvement Project BA059

The panel reviewed that application that was submitted by the Canal and River Trust for a contribution of £34,500 funding towards the improvements of the Bathwick Towpath.

The panel felt that this application showed that the delivery of this scheme was would provide improved infrastructure to an area of footpath that already sees a high footfall. The new developments nearby will see a greater need for improved paths for commuters to and from the city and those who use the canal for leisure purposes. This stretch of the canal has footpath access along only one side; this puts extra demand on wear and tear of this route.

The panel all felt that this project should receive the contribution of £34,500. This funding would be conditional to the remainder is met as it has been set out in the application. The Bath City Forum asks that recognition of the contribution is made by some form of plaque at the site of the project.

Ki Active Health BA061

The panel felt that this application supports the increased need for residents to access public health programmes that provide active fitness benefits.

The project looks to target social housing residents at this trial stage. It is felt that by providing a funding contribution to enable an additional twenty-five people to participate in the trial of this scheme in Bath, it could also lead to evidence that could see a much bigger programme financed further down the line.

The panel agreed that it would recommend funding of £3,125 as a contribution that will enable this programme to move forward. It was requested that the Active Lifestyles Team provide a report on the outcomes that are being set for this project and where the finding will be reported.

Queen Square Benches BA062

This application was a request which asked for funding to enable a project to replace the benches in Queens Square, Bath. The project includes adding back in the benches that have been removed due to these being in disrepair. B&NES Parks would project manage the work and will also put in place a ten year agreement to carry out any necessary maintenance.

The project will look at any existing plaques on the benches and transfer these if they are still required. The remaining benches will carry a plaque which shows the funding has been provided by Bath City Forum.

A question was put by one panel member asking if a partial replacement option should be considered. The remaining panel members felt that this park is high profile and has historical significance; it was felt that the project as it has been set out will deliver a strong improvement to the infrastructure within the world heritage site. A suggestion was made to see if the benches that are removed could be salvaged and reused in other locations in the city.

It was agreed by the panel to recommend an allocation of up to £19,000 for this project

Question and Comments:

Councillor Bob Goodman passed on his appreciation to the panel for the work they have carried out.

Councillor Dine Romero asked about the funding for the benches at Queens Square. The concern was that the funding that is being agreed will not be used to back fill other council funding.

Response:

Ø  The funding is open to all communities in Bath and the applications are looked at on merit of each project.

Ø  Clarity will be checked on the maintenance programme funding.

Councillor Colin Blackburn explained that panel felt the commercial activity that was involved in the Urban Garden project had not allowed the panel to be satisfied it was an appropriate scheme to be involved in without further information being provided.

The forum members were asked to vote on the three recommended projects, all members’ votes were cast in favour and nobody voted against.