This coming Wednesday sees the Arlington Tesco’s issue come
before Planning Committee as part of the Public Inquiry process. The
application has come to Public Inquiry because the application took too long to
go through the system and therefore the applicant is claiming
non-determination. This meeting is to decide on how the Planning Committee
stands in relation to two aspects, firstly the upgrading of the Scenic Railway’s
listed status and second, the timing of the works themselves. The report for
this can be found here.
The last time this application came before Planning those were
the two aspects being decided on, but was referred to Full Council on grounds
of “transparency and accountability”. I agree with the decision the Committee
came to. As the report makes clear, the relevant Manager was not authorised to
take into account, under delegated powers, the upgraded listed status of the
Scenic Railway, therefore this had to come before the Planning Committee, even
if it didn’t change anything in the Committee’s mind. As for the second problem, of the timing of
the works, the proposal was at Freshwaters insistence not the Councils. Add to
that the talk of the possible listing of the site and referral to Full Council
seemed a good decision. Even with the current political set-up and considering
the possibility that the application could eventually have been voted down, I
still back that vote. In any case that vote is basically void and it’s up to
the Planning Inspectorate now.
As for the application as a whole, I’ve not really published a
settled argument, basically because I’ve struggled to come to one. On balance, I
support the application and see it to be the best opportunity for redevelopment
of the site. I know there was an alternative scheme proposed but given the
current economic situation, I’m not convinced on it, and that’s a shame. Yes,
there’s going to be an impact on businesses nearby and there will be parking
issues, but given that anything built on this site would attract high numbers
of traffic and given the awkward location, it’s going to be the case pretty
much whatever is put there. There’s doubt at whether Freshwater will act honestly
with the residents of Arlington House, but that’s more to do with the
associated legal agreements than the main plans and can be dealt with by the
Council Officers.
I know other bloggers have commented that they would have
preferred to see a smaller proposed store and I agree. The reality is it’s not
on the cards. We must consider the application as a whole and be careful not to
lose this chance of fully redeveloping the site.
4 comments:
Why is it seemingly impossible for ANYONE to get beyond argument and actually make a decision and then take action.
The Arlington/Tesco/Dreamland fiasco looks set to rumble on in another few years of inactive negativity and delaying tactics. whilst The Lido dereliction/decay continues and The Sea Bathing Hospital site remains unfinished.
Who owns what and why will nobody accept responsibility for the above blights on our landscape?
Heads should roll! Soon!
It could have been open and trading but TDC dither and hand wring in victorian style hold up yet another decision.
James I have added your blog to http://thanetblogs.blogspot.com/ you may find this useful, also if you need the recent comments script to put on your sidebar let me know.
You can thank Peter as it was he who asked me to add it.
Thanks to both of you, Michael and Peter.
With a new administration I don't think it'll be too long before we hear news. Obviously with Dreamland some news has filtered out in the past week but I'm not up to speed with it though so I'm reluctant to comment more than that.
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