Hampshire County Council

Executive Member - Environment

23 July 2003

Regeneration of Older Urban Areas Programme
Proposed Programme for 2003/04 and 2004/05

Report of the Director of Environment

Item 3

Contact: Simon Cramp, ext 6723

1. Summary

1.1 The following decision is sought:

2. Reason

2.1 To initiate a range of regeneration projects across Hampshire's urban areas utilising the Regeneration of Older Urban Area (ROUA) Capital Programme allocation of £955,000 per annum in 2003/04 and 2004/05. Individual projects will be brought forward in partnership with external agencies, including local authorities, and the private and voluntary sector.

2.2 Established in 1984, the ROUA programme is an ongoing Hampshire County Council led initiative that responds directly to the regeneration needs and priorities identified by County Members. The programme is managed to implement landmark projects to raise the quality of life of all who live, work and visit urban areas. All projects are designed to demonstrate the benefits of making the best use of land and property; high quality design; long life solutions and materials; and appropriateness to the local sense of place. The ROUA programme responds directly to the urban renaissance agenda and is a continuing objective for the County Council.

3. Other Options Considered and Rejected

3.1 Alternative projects were considered for inclusion in the ROUA 2003/05 programme. However, these projects were rejected following an appraisal of scheme details and failure to fully comply with the principles and objectives of the ROUA programme.

4. Conflicts of Interest Declared by the Decision Maker or a Member or Officer Consulted - None.

5. Dispensation granted by the Standards Committee - Not applicable.

6. Reason(s) for the Matter being dealt with if Urgent - Not applicable.

Approved by: Date:

Councillor K B Estlin

7. Introduction

7.1 This report sets out the proposed ROUA 2003/05 programme. Individual Project Appraisals will be brought forward as appropriate, and as schemes develop, for approval.

8. Budget

8.1 The Capital Programme for 2003/04 and 2004/05 is £955,000 per annum, a total of £1,910,000 over the two years.

8.2 It should be noted that some of the expenditure on schemes within the ROUA Programme is incurred under Section 137 of the Local Government Act 1972 as being in the interests of, and bringing direct benefit to, Hampshire and some of its inhabitants. The District Auditor recommends that in order to comply fully with statutory requirements any expenditure incurred under Section 137 powers should be identified as such when formally approved by the Executive Member for Environment. The Chief Executive has agreed that this represents good practice.

9. Proposed Programme for 2003/05

9.1 The recommended programme for 2003/05 is attached as Appendix 1. The proposed programme has been made up of future phases of major regeneration projects initiated under previous ROUA programmes. The ROUA 2001/03 programme, approved on 11 September 2000, is attached as Appendix 2 for reference. The proposed programme also includes new schemes brought forward in partnership with local authorities where there is agreement about the objectives and details of the scheme. Match funding arrangements will be negotiated on these new schemes. Each of the projects in the programme has been measured against the aim and principles of the ROUA programme.

9.2 An appraisal has also been carried out to establish the extent to which the proposed projects support a range of County Council initiatives and strategies including:

9.3 The proposed programme recommends six named projects. One in each of four participating local authorities and two in Fareham Borough Council. Of the two projects in Fareham, the scheme at Warsash will be undertaken first in line with the overall programme priority of completing projects that have already been started. Because all the projects are at an early stage of development and there is some uncertainty about the scope and extent of the eventual schemes, the schedule of projects sets out a budget estimate for each. These figures will be refined as individual projects are developed, match funding negotiated and taken through the Project Appraisal process. This approach provides flexibility in the management of the programme and assists in fully utilising the available budget. Following its use in 2001/03, the 2003/05 programme includes an allocation of £125,000 for Minor Projects identified during the two year period.

9.4 The schedule of projects, including staff salaries and allocation for specialist fees, total £1,917,000 excluding other contributions. This is £7,000 more than the total budget. It will be necessary to ensure that expenditure does not exceed the budget allocation for either of the two programme years.

9.5 A Project Appraisal and detailed design for all projects will need to be approved by the Executive Member for Environment before any scheme can be authorised to start on site. Bids for schemes made against the Minor Projects budget, for which an upper limit of £5,000 for individual schemes was previously agreed, will be assessed using the approved programme criteria. Expenditure against this budget will be reported to the Executive Member for Environment.

10. Major Scheme Proposals

10.1 The proposed programme for 2003/05 sets out a significant level of investment for three major schemes - Yateley, Totton and Warsash - to provide a follow-up to ROUA initiatives undertaken in these areas within the 1999/01 and 2001/03 programmes and to meet the expectations of local partners.

10.2 Working in partnership with Hart District Council, Yateley Town Council, Yateley Society and a range of public, private and voluntary sector agencies through the Yateley Town Centre Management Group, the County Council has made significant progress in setting out long term proposals for Yateley town centre. It is intended that the proposals will form the basis of a Village Design Statement to be adopted by Hart District Council as Supplementary Planning Guidance in early 2004. With funding from the North East Hampshire Transport Strategy (NEHTS), emerging contributions from private sector development and contributions from the district and town councils, the opportunity now exists to demonstrate the value of the long term proposals by undertaking a substantial townscape improvement scheme.

10.3 Hampshire County Council, New Forest District Council and Totton and Eling Town Council have been working together over the last two years on proposed improvements for Totton town centre, including the area commonly referred to as `Old Totton'. These proposals bring together environmental, economic and traffic management planning in a comprehensive plan to provide long-term guidance for the regeneration of Totton. The proposals will guide investment from the Local Transport Plan (LTP), New Forest District Council and Town Council funding and the County Council's ROUA programme. The proposals represent a package of measures for the short, medium and longer term.

10.4 The proposals were the subject of a very successful public consultation during September 2002. The consultation took the form of a public exhibition and the publication of draft Supplementary Planning Guidance (SPG), the `Totton Town Centre Urban Design Framework'. The Urban Design Framework was adopted as SPG by New Forest District Council's Cabinet on 2 April 2003 and will help in ensuring a consistent approach to planning decisions and also identifying opportunities for development that will benefit the town.

10.5 The ROUA programme has commenced investment in the first phase of comprehensive improvements for Rumbridge Street, Old Totton with £65,000 for new street lighting. Detailed proposals are now being prepared for a proposed substantial second phase of streetscape works to provide a high profile and effective kick-start for regeneration in this area.

10.6 Following the successful introduction of the reversal of the one-way system at Shore Road, Warsash, and rapid progress of a significant local redevelopment scheme, the opportunity now exists to implement the final phase of environmental improvement work at the waterfront.

10.7 The waterfront is amongst the busiest destinations for visitors to the River Hamble and a significant asset for the local economy. Warsash also provides a range of public facilities for the local community and the significant numbers of people drawn to the river from adjacent urban areas. Since 1999 the ROUA programme has transformed the appearance of the conservation area with schemes at the Public Hard, the D-Day memorial and riverside car park. Traffic management measures have reduced conflict and improved the use of car parking facilities adding to the enjoyment of the area by local people, businesses and visitors alike.

10.8 The proposed final phase of work will now bring the overall improvement plan to completion. Linking all previously completed projects on the waterfront, the work will include resurfacing of:

11. New Scheme Proposals

11.1 In addition to the three major scheme proposals, the proposed programme also recommends investment in significant new schemes at Hamble and Fareham for which match-funding arrangements will be negotiated.

11.2 The Square at Hamble is situated within the Hamble-le-Rice Conservation Area at the head of the High Street and provides one of the most important `gateways' onto the internationally known River Hamble. The Square is fronted by numerous buildings of significant townscape merit. However, for many years the poor appearance of the public realm has been out of character with the rest of the scene and in particular with recent high quality improvements undertaken by the ROUA programme.

11.3 In 2000 Hampshire County Council, working in partnership with Eastleigh Borough Council and Hamble Parish Council, completed improvements to the High Street and Rope Walk. The scheme has been very successful and the opportunity has now arisen to continue that partnership into improvement work at The Square utilising £50,000 funding from the Borough Council.

11.4 The scheme will enhance the conservation area through provision of new stone pavements, to complement those in the High Street, removing overhead wires, and improving the appearance of the car park and links for visitors to the High Street.

11.5 Town Quay, including Lower and Upper Quay and the western end of Bath Lane Recreation Ground, is an area rich with historical references to Fareham's traditional connections to the sea. There is enormous potential to improve the waterfront areas to realise the true social, economic and environmental value of this asset, and to overcome years of neglect and the results of poor design.

11.6 Fareham Borough Council is currently developing proposals for one part of Town Quay and has secured £85,000 for a first phase. However, there is considerable interest in exploring the opportunities to work with the County Council on extending the benefits of the scheme, achieving a high quality landmark project and putting in place long term guidance for future development. The Borough Council is committed to working to secure match funding to ensure that as much as possible can be done to improve the waterfront in partnership with the County Council.

11.7 The proposed programme also includes an allocation for technical studies in Havant town centre. Havant town centre is in need of investment to secure its role as an important destination for residents and visitors alike. Significant levels of expenditure are planned for public transport provision. However, it is critical that this sets the benchmark for future developments in terms of high quality and appropriateness. Currently, the complex nature, ownership and issues in this area do not provide the necessary certainty, or support, for the long term, high quality investment that the ROUA programme would wish to see come forward. The funding will assist the borough, and emerging partner organisations including SEEDA, in developing high quality and appropriate proposals for this area that will support social, economic and environmental regeneration, and provide the framework for potential environmental improvement projects. It is expected that this project will emerge as a major scheme that may, subject to the availability of external funding and planning details, be suitable for consideration for the ROUA programme in the future.

Section 100 D - Local Government Act 1972 - background papers

The following documents disclose facts or matters on which this report, or an important part of it, is based and has been relied upon to a material extent in the preparation of this report.

NB the list excludes:

1.

Published works.

2.

Documents which disclose exempt or confidential information as defined in the Act.

TITLE

LOCATION

Scheme Files

Environment Department

8092/SC

APPENDIX 1

RECOMMENDED PROGRAMME FOR 2003/05

Eastleigh *The Square, Hamble 125

Fareham Town Quay, Fareham 175

Hart Town Centre, Yateley 300

Havant Town Centre, Havant 50

New Forest `Old Totton' 300

Minor Projects 125

Contingency sum 150

Specialist fees 100

Programme/project fees 292

Total 1,917

All projects are at an early stage of development. The proposed allocations are therefore budget estimates and are liable to change as projects are developed.

*Expenditure would be incurred under Section 137 of the Local Government Act 1972

**Proposed financial allocation from Capital Programme .

APPENDIX 2

RECOMMENDED PROGRAMME FOR 2001/03

Basingstoke * Glebe Gardens 100

Eastleigh * Hard, Lands End Road, 75

Fareham Castle Street, Portchester 100

Gosport * Stoke Road 175

Hart Town Centre, Yateley 25

Havant North Street, Emsworth 100

New Forest Totton (i) Studies 50

Rushmoor * North Camp, Farnborough 200

Railway * Havant Railway Station 75

Partnership

Projects

Minor Projects 100

Total allocation to projects 1,525