LOCAL PLAN (PART 1) ADOPTION

Part 1 of the Cheshire East Local Plan was approved earlier today at a meeting of Full Council. This part of the plan allocates sites for housing development and employment land across the Key Service Centres (i.e. the major towns across Cheshire East, e.g. Wilmslow, Macclesfield etc). Part 2 of the Local Plan will deal with the Local Service Centres (of which Alderley Edge is one) and the first draft of the Site Allocations Development Policies Document is expected to be published by late September. At this time, we should start to see which sites are proposed around Alderley Edge and whether there are going to be any adaptations to the green belt boundaries. Watch this space!

JULY SURGERY

I am pleased to confirm that my monthly drop-in surgery will be this coming Saturday (29th July) at Aldeli, starting at 10am. Do come along and join me for a coffee and a chat about any local issues that may be causing you concern. I look forward to seeing you there.

GULLY EMPTYING (LEVEL 2)

Following the recent gully emptying programme carried out by CE Highway, 24 gullies were identified as having blocked connections. Blocked connections are shown by a red tag attached to the drain cover (as shown in the photograph below); these tags are "chipped" and the information loaded onto a computer database. A further programme of work, this time using high pressure water jetting to clear the blockages has now been scheduled and will take place over four working days, starting on Monday 24th July. Where this does still not resolve the problems, the locations will again be recorded and put forward for a future work programme, involving excavation and/or root cutting.

HIGHWAYS HOUR - 14TH AUGUST

I am delighted to announce that colleagues from CE Highways have accepted my invitation to do a "Highways Hour" event in Alderley Edge. The event will take place on Monday 14th August at the Festival Hall, starting at 7pm and will precede the Parish Council meeting. Officers from CE Highways will be giving a presentation and I have asked them to focus on the following relevant local issues:

- planned Capital Works for 2017/18 (Wilmslow Road, London Road, Heyes Lane)
- Minor Works Programme (Chorley Hall Lane, Moss Road, Brook Lane)
- Flood Risk Management (Oak Park, Duke Street, Downesway)
- Street Lighting (planned upgrade to LED lamps)
- Maintenance & Operations (gully emptying and street sweeping)

This will be a very interesting event and members of the public are more than welcome to come along and listen to what the officers have to say. There will be a limited time for questions at the end of the presentation.

COMMUNITY SPEEDWATCH

Yesterday morning I joined the #CommunitySpeedwatch team on Macclesfield Road. Following complaints from a number of residents about speeding vehicles going up the hill, we decided to station ourselves by the junction with Trafford Road (near the Alderley Edge Hotel). Between 10-11am we recorded 33 vehicles travelling above 35 mph, of which 12 were travelling in excess of 40mph, whilst the highest recorded speed was 44mph. The details of the recorded vehicles will be passed on to the police and the owners will receive an advisory letter if it is their first offence and a visit from a uniformed officer for a second or subsequent offence. The Speedwatch team is reliant upon local volunteers, so if you are able to spare an hour a month, please let me know.

BUSINESS CONSULTATION SURVEY

M&S FOODHALL PROPOSAL

I have received information that Marks & Spencer are planning to submit an application for a Foodhall Store as part of a redevelopment of Alderley Edge Railway Station & Car Park. There will be an exhibition and consultation event (organised by Marks & Spencer) to which all residents are invited on Friday 21st July between 3pm - 7pm and on Saturday 22nd July from 10am to 4pm at the Festival Hall.  I will be attending both sessions to listen to your views on this proposal.

14-18 LONDON ROAD (APPEAL)

I am delighted to share the news that planning application 16/3610 has been dismissed by the appeal inspectorate.  The application, for a development of three apartments on the land behind 14-18 London Road, was considered by Northern Planning Committee in October 2016 and refused on the basis that it represented an overdevelopment, resulting in unacceptable living conditions for future occupiers and lack of outdoor space.

Thankfully, the appeal inspector agreed and attached substantial weight to the fact that the development would have failed to provide acceptable living conditions and would not comprise sustainable development.  The inspector also found that the unacceptable nature of the accommodation would greatly diminish any benefits to the character and appearance of the area.

I feel this result vindicates my decision to call the application to committee in the first place.