Agenda item

Mr Bowles, Cabinet Member for Town Centre Regeneration, introduced the report which asked full Council to approve the Masterplan and 2050 Vision for Aylesbury Garden Town (AGT) which provides the basis of a comprehensive delivery strategy to transform Aylesbury into a Garden Town over the coming decades.

Mr Bowles thanked Mr Chapple as the current Board Chairman, the Board and the officer team for all their hard work thus far.

Mr Bowles explained that the Vision and Masterplan had been the subject of extensive engagement with key stakeholders throughout its development. The public consultation on the Draft Masterplan took place from the 6th January until 14th February 2020 and received largely positive feedback. In response to the main issues raised, a series of key changes and actions had been made to move the Draft AGT Masterplan to a final version (available here: https://www.aylesburygardentown.co.uk/masterplan).  A Statement of Community Involvement, which sets out the key issues raised and the responses to these key issues, was available alongside the Masterplan. Specifically, appropriate images had been sourced and amended within the Vision (attached as Appendix 1) and final Masterplan to convey aspirational and inspirational examples of high quality sustainable development. An Executive Summary of the Masterplan was attached at Appendix 2. 

Mr Bowles advised that officers were currently undertaking a socio-economic and commercial impact assessment of the Town which would help the Council understand the detailed impact of Covid-19 on the programme. Nevertheless, the Masterplan was an agile and flexible document which could accommodate change over the next three decades.  It provided a vision and framework for transforming Aylesbury and importantly created a structure around which more detailed work could be carried out.

Mr Bowles added that the Masterplan and Vision had been approved by Cabinet and approval from full Council would provide the documents with the status and weight needed to ensure that the Vision and Masterplan objectives would be realised to make Aylesbury a truly transformational Garden Town.

In the discussion which followed a number of comments were made welcoming the updates which had been made to the Vision and Masterplan. 

In response to concerns raised regarding the governance structure for the Aylesbury Garden Town project, Mr Bowles clarified that following a governance review, a new Strategic Oversight Board would be formed shortly and would include representation from parish councils, the Aylesbury Town Council and other key stakeholders. Mr Bowles emphasised that this was a project to benefit all residents in Aylesbury.

Following a concern raised that residents would have to wait a number of years to see any changes, Mr Bowles confirmed that there were various projects already underway to reduce congestion, improve air quality and reduce pollution in addition to the plans for the Aylesbury Garden Way and Town Centre action plan. Funds had also been made available to improve the Station Quarter as well as the Market and Kingsbury Square areas.

Following a comment from a member who welcomed the encouragement of walking and cycling in the Vision and Masterplan, Mr Bowles agreed that the benefits of the Garden Town should spread wider than Aylesbury and work was underway to look at potential cycle paths and walking routes.

It was moved by Mr S Bowles, seconded by Mr B Chapple and

Resolved:

That the Masterplan and 2050 Vision for Aylesbury Garden Town be approved.