Agenda and minutes

Apologies had been received from Carol Arnfield – LBB Head of Service for Early Years, Schools Standards and Adult Education, Alex Henderson – Henderson Biomedical, Liz Waghorn – Jobcentre Plus, David Warnes – London South East Colleges, Steve Wheeler – Federation of Small Businesses and Louise Wolsey – London South East Colleges.  Apologies had also been received from Colin Maclean – Community Links Bromley and Diane Diamond attended as his substitute.

The minutes of the meeting held on 16^th January 2018 were agreed, and signed as a correct record. There were no matters arising.

Helen McIntosh FCIPR, McIntosh Associates, gave a presentation providing an update on the St Mark’s Square development, Bromley on behalf of U+I Group PLC.

In Spring 2012, the Local Authority granted planning consent for the St Mark’s Square scheme.  This was a mixed-use development that included a landscaped public plaza surrounded by a cinema, restaurants and a 130-bed Premier Inn hotel, as well as 200 private apartments (62 of which were affordable) and a new 400 space underground car park, of which 300 spaces would be open for public use.  The development was expected to create over 200 jobs, and make a significant contribution to Bromley’s local economy over the next 10 years.  The build had largely been completed with the final tranche of 50 apartments due to be released for sale shortly.  ‘Fitting out’ had commenced for a number of the leisure venues, including the cinema which would open in Summer 2018, and six of the eight on-site restaurant units had been let.  Further details of the vacant restaurant units and the timescale for the opening of the hotel, as well as reassurance regarding the safety of cladding used for the development would be provided to Members of the Partnership following the meeting. 

Helen McIntosh FCIPR was pleased to invite Members of the Partnership to visit the St Mark’s Square development in Summer 2018.

In considering the update, a Member of the Partnership underlined the need to ensure that pedestrian access to the new development was welcoming and clearly signposted from central Bromley.

The Chairman led Members in thanking Helen McIntosh for her excellent presentation.

RESOLVED that the update be noted.

Members of the Partnership gave an update around progress across the main themes of the Partnership.

Mr Kevin Munnelly, LBB Head of Renewal provided an update on Town Centre Development across the Borough.

Progress was continuing across the sites that made up the Bromley Town Centre Area Action Plan.  Opportunity Site G: West of the High Street had progressed to the next stage and work was underway to develop a planning application for the first phase of the development that would be a residential-led scheme with business units for small, expanding businesses in the Borough.  A planning application had been submitted by developers in respect of the first phase of development at Opportunity Site A: Bromley North Station that was a residential-led, very high, mixed-use scheme and this would be considered by the Development Control Committee.  The Public Realm Improvement Scheme in Bromley town centre continued to progress with work already started on the final phase of the pedestrianised area between Marks and Spencer and Metro Bank, and market stalls were being relocated.  A number of bids had been received for the purchase of the Old Town Hall, Bromley and would be evaluated in forthcoming weeks.

Public Realm Improvement Schemes were successfully being taken forward in Beckenham and Orpington, with immediate action having been taken to address safety concerns in relation to a fire escape at the Orpington Walnut Shopping Centre.  A number of improvements had been made to the street environment as part of the Penge Improvement Programme, and the Old Police Station junction would be redesigned to support better traffic flow with works due to commence in Spring 2018.

The Chairman advised Members of the Partnership that The Hill Car Park, Bromley was included in the Bromley Town Centre Area Action Plan as a site identified for redevelopment, but that any redevelopment would likely include the replacement of the existing car park.

Councillor Hannah Gray gave a presentation in which she advised that broadband and mobile phone connectivity continued to be a priority across the Borough.  A major improvement in broadband provision had already been delivered for rural parts of the Borough, and the Local Authority was seeking to build on this by developing a scheme that would make use of an extensive network of ducting that linked the East and West of the Boroughs.  Details of the proposed scheme would be reported to the Bromley Economic Partnership when available. 

RESOLVED that the update on the town centre development programme be noted.

Ms Katie Ryde, LBB Planner, gave an update on the development of the Local Plan.

The Local Plan set out the vision and objectives for development across the Borough to the 2030s.  The Bromley’s Local Plan had been submitted for examination on 11^th August 2017, following approval by Full Council at its meeting on 26^th June 2017.  The Inspector had subsequently recommended a number of minor amendments be made to the Bromley Local Plan prior to the final period of public consultation to which the Local Authority had responded.  A further consultation event was planned for Summer 2018, with the expectation that the Bromley Local Plan would be adopted in Autumn 2018.  There would be an ongoing process of review following the adoption of the Bromley Local Plan to respond to any changes proposed within the National Planning Policy Framework and London Plan.  Details of how to subscribe to Bromley Local Plan updates would be provided to Members following the meeting.

The Vice-Chairman highlighted the need to ensure that due consideration was given to all issues raised by the Inspector, and that this informed the amendments to the draft Bromley Local Plan.  The Planner confirmed that the Local Authority was working closely with the Inspector and that the process for adoption required the Local Authority to undertake consultation on any further changes to the Local Plan prior to the publication of the Inspector’s final report.

The Chairman reminded the Partnership that the new London Plan proposed a significant increase in the 10 year target for net housing completions 2019/20 - 2028/29 from the current requirement of 641 homes per annum to 1,424 homes per annum.  The Local Authority had provided a robust response to these proposals, including raising concerns around the deliverability of the proposed target.  A Member of the Partnership noted the need to review the Borough’s housing strategy in light of any significant increase in housing targets, and that this might include high-rise developments or increased use of green space.  There would also be a need for major investment in the Borough’s infrastructure to support increased housing density, such as improved transport links.

In response to a question from a Member, the LBB Planner confirmed that work continued regarding the introduction of the Community Infrastructure Levy, from which certain types of development would be exempt.  A further consultation on the draft scheme would be undertaken in Autumn 2018.

RESOLVED that the update on the development of the Local Plan be noted.

Lorraine McQuillan, LBB Town Centre Manager reported that a recent ballot to establish the Beckenham and Penge Business Improvement Districts had been successful, and that it was hoped that these Business Improvement Districts would be operating by June 2018.  Feasibility work would be undertaken to identify other town centres that might benefit from a Business Improvement District, including Chislehurst and West Wickham.

Sharon Baldwin, Executive Director, Orpington 1^st BID Company advised Members of the Partnership that high quality development schemes continued to be rolled out across Orpington town centre, including the Orpington Health and Wellbeing Centre which was due to open in Summer 2018.  There were some vacant retail units across the town centre; however retailers had been secured for some units and a new pop-up gift shop was showcasing and selling the work of local entrepreneurs.  The Orpington’s Finest Awards had been held on 22^nd March 2018, in which a number of local businesses had received awards, including the student-led BR6 Restaurant and Bake House which had received the Hospitality award.  Work to promote Orpington’s safe, clean and green environment was ongoing and included Orpington’s entry into the London in Bloom 2018 competition and an application for Dementia-Friendly status.  The 150^th anniversary of the opening of Orpington Station had recently been celebrated, and the station had been recognised in Visit London and Visit Kent promotional material as the best connected station in South London. 

Frances Forrest, the Bromley BID Manager, confirmed that work was underway to improve the shopping experience across Bromley town centre, including a parking app to direct visitors.  A number of Easter events had been planned such as the ‘Hop around Bromley’ town centre trail, and future events included the Bromley Food Fest and Midsummer Movies which was expected to feature The Bromley Boys.  The safety of the town centre remained a key priority with two additional Police Officers allocated to the town centre during the Easter period, and funding had been secured to provide the Night Time Ambassadors programme for a further 52 nights during 2018 following a successful pilot scheme.  The “Loose Change to make Real Change” project had recently been launched to encourage Bromley visitors to give to homelessness charities. 

RESOLVED that the recent work around Business Improvement Districts in the 4^th Quarter of 2017/18 be noted.

Updates are provided in the relevant sub sections.

Ms Katy Woolcott, London Biggin Hill Airport provided an update on developments at London Biggin Hill Airport.  A business plan was being developed for the proposed London Biggin Hill Airport Hotel.  Work was also underway with London South East Colleges to deliver the London Aerospace Technical College.  London Biggin Hill Airport had decided to focus on business flights going forward and had given notice to flying clubs based at the airport whose leases would not be renewed.

Mr Mike Lewis, Michael Rogers LLP informed Members of the Partnership that the commercial market continued to perform strongly within Bromley with the best office space now valued at £27 per square foot.  Work was ongoing to progress a development scheme at Elmfield Road, Bromley that it was hoped would offer additional high quality office space in close proximity to the town centre.

No update was provided.

No update was provided.

Ms Kate Miller, The Glades Shopping Centre reported that it had been a tough start to the year with footfall down 1.5% on the previous year.  A number of longstanding retailers would be leaving the shopping centre including Toys R Us; however new retailers had been secured, including Wafflelicious.  The Plan G initiative had been launched to provide an additional calendar of events such as classes, workshops and exhibitions during the evenings which was expected to contribute to the night-time economy, and retailers would be encouraged to increase their opening hours as part of this initiative.

Mr Lee Thomas, Fairlight Group confirmed that there was increasing demand for office space in Bromley, and that future development should focus on attracting large companies that would increase the prosperity of the Borough.

Mr Dave Freeborn, Proctors advised that there was high demand to purchase land in the Borough from both local residents and developers.

Mr Michael Humphries, Handelsbanken noted that the banking industry continued to perform well and that it was likely there would be a further interest rate increase in forthcoming months.

Mr Andrew Cox, London South East Colleges highlighted that London South East Colleges was working with London Biggin Hill Airport on the London Aerospace Technical College.  A bid had recently been put in to secure Institute of Technology status for the College that would be considered alongside 22 other applications.

RESOLVED that the updates be noted.

Members of the Partnership considered the forward rolling work programme for 2018/19.

The Chairman suggested that the Tri-Borough Police Commander for Bromley, Croydon and Sutton be invited to a future meeting of the Partnership to discuss implications for the local economy.

U+I Group had kindly invited Members of the Partnership to visit the St Mark’s Square development in Summer 2018, which might be undertaken as part of the next meeting of the Bromley Economic Partnership on 17^th July 2018.

RESOLVED that the work programme for the Bromley Economic Partnership for 2018/19 be noted.

There was no other business.

4.00pm, Tuesday 17^th July 2018

4.00pm, Tuesday 16^th October 2018

4.00pm, Tuesday 15^th January 2019

4.00pm, Tuesday 2^nd April 2019

4.00pm, Tuesday 17^th July 2018

4.00pm, Tuesday 16^th October 2018

4.00pm, Tuesday 15^th January 2019

4.00pm, Tuesday 2^nd April 2019