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The decisions as the council's minutes record them. A plain-language summary follows once it has been written.
RESOLVED:- i) That the Wrexham Place Making Plan to be scheduled for the May 2024 meeting. ii) That the purpose regarding the Economic Development of Urban Villages Report be revised to also include reference to the rural areas of the County Borough. iii) That Committee received Information reports on the Rural Development Programme and the Pontcysyllte Aqueduct. iv) That the Pontcysyllte Aqueduct and Canal World Heritage Sites be deleted.
RESOLVED: (i) That Officers share details of the costs on Project 2, that were attributable to Wrexham (ii) That the Lead Member, Officers and Partner Organisations be thanked for their work in progressing the project to this stage and that the Committee support the future successful delivery of the plan. That an update on Project Delivery be made available to the Committee within 6 months, or no later than July 2024. (iii) That the Committee requests that the Pontcysyllte Management Board provides them with an action plan which underpins the Management Plan. (iv)That a site visit be organised, to include partners, prior to the consideration of the update report by the Committee.
Apologies for absence were submitted on behalf of Councillors Beryl Blackmore, Gary Brown and Tina Mannering.
That the Minutes held on 7 November 2023 be signed as a correct record.
Decision as recorded
RESOLVED:- i) That the Wrexham Place Making Plan to be scheduled for the May 2024 meeting. ii) That the purpose regarding the Economic Development of Urban Villages Report be revised to also include reference to the rural areas of the County Borough. iii) That Committee received Information reports on the Rural Development Programme and the Pontcysyllte Aqueduct. iv) That the Pontcysyllte Aqueduct and Canal World Heritage Sites be deleted.
The Chief Officer for Governance and Customer submitted a report (COGC/121/23s) asking members to consider the revised work programme of the Employment Business and Investment Scrutiny Committee. The Scrutiny Facilitator presented the work programme and highlighted the main points contained within the report. The following was discussed: · Urban areas required some urgent attention and it was advised that it should be at the first stage so as to ensure that the programme was not diluted in any way. · A Member asked Officers to consider splitting the Urban Rural Villages report so that it could focus on the urban and rural elements. RESOLVED:- i) That the Wrexham Place Making Plan to be scheduled for the May 2024 meeting. ii) That the purpose regarding the Economic Development of Urban Villages Report be revised to also include reference to the rural areas of the County Borough. iii) That Committee received Information reports on the Rural Development Programme and the Pontcysyllte Aqueduct. iv) That the Pontcysyllte Aqueduct and Canal World Heritage Sites be deleted.
Decision as recorded
RESOLVED: (i) That Officers share details of the costs on Project 2, that were attributable to Wrexham (ii) That the Lead Member, Officers and Partner Organisations be thanked for their work in progressing the project to this stage and that the Committee support the future successful delivery of the plan. That an update on Project Delivery be made available to the Committee within 6 months, or no later than July 2024. (iii) That the Committee requests that the Pontcysyllte Management Board provides them with an action plan which underpins the Management Plan. (iv)That a site visit be organised, to include partners, prior to the consideration of the update report by the Committee.
The Chief Officer for Economy and Planning submitted a report (CEOP/84/23) asking members to consider an annual update on the delivery of the Trevor Basin Technical Masterplan (Phase one) project. To coincide with the annual update report on the Levelling Up Fund, required by the UK Government. The Lead Member for Economy Regeneration and Economic Development introduced the report and highlighted the main points within it. The Strategy and Business Investment Lead and the Physical Regeneration Project Manager (World Heritage Site) gave a presentation of the Pontcysyllte Aqueduct and Canal World Heritage Site to Members which highlighted the following points: · Brief history. · Facts and Figures. · Trevor Basin Technical Masterplan. · Benefits of full delivery of the Trevor basin technical masterplan. · Levelling up Fund. · Background to Project 1, 2 & 3. · LUF Projects Location Plan. · Project 1 – Relocation of Boat Hire Company, JC Edwards Wall, Trevor Basin Bridge Works & Arrival Point/Car Park and Rewilding of Industrial Area. · Project 2 – Chirk, Horseshoe Falls, Wenffrwd, Four Great Highways and Plas Newydd Access Improvements. · Project 3 – Corwen Town Centre Improvements, Railway Station Canopy and Active Travel Project. · Key Completion Dates and Any Questions? Members asked a number of questions which were responded to accordingly, and the following points were highlighted during the detailed debate:- · A Member enquired about if there had been any financial implications due to the delays that the project had endured. · Members were assured that although all costs were increasing in the current economic environment, the focus of the adjustment request was for an extension of time. · It was explained that there were work parcels that had either started or not started or nearly finishing in terms of the commitment. · It was highlighted that because due to having more time officers could look at value engineering and specifications to ensure that they would be deliverable. · It was confirmed that the majority of the funding was from grant money which amounted to £13.2 million. · A Member highlighted that the existing carpark had totally gone blue badge and that it had caused concern for some visitors who did not have one because they varied with ages and abilities so they struggled whilst walking long distances. · From a tourism visitor perspective the main strategic approach to the new car park was to reduce the number of cars coming down from Station Road to reduce inconvenience within the community and also to make the site management and destination experience better. · It was explained that at the time the former Clwyd South was representing multiple partners and each had a different focus within the Dee Valley. In Wrexham this was mainly the Pontcysyllte Aqueduct. · Members were assured that Clwyd South would remain the title of the project despite the change in boundaries and Member of Parliament and that there had been no changes to the technical aspects of the project. · As with the year 1 update, funding information for project was aggregated at a high level because elements of the work was going out to tender and the aim was to obtain best value. · Officers were requested to provide the Wrexham proportion of grant within the amounts for Project 1 and Project 2. · The government has provided the revenue support for the project in tranches and the levelling up fund was a £13.2m capital grant. · Wrexham Council has committed £400,000 in match funding from the capital programme. · The Periodic Review process was explained and it was highlighted that it was an extremely large document that was produced every eight years for the UNESCO assessment cycle. · Members were assured that the Management Plan would highlight any control or legal issues and it also fed into the master plan. · It was confirmed that the revenue funding had not been affected by current economic conditions. · The approach and strategy for car parking charges will be detailed in the New Year. · There were a number of Members who were also on the Planning Committee so Officers decided to be cautious and not include too much detail on the car parking information within the Agenda Pack. · Officers highlighted the main high risks associated with the project such as planning, cost of inflation, lack of contractor materials and availability of labour. · Officers confirmed that they were working to a March 2025 deadline for all projects · The Scrutiny Committee were aware of the issues that the residents have had to endure due to the volume of tourists that have visited the area and acknowledged that residents have had to deal with a lot of change. · A Local Member updated Members regarding the recent Community Council meeting that discussed elements regarding project one and highlighted that he would like to be involved and kept updated about it. · The Local Member enquired about the removal of the bridge based at the aqueduct and if a representation could be made to keep it. He also raised issues regarding the buses originating from Frontycyllte and the management of the boats that came in from across Denbighshire. · Concerns were raised about the management of the car parking machines and it was suggested that Wrexham Council take control of them. · The Local Member was given assurance that Officers will look into the issues that he had raised regarding Project one. · Members were assured that the principles of reviewing the management plan for every 5 years was still in place. · The WHS Board had the delegated power to make relevant changes to the management plan on an ongoing basis. · The periodic review was a formal process and Wrexham Council will lead on it. Officers were happy to involve the Members of the Committee. · A Member enquired about the 2019-2029 master plan and its delivery. · A Member requested a site visit to include partners prior to the consideration of the update report to Committee. RESOLVED: (i) That Officers share details of the costs on Project 2, that were attributable to Wrexham (ii) That the Lead Member, Officers and Partner Organisations be thanked for their work in progressing the project to this stage and that the Committee support the future successful delivery of the plan. That an update on Project Delivery be made available to the Committee within 6 months, or no later than July 2024. (iii) That the Committee requests that the Pontcysyllte Management Board provides them with an action plan which underpins the Management Plan. (iv)That a site visit be organised, to include partners, prior to the consideration of the update report by the Committee.
Members were assured that the information regarding the town centre footfall was received from the same company and that the report format was a rebranding derived from that company.
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