Report by Head of Place, Property and Regeneration (attached).

The Committee considered a report by the Head of Place, Property and Regeneration (circulated previously) regarding the Future High Streets Fund: Butchers Row/Cross Street.

The Head of Place, Property and Regeneration highlighted the following:

·       The Future High Street Fund (FHSF) was a central government fund, administered by the Ministry of Housing Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) (now DHLUC) that seeks to support, renew and reshape high streets in a way that drives growth, improves experience and ensures future sustainability.

·       The approved project for FHSF was focusing on 4 interventions: The Pannier Market/Guildhall and Former abattoir, The acquisition and rejuvenation of 36/37a Boutport Street, The access and reconfiguration of Queen Street/Bear Street car park and - Pedestrianisation (10am – 4pm) and public realm improvements to Butchers Row and Cross Street.

·       This report focussed on the intervention at Butchers Row/Cross Street. This was a scheme to pedestrianise Butchers Row and Cross Street between 10am and 4pm and provide an improved public realm through those streets, linking the investment at 36/37 Boutport Street with the riverfront.

·       As one of the four interventions being progressed as part of the Future High Street Fund project, the pedestrianisation of Butchers Row and Cross Street from 10am to 4pm and the public realm improvements were seen as a key enhancement of the town; both to improve the visual amenities of the locality, allow for businesses to spill out onto the street and to connect Boutport Street via the High Street to the river.

·       It was anticipated that the pedestrianisation of Butchers Row and Cross Street would enable people to move freely from Queen Street car park, into the ‘Market Quarter’ and an improved direct pedestrianised route to the river frontage, an underused and neglected part of the town running parallel to the High Street. This would prompt the regeneration of this part of the town by increasing footfall and giving confidence to private sector investors and partners to bring forward the delivery of complementary projects set out in the Vision for Barnstaple. The Council had since been successful with the Cultural Development Fund, which will further enhance this, seeing the refurbishment of Bridge Chambers, an anchor building on the river frontage.

·       A permanent traffic order has been secured for the pedestrianisation of Butchers Row and Cross Street between 10am and 4pm already and this part of the project has been implemented.

·       The design team have produced a design to RIBA Stage 3 for public realm improvements to Butchers Row and Cross Street, which show a level surface across both streets and the interconnecting element of the high street. The current scheme was included as Appendix A to the report.

·       The scheme has had many challenges, not least providing an affordable scheme that minimises maintenance going forward.

·       Iterations of the scheme have been presented to the Barnstaple Regeneration Board, Butchers Row and Cross Street tenants/owners and Devon County Council as Highways Authority and more recently to the local U3A accessibility group and the South West branch of the Royal National Institute for the Blind (RNIB).

·       Feedback from the U3A group was generally positive about the proposals and their feedback was summarised in paragraph 4.8 of the report.

·       The RNIB have, however, raised some significant concerns with this project as detailed in paragraph 4.10 of the report.

·       Since receiving this advice, officer’s invited representation from the RNIB to Barnstaple to consider the scheme and offer any advice as to how it could be improved. This included reviewing the level, shared space on the Strand. They were very helpful and offered feedback but remained fundamentally concerned with the loss of the kerb as a detectable feature separating the footway from the highway particularly outside of the pedestrianised times.

·       The Department for Transport placed a moratorium on shared, level spaces (a shared space is a street or area where people and traffic are not clearly separated) in 2018 whilst they reviewed the safety of this type of scheme but no clear strategy has emerged since. Officers have been working with Devon County Council officers on the principle of level surfaces and their advice was detailed in paragraph 4.12 of the report.

·       Officers have also spoken to colleagues elsewhere who have progressed public realm improvements in similar environments and have delivered 25mm kerb to provide sufficient demarcation, whilst giving the effect of a level surface.

·       The design team working on the Future High Street project have drawn our attention to a judicial review on this matter (from February 2023), challenging minimal kerbs and seeking more substantial kerbs to separate space for different users. Legal advice has been sought as to the implications of the judicial review on any scheme that we bring forward in Butchers Row and Cross Street, and the advice received was detailed in paragraph 4.14 of the report.

·       A shared, level surface offers the opportunity for public realm improvements and for businesses to spill out onto the public realm but whilst the streets are only pedestrianised for part of the day, a level surface presented a number of risks as detailed in paragraph 4.16 of the report.

·       There were a number of options for the Council going forward as detailed in paragraph 4.17 of the report.

In response to questions, the Head of Place, Property and Regeneration advised the following:

·       The current scheme included a detectable kerb, however it was level.  There was no distinction between the pavement and the highway.  This could be amended.

·       Views of the RNIB had been sought regarding tactile paving. Their view was that ordinarily tactile paving was used for crossing points and this would be confusing.

·       There were other level street schemes coming forward elsewhere such as Magdalen Road, Exeter which involved different types of materials to distinguish between pavement and highways.

·       There were a number of options available, however the Council needed to be mindful of the Judicial Review.

·       There had been a number of iterations of the scheme. The heritage led scheme had included a significant number of granite sets.  However, following consultation with the Barnstaple Regeneration Board and the access group, the inclusion of granite sets had been reduced.  The revised scheme now included coloured surfaces. As Butchers Row and Cross Street would not be fully pedestrianised, granite sets had been included at key points as traffic calming measures and to tie in with Paiges Lane and Market Street.

·       Discussions would continue to take place with Devon County Council and the RNIB to get the best solution.  RNIB had provided advice to the Council and ultimately had requested the provision of a kerb which was a safe surface.  Devon County Council had requested details of the scheme and would then work with the Council in relation to adoption.

·       No date had been confirmed for consideration of the guidance but the Judicial Review referenced the end of the year.

In response to questions, the Director of Resources and Deputy Chief Executive advised the following:

·       £1.3m had been included within the budget and had been costed to include increase in price inflation and contingency.  The Council would work within this budget.

·       There were no timelines in terms of the receipt of Government funding as this element of the scheme used North Devon Council funds.

·       It was anticipated that when the Council was at the stage of taking on external borrowing for the scheme that interest rates would potentially be lower.

RESOLVED that the Council Procedure Rules, Part 4 of the Constitution be waived to enable a member of the public to address the Committee.

Mr Burridge (trader) addressed the Committee.

RESOLVED that the Council Procedure Rules, Part 4 of the Constitution be re-instated.

RESOLVED:

(a)  That the complexities of the design of the public realm improvements for Butchers Row/Cross Street and the benefits and risks associated with it be noted;

(b)  That the risks set out in the report be noted;

(c)  That option (d) as detailed in paragraph 4.17 of the report be progressed but alongside (a) noting the preference to design a scheme that doesn’t impose the maintenance liability on the Council but takes into account representations from access groups, while any delay be kept to a minimum.