Category Archives: consultation

Cultural Plan meeting – Wed 18 July

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Dear Friends of the Carriageworks

As you know, there is a CAG meeting on Wednesday July 18th at 6pm (latecomers welcome!) at St Paul’s Learning Centre to talk about what we want to see included in the cultural plan for the development.

Jane Willis from Willis Newson and Kim Wide from Take A Part, who have been commissioned by the PG Group to write the plan, will be there to hear what you have to say. They have already spoken to a range of people individually and in small groups, so if you have already seen them, please bear in mind that this evening is a chance for others to be heard.

These are the questions we will be considering

  • Heritage: What aspects of the area’s heritage do we want to see celebrated within the site?
  • Community and Partnerships: How can we create a place that is inclusive and welcoming to all?
  • Enterprise and Market: What will attract businesses to the space and make the market an ongoing success
  • Public Realm: How else would we like to see the space used, in ways that respect the needs of residents and neighbours?

These are big questions and there is never enough time. As usual Lori will try to pick up on everyone there, but all of us cannot realistically expect to talk about every point, so everyone will have a chance to add their thoughts on post-it notes.

If you are unable to come in person please feel free to send your suggestions, ideas and dreams to CAG:  ideas@carriageworks.org.uk and to Jane and Kim at Jane@willisnewson.co.uk or drop in a note to Willis Newson at Utility House, 3 York Court, Upper York Street, Bristol, BS2 8QF. Please try to keep within the framework of the questions. We will also send round a summary of everything we have received on email and at the meeting after the event.

Following this event, there will be an open day running from 2pm-8pm on Wednesday 12th September, venue tbc, when Jane and Kim will share the draft ideas being developed from the consultation process in order to seek further feedback and input before the Cultural Plan is drafted in October.

After the Cultural Plan is agreed, we will be looking at management of the site, but that is for another time and outside the scope of this meeting.

Onwards and upwards!

Best wishes Lori and the liaison group.

Cultural Plan Meeting for Residents – 18 July

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There will be a meeting for residents and others on 18th July 2018, 6-8pm, at St Pauls Learning Centre to contribute to the development of the cultural plan for the Carriageworks.

This meeting was specifically requested at the Community Meeting in June.  Willis Newson, who are writing the cultural plan for the developers, PG Group, have agreed to this special session to allow residents who have not been involved in the consultation to date to have their say.

See you there!

Notes of Community Meeting – 27 November 2017

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34 people inc Bristol Post and c.12 UWE architecture students

Introduction by Lori

Today is a celebration of Comer no longer owning the Carriageworks. To reach this point has taken a collective effort. Over the last 20 years redevelopment schemes have come and gone but the dereliction has continued. CAG was formed in 2011 and since then we have been pushing and pushing. We haven’t stopped and we haven’t let the Council or even Comer stop. We kept going, kept having community meetings, kept up the pressure. Without us it is very likely that proposals would have been dropped maybe when Knightstone withdrew, maybe when compulsory purchase looked harder, maybe when Fifth Capital emerged, or at many other times. Success has come from a combination of many people working together and being stubborn along the way. Together, we did it.

PG Group were invited to this meeting but for many reasons why they couldn’t come. They will definitely be developing the site. This is an opportunity to remind us what they will be building. We will pass on any questions.

Copy of PG Group’s letter to residents available. Sent to households in the streets adjoining the site. A second batch will go to a wider area and to businesses on Stokes Croft. Comments: Kino and Post Office have not had a copy. People took more to distribute themselves.

Site plans were on display. PG will develop as approved so that they don’t have to seek a new permission.

They will start demolishing Westmorland House in January, but we don’t know when (PG may not have a date yet from demolition contractor). They will start building in March / April.

Questions

(CAG will seek answers to all the questions raised and post them on our website)

Q: Will we (Cafe Kino) be able to operate our business while they are demolishing? And when will they tackle the site behind us? Kino have had no feedback from discussions between PG and the landlord. A: This sort of question should be answered on PG’s own website although at the moment there’s very little information.

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Information letter from PG Group to local households

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PG Group have delivered an information letter to every household close to the Carriageworks site.   Key points are:

  • Demolition of Westmorland House (not the Carriageworks) is likely to start in January
  • Construction will start in March / April 2018
  • As the development progresses there will be regular updates on the site hoardings, letters to householders and the PG Group’s project website.

PG Group will be invited to attend CAG’s community meetings in the coming months.

Click to the letter below to open PDF.

Household letter from PG Group 7 November 2017

Notes of Community Meeting, 4 September 2017

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32 people attended including reps of PG Group and their consultants, CAG Liaison Group and residents, businesses and other interested parties. Thangam Debbonaire MP called in briefly before the start.

Order of summary below is rearranged for logic and convenience so may not reflect actual order of the discussions.

Changes to Planning Conditions

A summary of the proposed changes was circulated (click to download pdf). Main focus to date of discussions between CAG Liaison Group and PG Group has been variations to the pre-commencement conditions to the planning permission. Focus is on phasing a complicated set of conditions to allow things to happen in more rational and workable order e.g. allow for demolition of building before carrying out historical investigation below.

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PG Submit Application to Vary Planning Conditions

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On 8 August PG Group submitted an application to vary the conditions attached to the planning permission gained by Fifth Capital in October 2015. The application has to be determined by Tuesday 07 Nov 2017.

The application and supporting documents can be found on the Council’s planning portal. Public comments can be submitted via the portal.

Planning Statement

Bristol based planning consultants CSJ provide the supporting planning statement. To summarise:

  • There are many pre-commencement conditions that have to be dealt with prior to demolition. This impacts on feasibility and deliverarbility of the project.
  • Planning permission expires in July 2018 so there is limited time.
  • Delaying some of the conditions until after demolition will allow for site constraints to be properly assessed, investigative works and preparation of a suitable construction contract.
  • The Carriageworks is unsafe and therefore needs demolition of the rear wall and internal structure (see justification below).

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Community Meeting, Wed 14 June

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You might recall that at the last community meeting in April we heard that there is a Bristol based developer who is likely to take over development of the Carriageworks site from Fifth Capital.  We are not yet able to confirm the identity of that developer. However, we can with an optimistic tap on the keyboard invite you to a Community Meeting on Wednesday 14th June, 6pm at the Kings Centre, King Square.  Further details about the meeting will be published earlier that week but you might want to put the date in your diary – it should be worth coming along!

Lori and the Liaison Group

Trespass Notice Served Against Travellers

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[To comment on this article please click the title above and then go to the ‘reply’ box at the bottom of the page]

On Wednesday 22nd March a Notice of Trespass was posted on the Ashley Road gates to the backland at Westmoreland House / Carriageworks.  Notice of TrespassThe Notice has been served by the site owners, OpecPrime Properties Ltd (sometimes referred to  as Comer Homes). It is dated 17 March.

There will be a hearing to consider the trespass at the County Court, 2 Redcliff St, on Monday 27 March at 2pm.

For many (possibly 10) years the site has been occupied by a group of travellers.  Our understanding has always been that they were on the site with the consent of OpecPrime in order to maintain site security. This followed a number of deaths on the site when people gained unauthorised access to the buildings.

In October 2015 Fifth Capital, which has an option to buy the site from OpecPrime, gained planning permission for the redevelopment of the site. For this to proceed vacant possession will obviously be required. In all of CAG’s contact with the travellers since 2011 they have always accepted that they would eventually need to move, although they were naturally concerned about having sufficient notice to allow them to find move-on sites. Similarly CAG have been anxious to ensure, for reasons of community safety, that there is no break in site security.

On a number of occassions Marc Pennick, the Director of Fifth Capital, has made statements to the effect that he would give the travellers 6 months notice to move (see notes of community meeting, 10 September 2015).

CAG’s formal response to the 2015 planning application (page 6) stated “The travellers living on the site have been involved in CAG since 2011. We understand that Fifth Capital have guaranteed them 6 months notice to find an alternative site. We also understand that it is the Council’s responsibility to help find sites for travellers. We ask the planners to ensure that their colleagues fulfil their commitments to the travellers and find move-on sites within 6 months. The travellers have provided site security for many years. Given the safety issues on the site consideration will have to be given to ensuring ongoing security after the travellers vacate the site.”

The planning permission granted to Fifth Capital states “No development shall take place including any works of demolition until a construction a (sic) method statement in respect of construction environment management plan has been submitted to, and approved in writing by the Local Planning Authority. The approved statement shall be adhered to throughout the construction period. The statement shall provide for…..Procedure for the sensitive relocation of the existing occupants of the site” (page 15).

CAG hopes that at Monday’s Court hearing Fifth Capital’s past commitments to give the travellers 6 months notice to vacate the site will be honoured and that thereafter full site security will be maintained without any break in service.

‘Our responsibility is to demand more’

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The Carriageworks Action Group and our work to bring about the redevelopment of this long derelict site has received a write up in the prestigious Urban Design Journal (issue 140).

ud140_magazine_carriageworks-october-2016The author is Rowan Mackay, a Bristol based urban designer and researcher, who has been tracking our progress for some time.

Rowan sets out the national and local context of dereliction, redevelopment and the difficulties that communites often face in engaging with major proposals.

He sees three key events in the success of CAG’s work to date.

  • Firstly the creation of the Community Vision and CAG’s ability “to communicate technically and knowledgeably, ….to form trusting relationships with major stakeholders and in doing so, to negotiate local interests on an equal footing”.
  • Secondly the Planning Committee’s instruction to Fifth Capital in October 2015 to work with CAG and improve their proposals.
  • And thirdly, the efforts of Fifth Capital to engage with and understand the issues faced by the local community.

The role of the City Council is praised for facilitating the Community Vision,
building the capacity of local representaives on equal terms with major stakeholders, and
pursuing conflict resolution through closer stakeholder partnerships.

But as the article concludes, if we are to secure our rights to the city “it is the responsibility of us all to demand more”. That’s our challenge in the coming months.

http://www.udg.org.uk/publications/journal