Agenda item

Report of the Cabinet Member for Economic Development, Culture, Tourism and Wellbeing

The Cabinet Member for Economic Development, Culture, Tourism and Well-being introduced his report, the second stage of a report brought  to Cabinet in July, which aims to tackle the vacant units in the town resulting from changing consumer habits, problems with business rates, and high rents.  It includes an action plan to encourage more residential use of town centre units, extra enforcement against landlords who allow their premises to fall into disrepair, and how to bring empty units into temporary use as community hubs and privately-owned shops.  The planning team will take action to achieve these goals via local and national planning policy.

He thanked officers – Helen Mole, Tracey Birkinshaw, and Heath and his team at Cheltenham BID – for their work on this important report, which can lead to us riding the wave of the change that is overtaking towns and cities across the country in a sustainable and progressive way, and building a more prosperous future for Cheltenham by filling empty spaces with retail, commercial and leisure units and, most critically, new accommodation in sustainable locations.

Before inviting Members to comment, the Leader advised that the live streaming was not working properly and that a recording of the meeting would be posted on the CBC website as soon as possible.

Members thanked and congratulated the Cabinet Member and officers for the report and made the following comments:

-       being within easy walking distance of amenities is the most sustainable way to live, particularly from a climate perspective, and anything that increases the supply of town centre housing is a real bonus;

-       plans for the town centre are key to the council’s regeneration aims;  

-       opportunities for new housing in the town centre has been the council’s direction of travel for some years, but this is often challenging due to absentee landlord and investment companies.  Additional housing adds to the vibrancy and footfall in the town centre, supports local businesses and leisure, and provides affordable housing for people without cars;

-       the old model of towns with separate areas for housing and for work is now out of date, and planning has to catch up with that.  Cheltenham Local Plan policies will shortly be up for review to facilitate the drive towards this kind of change of use and intensification in the town centre, which will not only protect the green spaces preferred by developers but also make town centres more exciting and engaging places to live and work;

-       different pieces of work have been done over the years and Cheltenham has a good record of building on brownfield sites where possible, as well as an above-average shop occupancy but this could change quickly. The comprehensive report and proposed work with stakeholders is welcome.

A Member asked if town centre properties could be transformed into homes for families as well as individuals.  The Cabinet Member for Economic Development, Culture, Tourism and Well-being confirmed that this was information of the town of the future.  He agreed that planning models are outdated, and said that the action plan included points to monitor vacant units, drive the agenda with planning policy, and use the council’s significant powers to nudge things along at local level.

The Leader thanked the Cabinet Member for his report and tenacity in driving this forward, adding that the bottom line is that most empty town centre properties are owned by overseas landlords.

RESOLVED THAT:

     i.        the council will work with stakeholders to deliver the actions identified in the action plan;

    ii.        a report on progress with delivery of the action plan will be presented to Cabinet in summer 2024.