Agenda, decisions and minutes

The agenda and reports associated with this minute can be found here.

Please note that if any changes are made to this minute at the point of approval, these will be outlined in the subsequent minute and this document will not be retrospectively altered.

The Convener proposed that the Committee consider items 13.1 (Community Asset Transfer – Tillydrone Library and Family Centre), 14.1 (Aberdeen Winter Event Programme – Exempt Appendix), 14.2 (Unrecoverable Debt – Exempt and Confidential Appendix), 14.3 (Torry Heat Network – Third Progress Report - Exempt Appendices), 14.4 (Queen Street Redevelopment Programme – Update – Exempt Appendix), 14.5 (Aberdeen Hydrogen Hub Programme – Exempt Appendix), 14.6 (Condition and Suitability 3 Year Programme – Exempt Appendices) and 14.7 (New Housing Programme Delivery Update – Exempt Appendices) with the press and public excluded from the meeting.

The Committee resolved:-

in terms of Section 50(A)(4) of the Local Government (Scotland) Act 1973, to exclude the press and public from the meeting during consideration of the above items so as to avoid disclosure of information of the classes described in the following paragraphs of Schedule 7(A) to the Act:- article 31 (paragraphs 6 and 9); articles 32, 34, 36 and 37 (paragraph 8); article 33 (paragraph 6); article 35 (paragraphs 8, 9 and 10) and 38 (paragraphs 8 and 10).

Members were requested to intimate any declarations of interest in respect of the items on today’s agenda, thereafter the following were intimated:-

(1)            the Convener declared an interest in items 9.8 (Update on Spaces for People - Interventions), 11.9 (Queen Street Redevelopment Programme Update) and 14.4 (Queen Street Redevelopment Programme Update  - Exempt Appendix) by virtue of him being a Council appointed Board member of NHS Grampian. He considered that the nature of his interest did not require him to leave the meeting and therefore chose to remain in the meeting for consideration of the item;

(2)            Councillor Yuill declared an interest in item 9.8 (Update on Spaces for People – Interventions) by virtue of him being the Council appointed member of Robert Gordon’s College Board of Governors. He considered that the nature of his interest did not require him to leave the meeting and therefore chose to remain in the meeting for consideration of the item;

(3)            Councillor Laing declared an interest in items 8.1 (Aberdeen Winter Event Programme), 9.3 (External Funding Plan and Town Centre Fund Phase 2), 11.3 (Socio Economic Rescue Plan Update) and 14.1 (Aberdeen Winter Event Programme – Exempt Appendix) by virtue of her being a Council appointed Board member of Aberdeen Inspired. She considered that the nature of her interest required her to leave the meeting and she therefore took no part in the consideration of these items; and

(4)            the Vice Convener declared an interest in items 8.1 (Aberdeen Winter Event Programme), 9.3 (External Funding Plan and Town Centre Fund Phase 2), 11.3 (Socio Economic Rescue Plan Update) and 14.1 (Aberdeen Winter Event Programme – Exempt Appendix) by virtue of him being an employee of Aberdeen Inspired. He considered that the nature of his interest required him to leave the meeting and he therefore took no part in the consideration of these items.

The Committee had before it the minute of its previous meeting of 6 February 2020, for approval.

The Committee resolved:-

to approve the minute as a correct record.

The Committee had before it the Committee Business Planner prepared by the Chief Officer – Governance.

The Committee resolved:-

(i)              to remove item 60 (Building Performance Policy) and item 61 (Energy Plan for Aberdeen) from the planner for the reasons outlined therein;

(ii)            to note the reason for the reporting delay in relation to item 4 (Car Parking Framework), item 6 (Transport Visitor Levy – Engagement and Options), item 7 (Energy Transition Zone – Training and Jobs Plan), item 8 (Proposals for Investment for Works at Riverbank School to Accommodate the Relocation of St. Peter’s School), item 11 (Sustainable Drainage System – Section 7), 12 (Aberdeen City Region Deal – Strategic Transport Appraisal – Initial STAG Appraisal of Regional Transport Projects), item 16 (Strategic Partnership and the Scottish Local Government Pension Scheme), item 18 (Review of School Estate) and item 25 (ACC Business Charter);

(iii)           that in relation to item 14 (Business Case for the refurbishment of Harlaw Road Pavilion), to note that this would be referred to the budget setting process;

(iv)           that in relation to item 15 (Local Authority Bus Services/Controlled Bus Companies), to agree that given that First Bus has indicated it is no longer for sale, instruct the Chief Officer – Strategic Place Planning to report back to the City Growth and Resources Committee in February 2022 with the steps that would be necessary to establish the setting up by the Council of a municipal bus company as part of the Council’s commitment to green energy and net zero and in order to fulfil any obligations under any low emission zone that the Council may wish to implement; and

(v)            to otherwise note the content of the Committee Planner.

The Committee had before it a Notice of Motion in the following terms by the Convener, which was seconded by the Vice Convener:-

(1)      to note with pride that Aberdeen City Council, has been named as the United Kingdom’s Local Authority of the Year 2020 at the MJ Achievement Awards, an outstanding achievement given we were the only Scottish local authority shortlisted and we beat off competition from 6 other local authorities;

(2)      to note the Local Authority of the Year category recognised success across the organisation, including strong performance in major services, innovation, good synergy between the executive and political functions, and sound financial stewardship;

(3)      to note this UK award is a first for Aberdeen City Council since its creation in 1996, under the Local Government etc. Act 1994 and reflects the hard work of the Council since 2012 onwards;

(4)      to note the finalists were selected based on evidence of having delivered meaningful and positive change to the communities they serve;

(5)      to note the judges said the council had “an impressive story to tell in terms of its changing economic context and the bold steps it is taking to deliver an unprecedented transformation of the city through a pioneering capital programme and significant investments in the social and cultural future of its communities.”;

(6)      to note the judges described the Council as bold, brave, impressive and ambitious, commending them on the collaboration between officers and politicians who have worked together and created partnerships, focusing with a clarity of purpose for the sake of the city as a whole;

(7)      to agree that this award is dedicated to all council employees, citizens and businesses in Aberdeen as well as the council’s public, private and voluntary sector partners including the trade unions;

(8)      to agree that this award could not have been achieved without the endeavours of our hardworking council staff, both past and present, and the political foresight of the Administration who have adopted a programme of investing in the people and the place in order to secure Aberdeen’s long-term future prosperity; and

(9)      to agree that an email or letter, if no email is available, be sent from the Co- Leaders of the council to every council employee; recognised trade unions; and the council’s public and private sector partners, thanking them for the part they have played in helping Aberdeen City Council secure the Local Authority of the Year 2020 award; and

(10)    to agree that this motion be referred to the Full Council meeting in December to afford all elected members the opportunity to comment and reflect on this success and the fact that Aberdeen City Council is also the only Scottish finalist in the running for the Council of the Year Award at the LGC National Awards.

Councillor McRae, seconded by Councillor Cameron, moved as an amendment:-

(1)      to note with pride that Aberdeen City Council, has been named as the United Kingdom’s Local Authority of the Year 2020 at the MJ Achievement Awards,  ...  view the full minutes text for item 5.

DECLARATION OF INTEREST

In accordance with article 2 of this minute, the Vice Convener and Councillor Laing withdrew from the meeting prior to consideration of the following item of business. They were substituted by Councillors Houghton and Malik respectively for this item of business only.

Please note that an exempt appendix is located within the Exempt/Confidential Business Section of this agenda.

The Committee had before it a referral from the Strategic Commissioning Committee meeting of 27 August 2020, relating to the Christmas Village for 2020.

The Strategic Commissioning Committeeresolved:-

that due to issues relating to Covid-19, Committee recommend to the City Growth and Resources Committee that Council no longer proceeds with a Christmas Village for 2020 as planned, and instructs the Chief Officer – City Growth to work with Aberdeen Inspired and other stakeholders to consider alternative uses for the funding budgeted to support the city centre at Christmas and report back to City Growth and Resources Committee.

In this regard, the Committee had before it a report by the Chief Officer – City Growth which sought approval to cancel elements of Aberdeen’s winter event programme, due to the impact of Covid-19; and to approve the repurposing of the funding budgeted for the 2020 Christmas Village to support the city centre at Christmas.

The report recommended:-

that the Committee –

(a)            instruct the Chief Officer, City Growth to cancel the 2020 Christmas Village, Carol Concerts, Nativity Service, and Aberdeen’s Hogmanay celebrations, due to the impact of Covid-19; and

(b)            approve the revised proposals to the Christmas Village at paragraph 4 of this report and instructs the Chief Officer - City Growth to implement them.

The Committee resolved:-

(i)       to approve recommendation (a);

(ii)       to approve the revised proposals to the Christmas Village at paragraph 4 of this report and instruct the Chief Officer - City Growth to implement them in consultation with Councillor Boulton;

(iii)      to agree that due to the impact of Covid-19 instructs the Chief Officer - City Growth in consultation with Councillor Boulton to set aside £30,000 from the monies allocated for the Winter Festival to be allocated to Community Groups to help them decorate their communities for the festive season including lights, trees, decorations and other festive related fixtures, up to a maximum of £3000, for their communities especially children and the elderly. To ensure compliance with covid regulations, funding for social gatherings will be excluded. The scheme will see applications received over a period of no more than 10 days and the final distribution of funds will be proportionate to the applications received to ensure the maximum sum for the scheme is not exceeded; and

(iv)      to agree to provide a grant of £7,500 to both the Northsound Cash for Kids and Original 106 Christmas Appeal to help the most disadvantaged in our communities.

The Committee had before it a report by the Chief Officer – Governance which

presented the annual report of the City Growth and Resources Committee to enable Members to provide comment on the data contained within.

The report recommended:-

that the Committee –

(a)      provide comments and observations on the data contained within the annual report; and

(b)      note the annual report of the City Growth and Resources Committee.

The Committee resolved:-

(i)       to thank all employees of the Council who have contributed to the excellent work which has flowed from the decisions of the City Growth and Resources Committee including the well-deserved awards noted at (ii) and (iii) below;

(ii)       to note the annual effectiveness reports were mentioned by CIPFA in their recent report which awarded the Mark of Excellence in Governance accreditation to Aberdeen City Council. CIPFA highlighted the implementation of the annual effectiveness reports as a matter of good practice in governance;

(iii)      to note, Committee Services won SOLAR Administration Team of the Year 2020 in March 2020 in recognition of the introduction of the annual committee effectiveness reports and the process which allows Committees to examine how they can improve the way they do business while providing assurance that they are undertaking their role effectively;

(iv)           to agree next year’s focus as laid out on page 9 of appendix 1 of the report; and

(v)      to otherwise approve recommendation (b).

The Committee had before it a report by the Director of Resources, which provided the financial position of the Council as at Quarter 2 (30 September 2020) and the full year forecast position for the financial year 2020/21, including:-

·       General Fund and Housing Revenue Account (HRA) and capital accounts; and

·       Associated Balance Sheet; and Common Good revenue account and Balance Sheet.

The report recommended:-

that the Committee –

(a)      note the positive cash position that has been achieved for the General Fund and HRA to the end of Quarter 2 as detailed in Appendix 1;

(b)      note the Common Good financial performance to the end of Quarter 2 as detailed in Appendix 3;

(c)      consider the General Fund position and agree on the actions to be taken to address the projected deficit as detailed in Appendix 2, making reference to the options available at paragraph 3.27, and lack of clarity on the value of income that may be receivable through the Income Loss Scheme;

(d)      note that the revenue budget for the HRA is on target to achieve the approved budget, making a contribution to HRA reserves for 2020/21 as detailed in Appendix 2;

(e)      note that the budget for the Common Good will be exceeded following additional contributions approved by the Urgent Business Committees on 6 May and 30 June 2020. Noting that cash balances forecast for the year remain in line with recommended levels, detailed in Appendix 2; and

(f)       note that the capital expenditure for the General Fund will be lower than budgeted as a result of capital works being closed over the lockdown period of the Covid -19 pandemic. This will result in project budgets being carried forward into 2021/22; and it is estimated that expenditure on the Housing Capital programme will also be lower than budget also due to sites being closed, as detailed in Appendix 2.

The Committee resolved:-

(i)              to approve recommendations (a), (b), (d), (e) and (f);

(ii)            to note paragraphs 3.23, 3.24 and 3.25 of the report, agreeing that Aberdeen City has to date received a smaller proportion of the distributed funding than it has identified it needs. There should be fairness in the distribution of funds, so in the event that the full financial impact of the pandemic is not funded by Scottish Government, each council receives the same proportion of their losses, rather than creating an environment of winners and losers. The development of the income loss scheme adds more complexity and with the situational changes and fluid nature of the forecasts, as exemplified in the report, mean that an overall position for councils will not actually be known until the end of the financial year. But that is too late. Therefore, instruct the Chief Officer - Finance to bring forward and set out as part of his quarter 3 report the opinions detailed at 3.26 of the report in order for the council to close the deficit, thus allowing the Committee to determine its preferred option  ...  view the full minutes text for item 8.

The Committee had before it a report by the Director of Resources, which (1) outlined all known factors affecting the financial position and financial sustainability of an organisation over the medium term; (2) drew out the scenarios that the Council faced; and (3) described the approach to address the conclusions.

The report recommended:-

that the Committee –

(a)      approve the Medium Term Financial Strategy for the General Fund as outlined in Appendix 1;

(b)      note that the 2021/22 Budget will be discussed by the Council on 2 March 2021; and

(c)      instruct that the Chief Officer – Finance consider how the Council could develop its financial resilience with reference to the Cipfa Financial Resilience Index, reporting back as part of the budget setting process.

The Committee resolved:-

(i)              to approve the Medium Term Financial Strategy for the General Fund as outlined in Appendix 1; noting 2.4.6, 2.4.8, 2.4.11 and 6.32 from the appendix; and

(ii)            to otherwise approve recommendation (b) and (c).

DECLARATION OF INTEREST

In accordance with article 2 of this minute, the Vice Convener and Councillor Laing withdrew from the meeting prior to consideration of the following item of business. They were substituted by Councillors Houghton and Malik respectively for this item of business only.

With reference to article 16 of the minute of the previous meeting of 6 February 2020, the Committee had before it a report by the Chief Officer – City Growth which provided an update on the external funding priorities for the year ahead and sought approval of the proposed allocation of phase 2 Town Centre Fund to the proposed projects.

The report recommended:-

that the Committee –

(a)      approve the External Funding Plan included at section 4;

(b)      approve the allocation of an additional £77,295 to the Queen Street Demolition (29-31 Queen Street) project;

(c)      approve the allocation of £48,623 to the Belmont Filmhouse Project;

(d)      approve the allocation of £300,000 to the Intelligent Street Lighting project phase 3;

(e)      approve in principle support for the acquisition of the University of Aberdeen Surface car park on Queen Street, without allocation of funding at this time; and

(f)       agree that remaining funds of £58,082 be allocated to any additional costs for existing projects and then to the Queen Street land acquisition.

The Committee resolved:-

(i)              to approve recommendations; and

(ii)            to instruct the Chief Officer – City Growth to report back to the meeting of this Committee on 3 February 2021 with a progress report of allocated projects and to inform the Committee of any uncommitted funding and options of how this may be distributed.

Please note that an exempt and confidential appendix is located within the Exempt/Confidential Business Section of this agenda.

The Committee had before it a report by the Director of Customer Services, which provided details of the numbers and values of Council Tax, Non-Domestic Rates, Housing Benefit Overpayments and Council house rent debts made unrecoverable during 2019/20 as required in terms of Financial Regulations.

The report recommended:-

that the Committee approve the listing of the Non-Domestic Rates debts in excess of £25,000 shown in Appendix 4 as unrecoverable and instruct the Chief Officer – Customer to write them off.

The Committee resolved:-

to approve the recommendation.

The Committee had before it a report by the Chief Operating Officer which provided information on the outcome of negotiations with Transport Scotland and the financial settlement achieved for investment in the de-trunked sections of the A92 and A96.

The report recommended:-

that the Committee –

(a)            note the funding being awarded by Transport Scotland for the work required to be carried out on the detrunked section of road as of 1st April 2019. (See Appendix A of the report);

(b)            delegate authority to the Chief Officer – Operations and Protective Services to accept the current agreed figures with Transport Scotland; and

(c)            instruct the Chief Officer – Operations and Protective Services to add the agreed repairs to our current works programme and implement the required repairs in order to maintain these roads to the required standards.

The Committee resolved:-

to approve the recommendations.

With reference to article 16 of the minute of meeting of 26 September 2019, the Committee had before it a report by the Chief Officer – Strategic Place Planning which sought approval of the Strategic Housing Investment Plan (SHIP) for the period 2021/22– 2025/26, which is due to be submitted to the Scottish Government by 30 October 2020.

The report recommended:-

that the Committee approve the SHIP and its submission to the Scottish Government.

The Committee resolved:-

(i)       to approve the recommendation; and

(ii)       to request that officers send to Councillor McLellan, details on the numbers of the Council’s new build social rented homes which have been allocated to those leaving the armed forces.

With reference to article 10 of the minute of meeting of 26 September 2019, the Committee had before it a report by the Chief Officer – Strategic Place Planning which provided an update on the Aberdeen City affordable housing delivery programme.

The report recommended:-

that the Committee - 

(a)      approve the allocation of the Section 75 and Council Tax monies detailed at section 3.4 of the report for the future delivery of affordable housing;

(b)      approve the allocation of Council Tax monies detailed at 3.4 of the report to fund the post of Empty Homes Officer from 16 January 2021; and

(c)      approve the allocation of the Affordable Housing Supply Grant to Registered Social Landlords detailed at section 3.5 of the report for the future delivery of affordable housing.

The Committee resolved:-

to approve the recommendations.

With reference to article 10 of the minute of meeting of the Urgent Business Committee of 30 June 2020, the Committee had before it a report by the Chief Officer – Strategic Place Planning which provided an update on the temporary urban realm works completed to date through Spaces for People in relation to the Council’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The report recommended:-

that the Committee –

(a)      instruct the Chief Officer – Strategic Place Planning to monitor the current interventions and report the findings back to the 3 February 2021 City Growth and Resources Committee including any implications for ongoing capital works or corridor studies;

(b)      instruct the Chief Officer – Strategic Place Planning to write to SUSTRANS/Transport Scotland to seek clarification on the date by which the funding must be spent, in the context that National Health Services (NHS), Scottish and UK Governments advice suggests that the current pandemic conditions are likely to remain in place throughout the winter, and report back to the 3 February 2021 City Growth and Resources Committee for direction on the removal of the interventions;

(c)      instruct the Chief Officer – Strategic Place Planning to work with SUSTRANS on SUSTRANS request to undertake a case study of the works undertaken in Aberdeen including the parklets and bus stops for the benefit of other local authorities throughout the UK; and

(d)      note that, as detailed in Appendices 4 and 5 of the report, further ongoing engagement with stakeholders has continued throughout which has led to some refinement of the original intervention proposals.

The Committee resolved:-

(i)              to note it is now seven months since COVID-19 was first detected in Scotland;

(ii)            to note Council mobilised to deliver new and existing services for our communities and people particularly at-risk;

(iii)           to agree COVID-19 threatens health and life, but also how we live our lives, and the Council working with the UK and Scottish Governments are committed to suppressing the virus to the lowest possible level, and keeping it there, until the virus is no longer the threat it is now;

(iv)           to note on the 25 May 2020 the Chief Planner and the Minister for Local Government, Housing and Planning, Kevin Stewart MSP wrote to local planning authorities encouraging them to take a; “supportive, pragmatic and flexible approach to temporary developments and changes of use which would enable businesses to diversify or adjust the way they operate as the lockdown eases and many people can get back to work.”;

(v)            to note 3.26 of the report “It is therefore proposed that the programme of works will be further monitored over the coming months and a further report will be brought to the City Growth and Resources Committee on 3 February 2021 for the committee to make a decision on the how they wish the programme to proceed. In drafting the report, NHS Grampian’s Director of Public Health will be consulted in order to establish the level of transmission of the  ...  view the full minutes text for item 15.

Please note that exempt appendices are located within the Exempt/ Confidential Business Section of this agenda.

With reference to article 13 of the minute of meeting of Council of 4 March 2019, the Committee had before it a joint report by the Chief Officer – Strategic Place Planning, Chief Officer – Capital and the Chief Officer - Operations and Protective Services which provided an update on the progress made with this project.

The report recommended:-

that the Committee –

(a)      approve the proposed amended scope for this phase of this project;

(b)      approve the acceptance of a Low Carbon Infrastructure Programme Grant from the Scottish Government;

(c)      approve the carry forward of any portion of the General Fund Capital budget for the project, not required for this phase of works, so that it can be used as match-funding against a future grant application;

(d)      approve the Council entering into a twenty year Heat Offtake agreement with the EfW operating company which follows the principles set out in appendix 10.3, and approves the estimated annual expenditure associated therewith set out in appendix 10.1 of the report; and

(e)      approve the recommendations contained within section 3.2 of this report with regard to the upgrading and usage of the Council’s assets, property and estates.

The Committee resolved:-

(i)       to approve the recommendations; and

(ii)       to note that the Director of Resources would clarify the position in relation to the Deeside Family Centre in terms of the project and circulate details to the Committee in this regard.

With reference to article 7 of the minute of the previous meeting of 6 February 2020, the Committee had before it a report by the Director of Customer Services which provided details on the status of key performance measures relating to City Growth and Resources cluster activities.

The report recommended:-

That the Committee note the report and provide comments and observations on the performance information contained in the report Appendix.

The Committee resolved:-

to approve the recommendation.

With reference to article 11 of the minute of meeting of 27 November 2018, the Committee had before it a report by the Chief Officer – Strategic Place Planning which sought approval of the statutory Climate Change Report (CCR) 2019/2020, for submission to the Scottish Government, to ensure compliance with the requirements of Part 4 of the Climate Change (Scotland) Act 2009 and to indicate the options for Carbon Budgeting in Appendix 4. The CCR covered the financial year 2019/2020.

The report recommended:-

that the Committee approve the statutory Climate Change Report 2019/2020 with a requirement for the Chief Executive Officer to sign off and instruct the Chief Officer – Strategic Place Planning to publish the CCR on Aberdeen City Council’s website and subsequently submit to the Scottish Government by the 30 November 2020.

The Committee resolved:-

to approve the recommendation.

The Committee had before it a report by the Chief Officer – City Growth which provided an update on the impact that Covid-19 has had on the 2021 Tour of Britain and sought additional approval for the city to host the Grand Depart of the Tour of Britain in 2022.

The report recommended:-

that the Committee –

(a)      instruct the Head of Commercial and Procurement, following consultation with the Chief Officer - Finance and Chief Officer – City Growth, to vary the current contract to reflect that the City will now host the Final Stage of the Tour Britain in 2021 and the Grand Depart in 2022, subject to similar agreement being made by Aberdeenshire Council, and funding being secured by SweetSpot from EventScotland; and

(b)      agree to underwrite the cost of the events up to a maximum of £135,000 per annum, subject to the same agreement being made by Aberdeenshire Council and funding being secured by Sweetspot from EventScotland.

The Committee resolved:-

to approve the recommendations.

With reference to article 14 of the minute of the previous meeting of 6 February 2020, the Committee had before it a report by the Chief Officer – City Growth which outlined recent developments that have impacted on Low Emission Zone (LEZ) planning, particularly officers’ ability to comply with the instructions of the February 2020, City Growth and Resources Committee, and the Scottish Government’s revised timetable for the introduction of LEZs in Scotland.

The report recommended:-

that the Committee –

(a)      agree that it is no longer necessary or appropriate to pursue a Traffic Regulation Condition (TRC) as Phase 1 of Aberdeen’s LEZ in 2020; and

(b)      instruct the Chief Officer – Strategic Place Planning to report the outcomes of traffic modelling and engagement exercises to this Committee in June 2021.

The Committee resolved:-

to approve the recommendations.

DECLARATION OF INTEREST

In accordance with article 2 of this minute, the Vice Convener and Councillor Laing withdrew from the meeting prior to consideration of the following item of business. They were substituted by Councillors Houghton and Malik respectively for this item of business only.

Please note that a promotional video will be shown prior to consideration of this item.

The Convener advised that due to the pre-election period for the Kincorth/Nigg/Cove By-Election, the promotional video which was due to be shown prior to consideration of this item, will now be shown at the Council meeting in December 2020.

With reference to article 11 of the minute of meeting of the Urgent Business Committee on 30 June 2020, the Committee had before it a report by the Chief Officer – City Growth which provided an update on the progress towards delivery of the Socio-Economic Rescue Plan 2020/21.

The report recommended:-

that the Committee –

(a)      note that the Socio-Economic Rescue Plan is in implementation phase and the updates on progress provided via the progress tracker (Appendix 1);

(b)      note the additional three interventions added to the Plan to support Actions 1.5, 2.4 and 2.5 (Business Theme) and Action 3.1 (Place Theme) to support the tourism, leisure and hospitality sector which will be met from the existing approved budget; and

(c)      note the proposed closing date for the Hospitality Business Support Fund.

The Convener, seconded by Councillor Malik moved the following motion:-

           that the Committee –

(1)    approve the recommendations;

(2)    note the reported drastic drop in employment vacancies available in Aberdeen;

(3)    regret the Scottish Government’s obsession with independence as opposed to helping Scotland with an economic exit strategy from Covid; and

(4)    instruct the Chief - Officer City Growth to engage with business leaders within the city to set up a task force from the Business Resilience Group set up in the immediate response to Covid-19 led by Aberdeen City Council as part of the Social Economic Rescue work, to work with both the UK Government and Scottish Government to ensure Aberdeen is the vanguard that leads Scotland out of its economic challenges.

Councillor McRae, seconded by Councillor Cameron moved as an amendment:-

           that the Committee –

(1)    approve the recommendations;

(2)    note the reported drastic drop in employment vacancies available in Aberdeen; and

(3)    instruct the Chief - Officer City Growth to engage with business leaders within the city to set up a task force from the Business Resilience Group set up in the immediate response to Covid-19 led by Aberdeen City Council as part of the Social Economic Rescue work, to work with both the UK Government and Scottish Government to ensure Aberdeen is the vanguard that leads Scotland out of its economic challenges.

Councillor Yuill, moved a further amendment:-

that the Committee –

(1)    approve the recommendations;

(2)    note the reported drastic drop in employment vacancies available in Aberdeen;

(3)    regret the Scottish Government’s obsession with independence and the UK Government’s obsession with Brexit as opposed to helping Scotland with an economic exit strategy from Covid; and

(4)    instruct the Chief - Officer City Growth to engage with business leaders within the city to set up a task force from the Business Resilience Group set up in the immediate response to Covid-19 led by Aberdeen City Council as part of the Social  ...  view the full minutes text for item 21.

With reference to article 16 of the minute of meeting of the Urgent Business Committee of 30 June 2020, the Committee had before it a report by the Chief Officer – City Growth which provided an update on progress by Aberdeen Harbour Board (AHB) in delivering the Aberdeen Harbour South Expansion (AHSE) project.

The report recommended:-

that the Committee –

(a)      note the progress made by AHB in delivering the Project;

(b)      instruct the Chief Officer – City Growth to report progress updates to the Aberdeen City Region Deal Joint Committee with Service Updates circulated to this Committee as and when necessary; and

(c)      note that AHB will give a presentation on the progress of the project to the Aberdeen City Region Deal Joint Committee on Friday, 13 November 2020.

The Committee resolved:-

to approve the recommendations.

The Committee had before it a report by the Chief Officer – Strategic Place Planning, which provided information on the outcomes of the Bridge of Dee West Active Travel Corridor study and sought approval to undertake preliminary and detailed design works for Phase 1 – connecting Robert Gordon University (RGU) to Deeside Way as the next stage as detailed in the appendices.

The report recommended:-

that the Committee –

(a)        agree the outcomes of the options appraisal study as detailed in the appendices;

(b)        instruct the Chief Officer – Strategic Place Planning to undertake preliminary and detailed design of Phase 1 – connecting RGU to Deeside Way as the next stage of the project;

(c)        instruct the Chief Officer – Strategic Place Planning to explore any opportunities to link this study with the Bridge of Dee – River Crossing Capacity Study, including public and development led funding opportunities; and

(d)        note that these active travel proposals help to support the Council’s ambitious Net Zero carbon plans for Aberdeen.

The Committee resolved:-

to approve the recommendations.

The Committee had before it a report by the Chief Officer – Strategic Place Planning which provided information on the outcomes of the Bridge of Don to City Centre Active Travel Corridor study, and sought to approve the preferred routes and further work to develop the interventions as detailed in the appendices.

The report recommended:-

that the Committee –

(a)      agree that the 11 packages of preferred options described in the Executive Summary (Appendix A) all have merit in contributing to a cohesive network of active travel routes across the north of the City to the City Centre, with options 4, 5, 6, 10 and 11 providing the most benefit;

(b)      agree that Options 4 (Golf Road/ Park Road) and 6 (King Street) are now included within the ongoing Ellon to Garthdee Multi Modal Study which will be reported to Committee next year;

(c)      agree that Option 5 (Industrial Estate to City Centre via Esplanade) preliminary design is to be taken forward following monitoring and evaluation of the temporary works on the Beach Esplanade and Beach Boulevard and reported back to Committee in due course;

(d)      agree that Options 10 (Whitestripes to City Centre) and 11 (Haudagain to City Centre) are now included within the A96 Corridor Multi Modal Study which is currently underway and will be reported to Committee next year;

(e)      agree that work to design the remaining options is included in the forthcoming revised Active Travel Action plan for future prioritisation and will take into account performance and usage of any temporary active travel interventions; and

(f)       note that these active travel proposals help to support the Council’s ambitious Net Zero carbon plans for Aberdeen.

The Committee resolved:-

to approve the recommendations.

The Committee had before it a report by the Chief Officer – Strategic Place Planning which outlined the outcomes of a study into options for improved transport connections (particularly active travel and public transport connections) between Aberdeen city centre and Westhill and sought approval

to proceed to the development of the Outline Business Case for the recommended interventions.

The report recommended:-

that the Committee –

(a)            agree the findings of the recently completed study into options for improved transport connections between Westhill and Aberdeen and the incremental approach to the delivery of active and sustainable travel improvements in the study area;

(b)            instruct the Chief Officer – Strategic Place Planning to develop a programme for the delivery of the Low Delivery Package measures, subject to available funding, as detailed in the Action Plan at Appendix 1 and report these back to City Growth and Resources committee for approval;

(c)            instruct the Chief Officer – Strategic Place Planning to develop the Outline Business Case for the Medium/High Delivery Package measures as detailed in the Action Plan at Appendix 1, subject to available funding;

(d)            note the High/Gold Delivery Package of measures as detailed in the Action plan at Appendix 1 for future consideration;

(e)            instruct the Chief Officer – Strategic Place Planning to continue to work with partners to maximise external funding to assist with the delivery of these active and sustainable travel measures; and

(f)             note that these active travel proposals help to support the Council’s ambitious Net Zero carbon plans for Aberdeen.

The Committee resolved:-

to approve the recommendations, subject to adding the wording ‘and report back to the Committee in Summer 2021’ to the end of recommendation (c).

With reference to article 15 of the minute of meeting of 26 September 2019, the Committee had before it a report by the Chief Officer – Strategic Place Planning which sought approval to submit the Council’s response to the draft Regional Transport Strategy and draft City Region Deal Strategic Transport Appraisal consultations.

The report recommended:-

that the Committee –

(a)            approve the proposed responses to the draft Regional Transport Strategy contained within Appendices C and E of the report; 

(b)            approve the proposed response to the draft City Region Deal Strategic Transport Appraisal Preliminary Options Appraisal contained within Appendix D of the report; and

(c)            instruct the Chief Officer – Strategic Place Planning to submit these responses to NESTRANS.

The Committee resolved:-

to approve the recommendations.

Please note that an exempt appendix is located within the Exempt/Confidential Business Section of this agenda.

With reference to article 9 of the minute of meeting of 5 December 2019, the Committee had before it a report by the Director of Resources which provided an update on progress of the redevelopment of Queen Street, and sought approval to progress with further land assembly and other workstreams.

The report recommended:-

that the Committee –

Queen Street Redevelopment:-

(a)            approve the acquisition of the Police Scotland Headquarters on the main terms outlined in section 3.7.3 of the report;

(b)            instruct the Chief Officer – Governance to conclude the appropriate legal agreement in relation to the Police Scotland Headquarters purchase, incorporating various qualifications as are necessary to protect the Council’s interest;

(c)            instruct the Chief Officer – Corporate Landlord to negotiate the acquisition of remaining land parcels as identified in the report;

(d)            instruct the Director of Resources to procure a development partner to develop options for the redevelopment of the area and report the results back to this Committee; and

(e)            instruct the Director of Resources to develop a project proposal with the Scottish Courts and Tribunal Services and report the results back to this Committee; and

North East Scotland and Northern Isles Integrated Mortuary:-

(f)              note the progress of the Full Business Case, the results of which will be reported to the City Growth and Resources Committee on 3 February 2021.

The Committee resolved:-

to approve the recommendations.

Please note that an exempt appendix is located within the Exempt/Confidential Business Section of this agenda.

With reference to article 13 of the minute of meeting of the Strategic Commissioning Committee of 27 August 2020, the Committee had before it a report by the Chief Officer – City Growth, which provided an update on the proposed Aberdeen Hydrogen Hub programme and the initial workstreams to deliver it.

The report recommended:-

that the Committee –

(a)            note that the Scottish Government’s Energy Transition Fund has allocated up to £15m of funding to support the delivery of the Aberdeen Hydrogen Hub Phase One outputs, subject to the Scottish Government’s approval of an ‘Outline Business Case’ submitted in September 2020;

(b)            approve the programme of work for the Aberdeen Hydrogen Hub - Phase One outlined in Appendix One;

(c)            authorise Chief Officer – City Growth following consultation with the Head of Commercial and Procurement Services to spend the funding in accordance with all grant and funding agreement conditions and the Council’s procurement procedures;

(d)            approve the expenditure to purchase 10 hydrogen fuel cell buses through the FCH JU JIVE project, subject to confirmation of Scottish Government funding through the Energy Transition Fund and in line with Council’s existing budgetary commitment from the General Fund Capital programme;

(e)            authorise the Chief Officer - City Growth and the Chief Officer – Operations and Protective Services following consultation with the Head of Commercial and Procurement Services to undertake a procurement exercise and award a tender to establish Joint Hydrogen Vehicle Procurement Frameworks working with other north east Scotland authorities and public sector bodies;

(f)              authorise the Chief Officer – City Growth following consultation with Head of Commercial and Procurement Services and Chief Officer – Governance to undertake a procurement exercise and award for the commission of works to adapt existing hydrogen refuelling facilities to receive hydrogen from an external supply;

(g)            instruct the Chief Officer – City Growth following consultation with the Chief Officer – Finance, Head of Commercial and Procurement Services and the Chief Officer – Governance to identify the optimum investment and delivery model for the production, storage and distribution of renewable hydrogen for Aberdeen, and report back to this Committee with the results of that appraisal;

(h)            authorise the Chief Officer – City Growth in consultation with the Head of Commercial and Procurement Services to undertake a procurement exercise for external consultancy and technical advice to determine the optimum investment and delivery model;

(i)              authorise the Chief Officer – City Growth in consultation with the Head of Commercial and Procurement Services to undertake a procurement exercise for feasibility studies outlined in this report into future applications of fuel produced by the Hydrogen Hub; and

(j)              note that Aberdeen City Council has been awarded JIVE Bus fuel funding from the Scottish Government’s Air Quality Action Plan Grant 2020/21 and authorise the Chief Officer – City Growth to spend the funding in accordance with the grant conditions and the Council’s procurement procedures.

The Committee resolved:-

to approve the recommendations.

Please note that exempt appendices are located within the Exempt/Confidential Business Section of this agenda.

With reference to article 13 of the minute of meeting of 26 September 2019, the Committee had before it a report by the Chief Officer - Corporate Landlord, which sought approval of an updated 3-year Condition and Suitability (C&S) Programme.

The report recommended:-

that the Committee –

(a)            note the projects completed or legally committed to date in 2020/21 as shown in Appendix A of the report;

(b)            note the currently approved projects and approves the amended estimated budgets for each project as shown in Appendix B of the report;

(c)            approve the new Condition & Suitability Programme projects listed in Appendix C of the report for inclusion in the 3-year Condition & Suitability Programme and approves the estimated budget for each project and delegates authority to the Chief Officer - Capital, following consultation with the Head of Commercial and Procurement Services, to consider and approve procurement business cases for each of these projects for the purposes of Procurement Regulation 4.1.1.2; and thereafter to procure appropriate works and services, and enter into any contracts necessary for the projects without the need for further approval from any other Committee of the Council;

(d)            approve the removal of the projects listed in Appendix D of the report; and

(e)            delegate authority to the Chief Officer - Corporate Landlord, following consultation with the Capital Board and the Convener and Vice-Convener of this Committee, to amend the C&S Programme should priorities change due to unforeseen circumstances during the year, with such changes to be reported retrospectively to the Committee.

The Committee resolved:-

to approve the recommendations.

Please note that exempt appendices are located within the Exempt/Confidential Business Section of this agenda.

With reference to article 4 of the minute of meeting of the Council of 5 March 2019, the Committee had before it a report which provided an update on the progress of works being undertaken as part of Aberdeen City Council’s directly delivered new build Council housing sites and developer led schemes of building 2,000 new homes.

The report recommended:-

that the Committee –

(a)            instruct the Chief Officer – Capital to proceed with the 3 developer led sites contained within the report to preferred bidder status to deliver 723 units (refer to Appendix 1);

(b)            agree the Director of Resources continues to progress the sites contained within Appendix 2 subject to them meeting the technical standards approved by this Committee in February 2020 as well as the financial assessment demonstrating their affordability;

(c)            instruct the Chief Officer – Corporate Landlord to hold a further “market warming” event with developers and the housing construction industry;

(d)            instruct the Chief Officer – Corporate Landlord, in conjunction with the Chief Officer – Commercial and Procurement, to run a further procurement process to acquire developer led sites within the city;

(e)            approve the site at Granitehill be marketed as a Council house site after due diligence with regard to governance, technical, legal and financial viability, and

(f)              instruct the Chief Officer – Corporate Landlord in conjunction with the Chief Officer - Early Intervention and Community Empowerment to ensure that the delivery of all the units is phased over a period of time and ensure they are let efficiently.

The Committee resolved:-

to approve the recommendations.

In accordance with the decision recorded under article 1 of this minute, the following items of business were considered with the press and public excluded.

DECLARATION OF INTEREST

At this juncture, Councillor McLellan declared an interest in the following item by virtue of him being a member of the Community Asset Transfer Sub Committee. He considered that the nature of his interest required him to leave the meeting and he therefore took no part in the consideration of this item. Councillor Cooke substituted Councillor McLennan for this item of business only.

With reference to article 24 of the minute of the previous meeting of 6 February 2020, the Committee had before it a report by the Chief Officer – Corporate Landlord which provided an update on the outcome of the assessment of the asset transfer request submitted by the Lighthouse Support Centre (LSC) for the Tillydrone Library and Family Centre taking into account the additional time that LSC was given to carry out further community engagement.

The report recommended:-

that the Committee –

(a)            approve the recommendation to proceed with the Community Asset Transfer of the Former Tillydrone Library and Family Centre; and

(b)            instruct the Chief Officer – Governance to conclude missives for the sale of the former library and family centre incorporating various qualifications as are necessary to protect the Council’s interests.

The Committee resolved:-

to approve the recommendations.

DECLARATION OF INTEREST

In accordance with article 2 of this minute, the Vice Convener and Councillor Laing withdrew from the meeting prior to consideration of the following item of business. They were substituted by Councillors Houghton and Malik respectively for this item of business only.

The Committee had before it an exempt appendix relating to the ‘Aberdeen’s Winter Event Programme’ report. (Article 6 of this minute refers).

The Committee resolved:-

to note the details contained within the exempt appendix.

The Committee had before it an exempt and confidential appendix relating to the Unrecoverable Debt report. (Article 11 of this minute refers).

The Committee resolved:-

to note the information contained within the exempt and confidential appendix.

The Committee had before it exempt appendices relating to Torry Heat Network – Third Progress report. (Article 16 of this minute refers).

The Committee resolved:-

to note the details contained within the exempt appendices.

The Committee had before it an exempt appendix relating to the Aberdeen Hydrogen Hub Programme report. (Article 28 of this minute refers).

The Committee resolved:-

to note the details contained within the exempt appendix.

The Committee had before it exempt appendices relating to the Condition and Suirability 3 Year Programme report. (Article 29 of this minute refers).

The Committee resolved:-

to note the details contained within the exempt appendices.

The Committee had before it exempt appendices relating to the New Housing Programme Delivery Update report. (Article 30 of this minute refers).

The Committee resolved:-

to note the details contained within the exempt appendices.

-         COUNCILLOR DOUGLAS LUMSDEN, Convener

The Committee had before it an exempt appendix relating to the Queen Street Redevelopment Programme Update report. (Article 27 of this minute refers).

The Committee resolved:-

to note the details contained within the exempt appendix.