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.

At this juncture, Councillor Malik moved as a procedural motion, seconded by Councillor Macdonald:-

That the Committee refer item 9.7 (City Centre Six Monthly Update – Streetscape Programme) simpliciter to Council to comply with Councillor Hutchison’s agreed motion in 2021 where all matters relating to the City Centre Master Plan are agreed at Council.

On a division, there voted:- for the procedural motion (5) – Councillors Farquhar, Massey, Macdonald, Malik and Watson; against the procedural motion (8) – the Convener, the Vice Convener and Councillors Allard, Cooke, Fairfull, Greig, Hutchison and Radley.

The Committee resolved:-

to reject the procedural motion.

The Convener proposed that the Committee consider item 13.1 (Union Street Partnership Ltd), item 14.1 (Workplan and Business Cases - Exempt Appendices), item 14.2 (Craighill and Kincorth Housing Delivery - Exempt Appendices) and item 14.3 (Cruyff Court Tillydrone Update - Exempt Appendix) with the press and public excluded from the meeting.

The Committee resolved:-

in terms of Section 50A(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 8 of the minute of the adjourned meeting of 6 July 2023 (paragraph 6), articles 19, 20 and 21 of this minute (paragraph 8).

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

(1)      the Vice Convener advised that he had a connection in relation to agenda item 9.4 (Union Street Empty Shops Grant Scheme) and 13.1 (Union Street Partnership Ltd) by virtue of him being a volunteer on Our Union Street and agenda item 9.7 (City Centre Six Monthly Update – Streetscape Programme) by virtue of him being a member of Cycling UK and the AA. Having applied the objective test, he did not consider that he had an interest and would not be withdrawing from the meeting;

(2)      Councillor Macdonald advised that she had a connection in relation to agenda item 9.4 (Union Street Empty Shops Grant Scheme) by virtue of her being volunteer Leader on Our Union Street. Having applied the objective test, she did not consider that she had an interest and would not be withdrawing from the meeting;

(3)      Councillor Cooke advised that he had a connection in relation to agenda item 9.6 (Funding External Bodies and Following the Public Pound Policy Update) and agenda item 11.1 (Reconfiguration of working arrangements with Arm’s Length External Organisations (ALEOs) as an observer on Sport Aberdeen Board. Having applied the objective test, he did not consider that he had an interest and would not be withdrawing from the meeting;

(4)      Councillor Greig advised that he had a connection in relation to agenda item 9.6 (Funding External Bodies and Following the Public Pound Policy Update) by virtue of him being a Council appointed member of Aberdeen Performing Arts Board. Having applied the objective test, he did not consider that he had an interest and would not be withdrawing from the meeting;

(5)      Councillor Fairfull advised that she had a connection in relation to agenda item 9.6 (Funding External Bodies and Following the Public Pound Policy Update) and Item 11.1 (Reconfiguration of working arrangements with Arm’s Length External Organisations (ALEOs) by virtue of her being a Council appointed member on Aberdeen Performing Arts Board. Having applied the objective test, she did not consider that she had an interest and would not be withdrawing from the meeting; and

(6)      Councillor Hutchison advised that he had a connection in relation to agenda item 11.1 (Reconfiguration of working arrangements with Arm’s Length External Organisations (ALEOs) by virtue of him being a Director on Aberdeen Heat and Power Board. Having applied the objective test, he did not consider that he had an interest and would not be withdrawing from the meeting.

The Committee had before it the following petition which had been submitted by Mr Eduardo GalvisGarcia:-

“To install some Physical Exercise Bars (Callisthenic Station) e.g., Dip Bars, Pull-ups bars, Monkey Bars, Wall Bars, Pummel Horse. in Duthie Park in order to help to look after the community physical & mental health as well as their budget during this cost-of-living crisis by promoting healthy lifestyle initiatives within the park without incurring on expensive fitness centre memberships. Having a callisthenic station in Duthie Park would facilitate and encourage regular physical activity. It would promote a healthy lifestyle and would be a venue for families to be active together as well as encouraging new friendships and community engagement.

During COVID-19 when gyms and leisure facilities were closed, parks became the only place where individuals could keep active. Even though there are no longer COVID 19 restrictions in place, and gyms have reopened, many individuals are still attending Duthie Park to do regular physical activity. Some choosing not to return to indoor fitness facilities, recognising the mental health benefits of being outdoors and enjoying nature. Local Government can help communities to look after their physical & mental health as well as their budget during this cost-of-living crisis by promoting healthy lifestyle initiatives within their parks. Not everyone can afford expensive fitness centre memberships.

One such initiative, is to provide/install callisthenic station equipment in Duthie park (push up bars, parallettes, etc). These fitness stations can benefit both physical and mental health. They can reduce high blood pressure, help manage weight, reduce the risk of heart disease, stroke, as well as, improving bone and muscle strength, increases balance, flexibility and fitness. Having a callisthenic station in Duthie Park would facilitate and encourage regular physical activity.

It would promote a healthy lifestyle and would be a venue for families to be active together as well as encouraging new friendships and community engagement. It is recognised that regular exercise improves mental health, promoting good mental health well-being - reducing the risk of depression, cognitive decline and delays the onset of dementia. It is also a way to encourage teenagers and youngsters to avoid sedentary behaviour and low levels of physical activity that can have negative effects on their health, well-being, and quality of life. Calisthenics exercise is not only for youngsters starting calisthenics at age 40 or 50 can help you to stay in shape and improve your overall level of fitness. Most importantly of all, this initiative is inclusive, it is for everyone. Callisthenic stations in parks offer effective cross-generational open space development with low investment compared to complex sports facilities.

They are extremely sturdy and hard-wearing with low maintenance/repairs. They are an easy to install free infrastructure e.g., Dip Bars, Pull-ups bars, Monkey Bars, Wall Bars, Pummel Horse. Callisthenics offers effective training using body weight alone rather than conventional gym equipment, using the practice of repetitions of movement to help build muscle whilst burning calories and improving fitness. Calisthenics can be a warm-up or cool-down for  ...  view the full minutes text for item 3.

The Committee had before it a deputation by Gavin Clark, Aberdeen Cycle Forum in relation to agenda item 9.7 (City Centre Six Monthly Update – Streetscape Programme).

The Convener advised that a further deputation from Mr Hussein Patwa, Disability Equity Partnership in relation to agenda item 9.7 (City Centre Six Monthly Update – Streetscape Programme) had been received, however it was not submitted on time and was therefore not competent in terms of Standing Order 14.1 (two clear working days before the Committee meeting). He indicated that having heard the explanation from Mr Patwa in this regard and in terms of standing order 14.11, that on this occasion, he would be minded to accept the deputation on to the agenda to help facilitate discussion on this item. Furthermore, he intimated that Mr Patwa was now unable to attend the meeting today and that Ms Libby Hillhouse and Mr Graham Findlay would instead be representing the Disability Equity Partnership.

The Committee resolved:-

to note the information provided and that the deputations would be heard immediately prior to the consideration of the report (article 13 of this minute refers).

The Committee had before it the minute of meeting of the Finance and Resources Committee of 17 May 2023.

The Committee resolved:-

(i)       in relation to article 10 of the minute regarding Union Terrace Gardens, to note that the Chief Officer – Corporate Landlord had still to circulate details of the public toilet opening hours to members of the Committee via email, including how this information would be articulated to members of the public; and

(ii)      to otherwise approve the minute.

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

The Committee resolved:-

(i)       to note the reasons for the delay in relation to item 11 (Financial Settlement from Transport Scotland for the De-trunking of the A92/A96 -Haudagain Improvement), item 14 (School Estate Plan: Hazlehead/Countesswells Secondary School Provision – Outline Business Case) and item 15 (Proposals for Investment for Works at Riverbank School to Accommodate the Relocation of St. Peter’s School); and

(ii)      to otherwise note the planner.

Exempt appendices relating to this report are contained within the Exempt Appendices Section of this agenda.

The Committee had before it a report by the Director of Commissioning which presented procurement work plans where expenditure was included for the Customer and Operations Functions for review and sought approval of the total estimated expenditure for the proposed contracts as contained in the Procurement Business Cases appended to the report.

The Procurement Business Cases related to the following:-

·               Customer Experience Platform;

·               Third Party Payments; and

·               Recycling & Residual Waste Skips.

The report recommended:-

that the Committee –

(a)      review the workplan as detailed in the Appendices for the Customer and Operations Functions;

(b)      approve the procurement business cases, including the total estimated expenditure for the proposed contract; and

(c)      note the content of Appendix 3 - 3.10 Memos (Exemption Urgency).

The Committee resolved:-

(i)       to approve the recommendations contained within the report;

(ii)      to note that the Head of Commercial and Procurement would circulate responses to questions relating to (1) Appendix 3 – Technical Exemptions - Hydrogen Supply Agreement; and (2) Appendix 5 – Third Party Payments; and

(iii)      to agree that the Workplan and Business Cases report be considered as the last public item on future agendas, to allow questions on the exempt appendices to follow straight after and to instruct the interim Chief Officer – Governance (Assurance) to amend future agendas accordingly.

The Committee had before it a report by the Director of Commissioning which sought delegated authority to sell a set of cast iron gates which were removed from Union Terrace Gardens as part of the refurbishment works to the Birkhall Estate for reuse in the estate gardens.

The report recommended:-

that the Committee –

(a)      delegate authority to Chief Officer - Strategic Place Planning to sell a set of cast iron gates from the downtaking from Union Terrace Gardens as part of the refurbishment works to the Birkhall Estate for reuse in the estate gardens; and

(b)      delegate authority to Chief Officer - Strategic Place Planning to sell the gates for an appropriate price. This was currently thought to be £500 given the current condition of the gates.

The Committee resolved:-

to approve the recommendations.

The Committee had before it a report by the Director of Commissioning, which provided an update on Phase 1 of the Denis Law Legacy Trail and sought instruction to develop Phase 2.

The report recommended:-

that the Committee –

(a)      approve the progression of Phase 1 of the Denis Law Legacy Trail; and

(b)      instruct the Chief Officer – City Growth to develop a business case for Phase 2 delivery of the murals, including identifying external funding opportunities, and report back to Finance and Resources Committee 22 November 2023.

The Committee resolved:-

(i)       to approve the recommendations; and

(ii)      to agree to instruct the Chief Officer – City Growth to obtain the necessary agreements from the Denis Law Legacy Trust as noted at 5.1 of the report before proceeding to spend public money on this project to include confirmation that appropriate intellectual property rights/licences for design of the trail and images licence have been agreed for phase 2 delivery of the murals, and including identifying external funding opportunities, and report back to the Finance and Resources Committee on 22 November 2023.

With reference to article 18 of the minute of meeting of Council of 14 December 2022, the Committee had before it a report by the Director of Commissioning, which provided an overview of the Union Street Empty Shops Grant Scheme and sought delegated authority for relevant Chief Officers to make and approve grant awards.

The report recommended:-

that the Committee -

(a)      note the launch of the Union Street Empty Shops Grant Scheme, with objectives and conditions as detailed in the body of the report;

(b)      approve the establishment of a Review Panel for the scheme; and

(c)      delegate authority to the Chief Officer - City Growth and Chief Officer – Finance, in consultation with the Convenor of the Finance and Resources Committee, to approve grant awards up toa maximum amount of £35,000.

The Committee resolved:-

(i)       to approve the recommendations; and

(ii)      that the Chief Officer - Governance write to Councillor Malik confirming the legality of the application exclusion process.

With reference to article 11 of the minute of meeting of the City Growth and Resources Committee of 21 June 2022, the Committee had before it a report by the Director of Commissioning which sought approval to allocate unspent monies from the Local Authority Covid Economic Recovery Fund.

The report recommended:-

that the Committee –

(a)      award up to £35,000 to the Enhanced Business Support/Community Wealth Building support project;

(b)      award up to £60,000 to undertake feasibility of a Community Bank/Micro Credit Scheme;

(c)      award up to £105,000 to the Aberdeen City Council Events project;

(d)      award up to £50,000 to Spectra; and

(e)      delegate authority to Chief Officer - City Growth, following consultation with the Convenor and Vice-Convenor of Finance and Resources Committee, Director of Commissioning and Director of Resources, to award LACER grants of up to £25,000 for remaining LACER funds.

The Committee resolved:-

to approve the recommendations.

With reference to article 8 of the minute of meeting of the Audit Risk and Scrutiny Committee of 11 May 2023, the Committee had before it a report by the Director of Resources which to sought approval of the amended and updated Following the Public Pound Code of Practice.

The report recommended:-

that the Committee –

(a)      approve the updated Following the Public Pound Code of Practice as appended to the report; and

(b)      approve the Following the Public Pound Code of Practice to be amended to a Council Policy.

The Committee resolved:-

to approve the recommendations.

The Committee received two deputations from (1) Mr Gavin Clark, Chair of Aberdeen Cycle Forum and (2) Ms Libby Hillhouse and Mr Graham Findlay, Disability Equity Partnership.

Mr Clark in his presentation, outlined the aims of Aberdeen Cycle Forum and advised that they had around 600 members and made reference to the Council meeting in December 2022, when his fellow-campaigner, Rachel Martin was in attendance and presented to members.

He indicated that at the aforementioned Council meeting, Ms Martin pleaded not to approve plans for Union Street which did not include a segregated cycle track and that Councillors sympathised with that plea. He indicated that in the past 6 months or so, Officers and Designers were working under instruction to produce plans which would include a segregated cycle track, and that Aberdeen Cycle Forum and other stakeholders had been involved throughout that process and had the opportunity to input at various stages.

Mr Clark advised that a bi-directional cycle track on one side of the street only would not have been their first choice, but given the other constraints, they were told it was really the only feasible option for segregation.  He intimated that they had accepted that compromise was required on all sides and therefore they supported the design now presented. He explained that they now had something which was in line with the Transport Hierarchy and which met current design standards.

He advised that the key was that this would create a segregated cycle track where cyclists were kept separate from vehicular traffic and separated from pedestrians indicating that it was not the whole solution to the city’s transport problems, but it would be a big step in the right direction and could hopefully be the start of a high-quality network of segregated routes which would allow so many more people to use a bicycle as an everyday means of transport whether for shopping, commuting to work or education, for leisure, for fitness or just for enjoyment. 

Mr Clark indicated that segregation from traffic opened up cycling to many more people who currently did not feel safe on the roads and cycling should not be the preserve of a hardened minority who were inured to cycling in traffic as he was, it should be accessible for all ages and abilities. 

Mr Clark intimated that cycling could of course have multiple benefits: greater uptake of cycling contributes to improved air quality and to carbon reduction targets.  He explained that increased levels of cycling had been shown to boost local economies and increase footfall in shops and that people who cycle regularly tended to be healthier and so place lower demands on the NHS, therefore most of these positives were not just for the individual on the bike, they benefitted everyone.

He advised that he understood that one of the trickiest design details to resolve had been how to route the cycle track around bus stops and the solution proposed was that a bus-stop bypass, as he called it, was  ...  view the full minutes text for item 13.

Exempt appendices relating to this report are contained within the Exempt Appendices Section of this agenda.

With reference to article 9 of the minute of meeting of 1 February 2023, the Committee had before it a report by the Director of Resources which provided an update on the options for the continued delivery of Council led housing projects at Craighill and Kincorth.

The report recommended:-

that the Committee –

(a)      instruct the Chief Officer – Capital to arrange for the redesign of both schemes with the Value Engineering options implemented. These options should be developed to retain the Gold Standards environmental criteria;

(b)      instruct the Chief Officer – Capital to arrange for the resubmission of new planning applications, for both sites, to take account of the value engineered options;

(c)      following approval of (b), instruct the Chief Officer – Capital to arrange for the retender of both sites;

(d)      note that the preferred approach will be to progress both sites simultaneously as single phase developments but there is an acceptance that some project phasing maybe required on one or both sites to spread the capital commitment over a number of years; and

(e)      note the necessary financial commitments that will be necessary to ensure delivery of both sites. Refer to Appendix B.

The Convener, seconded by the Vice Convener, moved:-

that the Committee approve the recommendations contained within the report.

Councillor Malik, seconded by Councillor Macdonald, moved as an amendment:-

that the Committee –

(1)      note the previous Administration’s decision to allocate £250m gross to deliver 2,000 Council houses and welcomes the Partnership’s commitment to deliver on the previous Administration’s ambitious policy;

(2)    note a net spend of £124m has delivered or is delivering:-

·       283 Homes in Dyce;

·       92 Homes in Great Northern Road;

·       369 Homes in Summerhill; and

·       583 Homes in Bridge of Don.

(3)    approve recommendations 2.1, 2.2 and 2.3 within the report; and

(4)    instruct the Chief Officer – Capital, following the receipt of tenders, to report back to the next available Finance and Resources Committee meeting to allow members to confirm that the tenders ensure financial affordability for the HRA account.

On a division, there voted:- for the motion (8) – the Convener, the Vice Convener and Councillors Allard, Cooke, Fairfull, Greig, Hutchison and Radley; for the amendment (5) – Councillors Farquhar, Macdonald, Malik, Massey and Watson.

The Committee resolved:-

to adopt the motion.

An exempt appendix relating to this report is contained within the Exempt Appendices Section of this agenda.

The Committee had before it a report by the Director of Resources which sought  approval to progress with the Tillydrone Cruyff Court project subject to additional funding.

The report recommended:-

that the Committee –

(i)       vire the necessary monies from the budget savings following the retender of the Replacement Riverbank Primary School project (noted previously as circa £6m) to ensure the full scope of the project can be delivered; and

(ii)      instruct the Chief Officer - Capital to complete a further procurement exercise to target delivery this financial year.

The Committee resolved:-

to approve the recommendations.

At this Juncture, the Convener proposed to suspend Standing Order 40.2 (Length of Meetings) to enable the meeting to continue beyond six hours.

The Committee agreed unanimously to suspend Standing Order 40.2.

The Committee had before it a joint report by the Chief Officer – Strategic Place Planning, the Chief Officer - City Growth, the Chief Officer – Finance, the Chief Officer – Capital, the Chief Officer – Corporate Landlord and the Head of Commercial and Procurement which presented the Cluster Risk Registers and Assurance Maps to provide assurance that risks were being managed effectively within each Cluster.

The report recommended:-

that the Committee note the Cluster Risk Registers and Assurance Maps set out in appendices A to N.

The Committee resolved:-

(i)       to approve the recommendation;

(ii)      that the Chief Officer – Corporate Landlord review the scoring in relation to the condition of operational property estates (page 202 of the agenda);

(iii)      that the Chief Officer – Finance review the scoring in relation to the delivery of financial services (page 180 of the agenda); and

(iv)     that the Chief Officer – City Growth provide details to the members of the Committee in relation to why Perception of Place did not align with the Risk Appetite Statement (page 221 of the agenda).

The Committee had before it a report by the Director of Commissioning which presented the status of key cluster performance measures and activity indicators relating to the Commissioning and Resources functions.

The report recommended:-

that the Committee note the performance information contained within the report appendix.

The Committee resolved:-

to approve the recommendation.

The Committee had before it a report by the Director of Commissioning which sought approval for the erection of a commemorative plaque on 15-17 Belmont Street to mark the site of the BBC’s first radio broadcast in Aberdeen.

The report recommended:-

that the Committee approve the erection of the proposed commemorative plaque at 15-17 Belmont Street, Aberdeen.

The Committee resolved:-

to approve the recommendation.

In accordance with the decision taken at Article 1 of this minute, the following items were considered with the press and public excluded.

The Committee had before it exempt appendices relating to the Workplan and Business Cases report (article 7 of this minute refers).

The Committee resolved:-

to note the information contained within the exempt appendices.

The Committee had before it exempt appendices relating to the Craighill and Kincorth Housing Delivery report (article 14 of this minute refers).

The Committee resolved:-

to note the information contained within the exempt appendices.

The Committee had before it exempt appendices relating to the Cruyff Court Tillydrone Update report (article 15 of this minute refers).

The Committee resolved:-

to note the information contained within the exempt appendix.

-                COUNCILLOR ALEX MCLELLAN, Convener

The Convener, in terms of Standing Order 36.6, advised that he was adjourning the meeting and that it would resume on Thursday, 6 July 2023 at 2.00pm.