Agenda item

The Council had before it a notice of motion by Councillor Crockett in the following terms:-

Council:-

Notes the unanimous decision by the Council to support the Local Development Plan at the Council meeting in December 2022.

Notes the proposals by the SNP to effectively abandon the Local Development Plan following their announcement to not proceed with Greenferns Landwards development despite voting for that development to proceed less than 8 weeks ago.

Notes this proposal could have a serious impact on development in and around this area as the Local Development Plan indicates that any proposals for development of an adjacent or nearby site will generally be resisted if this would jeopardise the delivery of this site.

Agrees that the hypocrisy of the SNP knows no bounds whereby in the space of 8 short weeks they have in effect abandoned their own Local Development Plan 2023.

Instructs the Chief Officer - Capital, Chief Officer - Corporate Landlord and Chief Officer - Strategic Place Planning to provide members with the following:- (a) a detailed financial cost of the work to date by officers on taking forward Greenferns Landward including all costs associated with work done to get the project to this stage since the Council first decided to build 2,000 new houses; (b) what impact, if any, this proposal by the SNP if supported by Council would have in terms of any statutory review by those unsuccessful in their bid for allocation in the Local Development Plan; and (c) how many affordable homes will no longer be built if the Council agrees to the SNP proposals to no longer move forward with this site.

The Council also had before it a notice of motion by Councillor Radley in the following terms:-    

That Council:-

1.    Note the decision of the Finance and Resources Committee on 1February 2023 ‘to instruct Chief Officer - Capital to report to next appropriate Finance and Resources Committee his findings following a review of next steps options for the delivery of the new housing sites at Craighill and Kincorth’;

2.    Note the instruction of the Communities, Housing and Public Protection Committee on 17January 2023 'to instruct the Chief Officer - Corporate Landlord to consolidate and refresh all asset management strategies for the HRA estate and report back to this Committee on this matter by late 2024’;

3.    Note the ongoing volatility in the construction industry in relation to development demand and price certainty;

4.    Approve that the Greenferns Landward site remains in the property of the Common Good;

5.    Note that external contracts are in place to deliver planning permission in principle for the Greenferns Landward site. This design development is well advanced and expected to be complete in the coming months; and

6.    Following the conclusion of the current planning process, instruct the Chief Officer - Corporate Landlord to cease detailed design work on Council housing at the Greenferns Landward site, in the context that the site cannot be developed in its entirety until the second phase of the local development plan post 2032, and to concentrate resources on completion of the current sites and improving the Council's existing housing stock, and report back to a relevant committee once noted works have been carried out.

Councillor Crockett moved, seconded by Councillor Malik:-

That Council approve the notice of motion by Councillor Crockett outlined above.

Councillor Radley moved as an amendment, seconded by Councillor Greig:-

That Council approve the notice of motion by Councillor Radley outlined above.

During the course of debate, the Interim Chief Officer - Governance and the Chief Officer - Strategic Place Planning reminded members that there was potential for planning applications to be considered by Full Council in the future and therefore they needed to be mindful of that when referring to particular sites.

On a division, there voted:-

For the motion  (19)  -  Councillors Ali, Blake, Bonsell, Boulton, Brooks, Crockett, Farquhar, Graham, Grant, Houghton, Kusznir, Macdonald, McLeod, Malik, Massey, Mrs Stewart, Thomson, Tissera and Watson.

For the amendment  (23)  -  Lord Provost; Depute Provost; and Councillors Al-Samarai, Allard, Alphonse, Hazel Cameron, Clark, Cooke, Copland, Cormie, Davidson, Fairfull, Greig, Henrickson, Hutchison, MacGregor, McLellan, McRae, Mennie, Nicoll, Radley, van Sweeden and Yuill.

Absent from the division  (1)  -  Councillor Bouse.

The Council resolved:-

to adopt the amendment.