Issue - decisions

(i)               approves the Aberdeen Local Development Plan and Delivery Programme subject to the following changes as per the attached maps:

a)  Remove Berryhill from OP2 Cloverhill and Berryhill and reduce the allocation to 550 houses;

b)  Rezone Berryhill from Residential to Business and Industry and identify as OP45 Berryhill (for Business and Industrial uses);

c)  Remove OP114 Milltimber South (60 houses) and re-zone from Mixed Use to Green Belt and Green Space Network;

d)  Identify B09/16 Craigton as opportunity site OP54 for 10 houses and rezone from Green Belt and Green Space Network to Residential;

e)  Identify B13/08 Royal Devenick Park as opportunity site OP46 for 150 houses and rezone from Green Belt and Green Space Network to Residential;

f)   Identify B09/48 Tillyoch as opportunity site OP53 for 250 houses and rezone from Green Belt and Green Space Network to Residential, but retain Green Space Network on the woodland in the south east of the site and rezone a remaining area of Green Belt to the south of the site to Residential; and

g)  Amend the HMO overprovision policy from a 15% to 12% threshold;

(ii)             instructs the Chief Officer – Strategic Place Planning to make any further consequential changes to the Proposed Plan, Action Programme and other supporting documents as necessary to reflect the above;

(iii)            notes that urgent action, supported by large scale investment such as an Energy Transition Zone, was required if Aberdeen was to meet UK and Scottish government net zero targets by 2045;

(iv)            agrees the proposed Energy Transition Zone was developed as Scotland’s Energy Transition Zone and that failure to include this in the Local Development Plan could mean Aberdeen failing to maximise the offshore renewables opportunities the city has as a result of the Aberdeen Harbour Expansion, and losing jobs and status as the Energy Capital of Europe; agrees that the oil and gas industry has a key role to play as part of a sustainable secure and inclusive energy transition and by including the new Energy Transition Zone in the Local Development Plan, the Council, working with industry, would ensure it was supporting diversification and 53% of Scotland’s energy jobs (including renewables), or over 35,000 direct jobs, in the city and region and therefore Aberdeen continues to be a lead energy city in a sustainable net zero emission economy;

(v)             supports the comments of the Scottish Minister for Energy Paul Wheelhouse who said “Initiatives like the Energy Transition Zone could play a pivotal role in making that transition possible, by exploring how to develop renewable technologies related to technologies such as offshore wind, carbon capture utilisation and storage and development of hydrogen and derivatives of hydrogen in our energy system as well as increased investment in energy efficiency”;

(vi)            notes an Energy Transition Zone was supported by Opportunity North East, Scotland’s Minister for Energy Paul Wheelhouse, Aberdeen Harbour Board, Oil and Gas UK, The Oil and Gas Authority, The Oil and Gas Technology Centre, Offshore Renewable Energy Catapult, Scottish Enterprise, Robert Gordon University, University of Aberdeen, and Aberdeen and Grampian Chamber of Commerce;

(vii)           subject to the approval of the revised Committee Terms of Reference by Council later on today’s agenda (item 9.4 refers), notes that in line with the Planning (Scotland) Act 2019 (Commencement No. 3) Regulations 2019, the two planning applications (181224 – Inchgarth Road and 191771 – Cloverhill) which have been subject to a predetermination hearing would be considered by the Planning Development Management Committee;

(viii)          approves recommendations 2.2, 2.3, 2.4, 2.5, 2.6 and 2.7 as contained in the report;

(ix)            instruct the Chief Officer – Strategic Place Planning to advise Members, by way of email, (1) whether a record of traditional gypsy traveller halting sites was held by the Council; (2) whether there was any representation made by the gypsy traveller community; and (3) the number of representation made in relation to OP56 St Fitticks Park and OP61 Doonies – Energy Transition Zone.