Hanley Public Realm

Some Photos of the New Public Realm in Hanley, doesn’t seem to link up to and complete Albion Square at this stage despite the length of time it appears far from complete, or is this it until City Sentral is finished?

New Retail Study

The City Council propose to produce an updated retail and leisure study for Stoke-on-Trent. The current North Staffordshire Retail and Leisure Study was produced in 2005 and is in need of refreshing to underpin the preparation of site allocation development plan documents (DPD). This will ensure that the City Council has up to date retail evidence when considering plan preparation, determining planning applications and for the underpinning of any future use of compulsory purchase powers.

But in the Councils Tender Document for consultants to produce they retail study, they have already declared there Key Retail Aim

“The first of those DPDs the Core Spatial Strategy was adopted in October 2009, The Core Spatial Strategy is based on a target regeneration for Stoke-on-Trent. The City Centre/Hanley is the priority for investment and regeneration, retail development in the form of City Sentral is key to this.”

This independent retail and leisure study will then be used as evidence for compulsory purchase orders for City Sentral.

How can this retail and leisure study remain unbiased, when in the Tender Document the Council has laid out its key aim for retail within the City.

Asset Sale Policy – Scrutiny Review needed

The slow progress on the £14million expansion and regeneration of the Potteries Shopping Centre, has recently been revealed as being due to the Council decision not to sell land needed to enable works to commence.

What is the councils policy on deciding who to sell land to, and who to issue Compulsory Purchase Orders for?

Letting Agents

City Sentral will contain 11 food & beverage units, 1 Department store and 70 shops, with work progressing on the new Bus Station ready for its opening this Autumn and the consultation on the Traffic Regulations Orders required to get the Buses to new station as smoothly as possible, ending. I decided it was now time to go more directly to the source of “who has signed up for a new store?”

Following MIPIM

So MIPIM the leading international real estate fair in Cannes has been and gone, and Cllr Meredith pickup an award for Stoke on Trent for its Infrastructure. During the event one conference “UK Cities: investing in infrastructure for growth” stood out as potential for Stoke at MIPIM.  But in the reports on the the conference no mention is made of Stoke on Trent despite its award, I questioned Cllr Meredith on Stokes attendance but received no reply,