Agenda and minutes

Councillor P H Mason – Procurement, Assets and Shared Services Portfolio Holder

Councillor J Goddard

Councillor D Neilson

Councillor H Gaddum

Phil Sherratt               Head of Environmental Services

John Thistlewood  Strategic Manager, Contract Procurement, Shared Services

Philip KershawInterim Head of Policy Strategy - Assets

Mark NeddermanSenior Scrutiny Officer

To provide an opportunity for Members and Officers to declare any personal and/or prejudicial interests and for members to declare the existence of a party whip in relation to any item on the agenda.

Councillor PH Mason declared a personal and prejudicial interest in respect of item 4 - Call - In of Key Decision 09/10-24 Joint Waste Treatment PFI Project - Acquisition of Site for Waste Transfer Station Facilities in accordance with paragraph 11 of the Member Code of Conduct.

Councillor J Narraway declared a Personal Interest in respect of Item 4 - Call - In of Key Decision 09/10-24 Joint Waste Treatment PFI Project - Acquisition of Site for Waste Transfer Station Facilities on the grounds that his Solicitor occupied part of the premises at Sunrise House, which bordered the proposed PFI Project site.

In accordance with Procedure Rules Nos.11 and 35 a total period of 10 minutes is allocated for members of the public to address the Committee on any matter relevant to the work of the Committee.

Individual members of the public may speak for up to 5 minutes but the Chairman will decide how the period of time allocated for public speaking will be apportioned where there are a number of speakers.

Note: In order for officers to undertake any background research it would be helpful if questions were submitted at least one working day before the meeting.

Mr Richard May from the Macclesfield Business Centre, Sunrise House, Hulley Road, attended the meeting and addressed the committee expressing his concerns about the proposal to construct a Waste Transfer station adjacent to his business premises.

Mr May had written to all members of the Committee prior to the meeting outlining the basic ethos of his business.which was a  “Business Hotel” providing a flexible base for new companies to start-up. During the 20 years that the business had been in operation, over 200 businesses had started at Sunrise House. He contended that many of these businesses would not have located there, had such a waste transfer facility had been built so close to his premises.

Mr May questioned the accuracy of the report and accompanying plan to be considered by the committee at today’s meeting and in particular expressed his regret that the existence of the business centre had been omitted from the report. This omission was particularly disappointing, bearing in mind that Sunrise House bordered the site and shared an access. He concluded by stating that his business would be blighted if the proposal were to go ahead.

To consider the call–in of the above decision

On behalf of the Group of members that had signed the call-in notice, Counclllor David Neilson addressed the Committee and outlined the basis of the call-in which was in relation to  :-

• The appropriateness of this particular site for a Waste Transfer Station in view of its proximity to a housing estate and Astra Zeneca, the largest employer in the town of Macclesfield;

• Potential problems with access and egress to the site, due to congestion problems on the Silk Road

Councillor Neilson amplified the grounds of call- in by stating that :

• During the Shadow year of the Council, a modelling exercise, carried out under the auspices of the Places Advisory Panel, in relation to a potential waste collection  centre in the north of the Borough, had pointed to the most appropriate site for a transfer station being located somewhere between Knutsford and Wilsmlow;

• A large number of houses would suffer noise nuisance from the proposed site.

Councillors Hilda Gaddum and John Goddard also addressed the committee in support of the call–in.

Councillor P H Mason – Procurement, Assets and Shared Services Portfolio Holder, outlined to the Committee, the basis of the cabinet decision taken on 11 August 2009.

The provision of waste treatment facilities or the closure of the Danes Moss landfill site required a waste transfer station to be located in Macclesfield to allow refuse collection vehicles to continue to tip locally, to allow the waste to be bulked up for transfer to the waste treatment plant.

The scheme was being driven by the Waste Treatment PFI contract which would provide waste treatment facilities for Cheshire West and Chester and Cheshire East Councils.

The site at Hulley Road was compatible with the use allocation of the land within the approved Local Plan and Waste Plan.

The facility would minimise the number of vehicular movements by transferring waste in bulk from the transfer station to the treatment plant in Cheshire West and Chester.

The land was available immediately for acquisition, but would require planning consent.

In response to questions from members of the committee, the Portfolio Holder, supported by the Head of Environmental Services and Strategic Manager – Contract procurement – Shared Services stated that:

• Although no other sites were currently under consideration, in the event that the Hulley Road did not progress, the decision of Cabinet did include a contingency for  officers to continue to keep options open in respect of alternative sites.

• There had been no guarantee from the current owners that they would sell the land to the Council for its intended use.

• The site at Lyme Green Depot was owned by the Council.

• The waste Transfer site was expected to be in use for 25 years.

• No work had been carried out to assess  how long it would take to prepare the site at Lyme Green depot for a transfer waste facility, but it could be expected that construction costs at that site would be significantly above the budget identified for the scheme at Hulley  ...  view the full minutes text for item 40.

The reports relating to the remaining items on the agenda have been withheld from public circulation and deposit pursuant to Section 100(B)(2) of the Local Government Act 1972 on the grounds that the matters may be determined with the press and public excluded.

The Committee may decide that the press and public be excluded from the meeting during consideration of the following items pursuant to Section 100(A)4 of the Local Government Act 1972 on the grounds that they involve the likely disclosure of exempt information as defined in Paragraphs 1 and 2 of Part 1 of Schedule 12A to the Local Government Act 1972 and public interest would not be served in publishing the information.

PART 2 – MATTERS TO BE CONSIDERED WITHOUT THE PUBLIC AND PRESS PRESENT

RESOLVED -  That in accordance with Section 100(A)4 of the Local Government Act 1972 the public be excluded from the meeting for the following item on the grounds that it may involve the likely disclosure of exempt information as defined in Paragraph 3 of Part 1 of Schedule 12A to the Local Government Act 1972 and public interest in maintaining the exemption outweighs the public interest in disclosing it. 

(Paragraph 3 concerns information relating to the financial or business affairs of any particular person, including the authority holding that information.)

To note Appendix A of the report considered by cabinet on 11 August 2009

The Committee considered Appendix A to the report in respect of the acquisition of a site for waste transfer station facilities in Macclesfield.

RESOLVED - That Appendix A be noted.