Tonight saw the Cabinet in Pan, making its latest decision about how to progress the Pan development.
There is a real urgency about it now as the alternative is too grim to contemplate - loss of £11m for much needed affordable housing (2,500 on the IW housing register would like to live in Pan). Consequently they have ruled out a bypass around the outskirts of any development - from Staplers to Shide - as it would threaten the timely delivery of the whole project. It MUST start in April 2009.
My view is homes before roads, but I feel that a real opportunity has been missed and said so. Last year at a Cabinet in March I was promised they would look seriously at a bypass, something many locals would like to see, but that hasn't been done at all over the last year. Despite the MPs support. So instead there will be a traffic management review of Newport - again.
The Pan residents present asked a number of questions about the development:- who will get the affordable housing, community facilities, school capacity, flooding, and traffic, and got answers of a sort. I asked about health services - which is being looked at.
In my own opening contribution I urged them to consult properly after their decision was made and to actually LISTEN to what they hear, which in my experience was not what happened 3 years ago when the masterplan was put together. They undertook to do this in a 'walk and talk' week during June.
The Council Leader summed up the decision to agree progress as a 'foundation' stone' of the new development. I couldn't help thinking he said the same at Cabinet a year ago when a different decision on development partners was made. This change of direction has been a bit like turning an oil tanker.....
Anyway that's me signing off for a while. Having a week off. Back on 12th.
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