The Head of Planning Services has submitted a report to seek endorsement of the Botley Road Retail Park development brief.

Cabinet is recommended to:

1.      Endorse the Botley Road Retail Park development brief.

The Acting Head of Planning Services had submitted a report to seek endorsement of a development brief for Botley Road Retail Park.

Two scrutiny recommendations had been made in relation to the item.  The Cabinet Member for Planning and Housing Delivery advised that these had both been accepted and the recommended amendments to the document would be made.

The Cabinet Member for Planning and Housing Delivery reported that Botley Road Retail Park was in a sustainable location which was close to the station, cycleways, and local bus routes.  It comprised a series of large retail units surrounded by car parking, and had been subject to a number of ad-hoc planning permissions in the 1980s and 1990s - prior to changes to national planning policies - which had resulted in a poor quality environment and associated traffic consequences. 

In the past few years there had been increasing demand for office space across the city, particularly research and development space.  Changes to the Use Classes Order in 2021 now meant that differentiation between a retail use and most employment uses had been removed.

Given these considerations, the development brief sought to pull together all of the existing Local Plan policies and demonstrate how they could be applied to the Botley Road Retail Park in order to maximise its potential.  The brief set out the aims and aspirations for the site, and would help to improve certainty for residents, landowners, developers or potential purchasers.  Importantly, it could not, and did, not create any new policies: rather, it was a Technical Advice Note covering a specific geographic area.

The Cabinet Member for Planning and Housing Delivery clarified that the site was not being considered for housing development: the main reason for this was its location in relation to an active flood zone, and the Environment Agency’s requirement for ‘safe egress’ from a residential development in the event of flooding.

Cabinet resolved to:

1.      Endorse the Botley Road Retail Park Development Brief.