Councillor Fry was elected Chair for the Council year 2023-24.

Councillor Djafari-Marbini was elected Vice-Chair for the Council year 2023-24.

Councillor Fry declared that he was a member of both Cyclox and the Oxford Preservation Trust.  However, he had taken no part in any discussions by those organisations regarding the application and was approaching it with an open mind.

Councillor Rowley declared that he was previously a member of the Cabinet and had been present at a Cabinet meeting in March 2022 when the project was discussed.  Councillor Rowley declared that he had no recollection of the item at Cabinet and was considering the application with an open mind.

Councillor Diggins declared that she was appointed by the Council to the Oxford Preservation Trust (OPT), which may have commented on the application.  Councillor Diggins declared that she had taken no part in any discussions at the OPT relating to the application and was considering it with an open mind.

Councillor Pegg declared that she was a member of Cyclox and was also one of the councillors who had called-in the application.  Councillor Pegg declared that she was considering the application with an open mind.

Councillor Latif declared that he was one of the councillors who had called-in the application but was approaching the application with an open mind.

Councillor Djafari-Marbini declared that she was one of the councillors who had called-in the application; had received a number of emails about it; and had also spoken to a member of the public who had telephoned her.  Councillor Djafari-Marbini declared that she was approaching the application with an open mind and would consider it on its merits.

Councillor Smowton declared that he was a member of Oxford YIMBY which campaigned on housing matters, although it had not commented on this application.  Councillor Smowton also declared that he had declined to support the call-in when requested by another councillor: this was for practical rather than planning reasons. Councillor Smowton declared that he was approaching the application with an open mind and would consider it on its planning merits.

Councillor Goddard declared that he was one of the councillors who had called-in the application and had received a number of emails about it.  Councillor Goddard declared that he would consider the application on its planning merits and was approaching it with an open mind.

The Committee considered an application (23/02506/CT3) for the construction of a pedestrian/cycle bridge across the River Thames from Grandpont Nature Park to Oxpens Meadows.

The application was before the committee as the decision of the Oxford City Planning Committee on 19 March 2024 to approve the application had been called-in by 16 councillors for the following reason:

‘The building of a new bridge adjacent to an existing bridge is not an efficient use of land or resources to deliver sustainable growth and development and it is therefore contrary to policies RE1 and RE2 in the Local Plan 2016-2036.’

The Planning Officer presented the report and provided the following update:

·        Since the publication of the report 17 additional letters of representation had been received from properties in St John Street, Buckingham Street, Western Road, Monmouth Road, Alexandra Road and Wytham Street; the University of Oxford; as well as representations where the specific addresses were not disclosed.

The objections had related to:

·        Lack of publicity of the application

·        The application would require the felling of trees

·        Gasworks bridge is located near by

·        Area under the railway bridge floods

·        No carbon footprint has been produced for the bridge

·        The money for the bridge could be used for other things such as affordable housing

·        It’s not clear if the bridge is required for Osney or is a standalone application or not

·        The tow path will be closed to facilitate the development depriving people of its use for a long period of time

·        The bridge will destroy the Nature Reserve

·        Money would benefit more people if it was spent on improving the existing cycling routes in the city

·        There is a lack of evidence/statistics/research on how many people would benefit from this bridge compared to the number of people who would be adversely affected by it

·        The application was not supported by an EIA

·        Will have a detrimental impact on biodiversity in the area

·        Give rise to noise pollution

·        Can something be added requiring the route from west Oxford, especially from the Mill St area, into the city centre, that runs past Gibbs Crescent and along the back of the ice rink to remain open if permission is granted

·        The sequential test wasn’t taken

·        The fields in trust can’t legally be developed

·        The gasworks bridge is a heritage asset

·        It will be built on a floodplain

·        BREEAM assessment wasn’t carried out on the bridge

The letters in support had related to:

·        The bridge contributes to the delivery of the objectives of the Local Plan and the West End and Osney Mead SPD

·        It will deliver safe pedestrian and cycle routes from the west of the city centre

·        It will contribute to economic benefits extending throughout the County and beyond

·        It will enhance connectivity and increase the sense of joint identity of Osney and Oxpens, helping to cement the West End Innovation District as a whole

·        It will fulfil the ecological potential of this area

·        It will enable landscaping, re-planting, encourage biodiversity of plants and animals  ...  view the full minutes text for item 14.

Recommendation: That the minutes of the meeting held on 11 November 2021 are approved as a true and accurate record.

The Committee resolved to approve the minutes of the meeting held on 11 November 2021 as a true and accurate record.

Meetings are scheduled for 6.00pm on

30 May 2024

27 June 2024

23 July 2024

27 August 2024

19 September 2024

17 October 2024

Meetings will be cancelled if not required or may be rearranged.

The dates of future meetings were noted.