Greater Cambridge Local Plan Issues & Options 2020

We act for The Crown Estate, the owners of Cambridge Business Park, Milton Road, Cambridge (“the Site”). The Crown Estate supports the principle of the regeneration and potential redevelopment of Cambridge Business Park for high quality sustainable development. The Crown Estate is a long term investor/developer and is keen to work with Cambridge City Council and South Cambridge District Council to realise its objectives. The Crown Estate is already taking an active role in the North East Cambridge Area Action Plan, within which the Site has a strategic position, and intends to be an active participant in the Local Plan process. On behalf of our client, we submit representations to the Regulation 18: Issues and Options consultation version of the Greater Cambridge Local Plan. At this stage, the Councils are looking to explore the principal themes that will influence how homes, jobs and infrastructure are planned. It also looks at how engagement with communities, neighbouring local authorities and other important groups will be coordinated. The contribution the Site can make to achieve these overarching objectives is already recognised by the Council through its allocation in the adopted development plan and in the emerging North East Cambridge Area Action Plan. The Crown Estate and Cambridge Business Park The Crown Estate is a £14.3 billion UK real estate business with a portfolio unlike any other. In everything The Crown Estate does, they are driven by a clear purpose: brilliant places through conscious commercialism. This means taking a long-term view, considering what they do from every perspective, and working in partnership with local authorities, communities and partners to deliver positive outcomes for all. The Crown Estate is the freehold owners of Cambridge Business Park as shown on Plan below. 2 Plan 1: Site Location Pan The site totals approximately 9.5 hectares and currently comprises 12 two and three storey buildings with a total floorspace of more than 30,000 sqm. It provides a high quality flexible office and r&d space in an attractive landscape setting. The Business Park was developed in phases from the 1980’s and is home to companies including Qualcomm, BBC and Redgate Software. The main access to the Business Park is from Milton Road (A1134) with a pedestrian access to Cambridge North Station via a controlled gate. It provides circa 1,200 car parking spaces and over 500 cycle spaces. The Business Park is located between Cambridge North Station (approximately 250m to the east), Cambridge Science Park to the west of Milton Road and the Anglian Water Treatment Works. The northern boundary of the Business Park comprises Cycle Network with Cowley Road beyond. The southern boundary is the Cambridge Guided Bus way. The ‘Big Themes’ Our client is supportive of the four “Big Themes” which will guide development across the Greater Cambridge Local Plan area as set out in the Consultation draft:  Climate change – how the plan should contribute to achieving net zero carbon, and the mitigation and adaptation measures that should be required through developments  Biodiversity and green spaces – how the plan can contribute to our ‘doubling nature’ vision, the improvement of existing and creation of new green spaces  Wellbeing and social inclusion – how the plan can help spread the benefts of growth, helping to create healthy and inclusive communities  Great places – how the plan can protect what is already great about the area, and design new developments to create special places and spaces Whilst the Local Plan sets out these concepts in high level spatial terms only at this stage, it is important that the proposed options for positive place making and continued economic growth align with wider strategic opportunities, especially in respect of key infrastructure such as highways and public transport. Therefore, the Consultation Draft then looks to identify options to deliver growth. This sets out 6 options for delivering growth: 1) Densification of existing urban areas, 2) Edge of Cambridge:outside of Green Belt 3) Edge of Cambridge: within Green Belt 4) Dispersal: New Settlement 5) Dispersal: Villages; and 6) Public transport “corridors” In our opinion, the regeneration, including the potential redevelopment, of Cambridge Business Park would fall within 1), of the above (but also play to the objectives underpinning 2) and 6)) and therefore contribute to delivering the Plans “Big Themes”. North East Cambridge AAP The Crown Estate is actively involved as a key stakeholder in the North East Cambridge AAP process. North East Cambridge is a key site that will feed into the new development strategy of the emerging Local Plan. It is brownfield site in the built-up area of Cambridge and includes the Site, the area around Cambridge North Station, the Anglian Water site where funding has been secured through the Housing Infrastructure Fund to support redevelopment, and other land (e.g. St Johns Innovation Park, Cambridge Science Park, etc). The AAP will show how significant levels of jobs and homes can be created here in accordance with the four “Big Themes” of the emerging Local Plan. The Crown Estate supports the vision stated for the AAP which sets community, sustainability and innovation as key principles. The Crown Estate supports the references to North East Cambridge throughout the emerging Local Plan (e.g. 5.2.1 and Figure 24-Existing Planned growth in the adopted 2018 Local Plan). Employment Land The emerging Local Plan identifies the need to ensure sufficient land for business uses, in the right place and to suit all business types and specific business clusters (para 4.5.3). The document considers the unique employment opportunities in Cambridge, including traditional office, industrial and warehouse space, alongside education, technology, innovation and small ‘start-up’ businesses. The Crown Estate supports a flexible approach to the provision of employment space including the type of space, its long term adaptability to meet changing occupier needs and where it is located. With regards the latter, the potential to cluster uses and, where compatible, integrate them with a wider range of uses, such as residential, should be encouraged. Whilst The Crown Estate supports the continued identification of existing allocations such as the Site, they consider that these should be re-evaluated in the context of the potential to create longer term mixed use developments where people can live and work thereby maximising the limited opportunities available. This is the approach being promoted through the AAP. Housing The Issues and Options document identifies a need for 40,900 homes over the Plan period (to 2040). However, it is expected that these numbers will need to be updated when further data is available. An alternative approach based on employment growth suggests around 2,900 homes a year would need to be built in Greater Cambridge, an indicative total of 66,700 homes over the Plan period. The target housing figure is therefore likely to be subject to change as the Plan preparation progresses. We consider that the Councils should utilise the most up to date evidence base to determine the number of homes required. Should this demonstrate that significantly more dwellings are required over the Plan period, the Councils need to carefully identify the potential for further intensification of allocated sites or additional sites at an early stage, which are available and deliverable so as to avoid the need for an early review of the Plan. This could include further opportunities in the AAP area. Approach to Locating Development The Councils historic approach has been to focus development on previously developed land and sustainable locations on the edge of Cambridge. As part of the Issues and Options consultation, Section 5.3 looks at options for growth and identifies 6 opportunities. The Crown Estate supports an approach which prioritises the most sustainable options but acknowledging other issues key considerations in the decision making process (i.e. impact on heritage and townscape assets, ecology, flooding, landscape and accessibility criteria by way of example). In this respect, The Crown Estate consider that densification of existing urban areas, and development on the edge of Cambridge and on public transport corridors, offer the best potential to deliver development in accordance with the four “Big Themes”. The Site, particularly in the context of the wider AAP development strategy, provides an opportunity to deliver the densification of an existing urban site with excellent public transport infrastructure and as part of a comprehensive mixed use scheme. Closings These representations made on behalf of The Crown Estate seek to assist the Councils in the formulation of the Greater Cambridge Local Plan and aligns with the significant work and stakeholder consultation being progressed in relation to the AAP and delivers an appropriate and effective strategy for delivering new development over the Plan period. Our primary points are:  We support the four “Big Themes” and the Council’s approach to place-making.  We support the principle of densification of existing urban areas.  We would propose the identification of the Site for development in line with the emerging North East Cambridge AAP.  We recommend that the principles of the AAP are cross referenced in the emerging Local Plan to ensure consistency.  We support the Councils intent to encourage a range of employment opportunities and the need to respond to fast-changing working practices.  In respect of housing numbers, we encourage the Council to complete further evidence based assessments on housing numbers, which plan appropriately for the future, taking into account the Government’s standard methodology and planning beyond this where supported by the evidence base. We trust that the above comments are of use in the formulation of the Local Plan preparation. Please ensure that we are on the Council’s consultation register. We note that the Council’s will be gathering additional up to date evidence to support the Local Plan process. The Crown Estate reserves its position to make further representations as and when this information becomes available.

No uploaded files for public display