The Local Plans Sub (Planning and Transportation) Committee was scheduled to convene to address several key items, most notably the proposed modifications to the City Plan 2040 following its independent examination. The committee was also expected to confirm the minutes of a prior meeting and elect a deputy chair.

City Plan 2040 Modifications

The primary focus of the meeting was to consider the report from the Executive Director, Environment on the main and additional modifications to the City Plan 2040. The report pack included a supplementary document showing the tracked changes to Appendix 6 of the City Plan 2040. The City Plan 2040 is the local plan for the City of London and sets out the vision for the Square Mile up to 2040. The plan focuses on several strategic priorities, including:

• Economic growth, targeting a minimum of 1.2 million square metres of new office space.
• Becoming a 7-day-a-week destination with new cultural attractions.
• Achieving net zero carbon emissions by 2040.
• Creating a more inclusive and healthier city.

The report pack included a summary of the main changes to policies, including:

• Health, Inclusion and Safety:
  • Strengthening requirements for developers to manage the impact of their proposals on air quality, aligning with the Air Quality SPD¹.
  • Protecting existing public sports and recreation facilities and encouraging the provision of new facilities that meet Sport England's Active Design principles.
  • Requiring Health Impact Assessments (HIAs) for major developments.
• Housing:
  • Prioritising affordable housing delivery and applying the Mayor's threshold approach of a minimum of 35% affordable housing, and 50% on public sector land.
  • Supporting Build to Rent² developments and co-living accommodation in appropriate locations.
• Offices:
  • Facilitating significant growth in office development, aiming for a minimum of 1,200,000 m2 net additional office floorspace between 2021 and 2040.
  • Protecting existing office stock from being lost to other uses.
• Retail:
  • Making the City's retail areas more vibrant, with a greater mix of retail, leisure, entertainment, and culture.
  • Focusing new large-scale retail development in the Principal Shopping Centres (PSCs).
• Culture and Visitors:
  • Maintaining and enhancing the City's cultural infrastructure, leisure and recreation offer, visitor experiences, and the evening and weekend economies.
  • Requiring major developments to submit Culture and Vibrancy Plans.
• Infrastructure:
  • Coordinating infrastructure planning and delivery and the transition towards a zero carbon and climate resilient City.
  • Protecting existing essential utilities and telecommunications infrastructure.
• Design:
  • Promoting innovative, sustainable, and inclusive high-quality buildings, streets, and spaces.
  • Taking a 'retrofit first' approach, prioritising the retention and retrofit of existing buildings.
• Transport:
  • Minimising road danger and congestion, and reducing vehicle emissions.
  • Promoting active travel, including walking, wheeling and cycling.
• Heritage and Tall Buildings:
  • Protecting, celebrating, and positively managing the City's historic environment.
  • Directing tall buildings to appropriate areas, such as the City Cluster and Fleet Valley, while protecting strategic views.
• Open Spaces and Green Infrastructure:
  • Protecting existing open and green space and seeking the provision of new open and green space through development.
  • Increasing public access to open spaces and promoting urban greening.
• Climate Resilience:
  • Designing buildings and the public realm to be adaptable to future climate conditions and resilient to extreme weather events.
  • Minimising the risk of overheating and any adverse contribution to the urban heat island effect³.
• Circular Economy and Waste:
  • Supporting businesses and residents in moving towards a Zero Waste City, by applying circular economy principles.
  • Safeguarding Walbrook Wharf as a waste site and wharf suitable for the river transport of waste.
• The Temple and the Thames Policy Area:
  • Supporting the unique functions of the Inner and Middle Temples.
  • Enhancing the character of the City's riverside and its uses for transport and recreation.
• Key Areas of Change:
  • Providing strategic policies for specific areas, including Blackfriars, Pool of London, Aldgate, Tower and Portsoken, City Cluster, Fleet Street and Ludgate, and Smithfield and Barbican.
• Planning Contributions:
  • Seeking appropriate contributions from developers to manage and mitigate the impact of development.

The report pack also included several appendices, including:

• Main Modifications
• Additional Modifications
• Sustainability Appraisal Review
• Policies Map 'Atlas of Change'
• HRA Review Matrix

Prior Meeting Minutes

The committee was scheduled to approve the public minutes of the meeting held on 18 October 2023. The minutes summarise the discussion that took place at that meeting on the City Plan 2040. During that meeting, the committee discussed the following topics:

• Health, Inclusion and Safety:
  • The committee discussed the wording of Policy HL2, which related to air quality, and sought clarification on whether the policy would encourage gasoline power generators.
  • The committee discussed the provision of public toilets in new developments, and the maintenance of those toilets.
  • The committee discussed the possibility of combining Policy HL7, which related to sport and recreation, with Policy HL8, which related to play areas and facilities.
  • The committee discussed the wording of Policy SA3, which related to designing in security, and sought stronger wording to discourage hostile vehicle mitigation on the public highway.
• Housing:
  • The committee discussed the timeframe of the Housing Plan, and whether certain buildings should be able to be converted from office to residential more easily than policy would permit.
• Offices:
  • The committee discussed the wording of Policy OF2, which related to the loss of office floor space, and whether laboratories were classified as offices.
  • The committee discussed the importance of temporary 'meanwhile' uses and having a policy that insisted on these to prevent the sterilisation of a site prior to the development of a site.
• Retail:
  • The committee discussed the importance of working in partnership with the Business Improvement Districts (BIDs) to gain their perspective.
  • The committee discussed how retail and other relevant uses would be encouraged to open at evenings and weekends, particularly in areas around key attractions.
• Culture and Visitors:
  • The committee discussed whether the Plan should make reference to how it was expected that the demographics of the visitor mix would change.
• Infrastructure:
  • The committee discussed whether new developments should be required to include a piece of tunnel under their developments so that when there were enough sites, they could be connected.
• Design:
  • The committee discussed the importance of the aesthetics of buildings and that expectations should be included in the Plan.
  • The committee discussed the cumulative effects of the loss of daylight and sunlight.
• Transport:
  • The committee discussed how the City ensured that lifts provided as part of an application were maintained and kept in use for the public to use.
  • The committee discussed the prohibition of on-street shredding.
  • The committee discussed wayfinding and engaging with providers to ensure their apps located interesting destinations in the City.
• Active Travel and Healthy Streets:
  • The committee discussed discarded hire bikes and safety issues around the changing of e-scooters.
• Heritage and Tall Buildings:
  • The committee discussed the importance of not suggesting that it was right to fill the tall tower cluster area of Fleet Valley area with developments and also not to suggest that developments could not take place in an area that was outside of these areas.

Election of Deputy Chairman

The committee was scheduled to elect a Deputy Chairman in accordance with Standing Order 26(6).