Those present were thanked for attending and were advised that West Yorkshire Police valued their comments and input to the proposals presented.

Transcription

1 Leeds Divisional Headquarters and Custody Facility Community Consultation Meeting 30th January :00pm Reaney Suite, Leeds United FC, Elland Road Stadium, Leeds Twenty seven members of the public attended the above consultation event, together with representatives of West Yorkshire Police and the Interserve/Equitix consortium, including:- ACO Nigel Brook Project Sponsor West Yorkshire Police David Outram Project Director West Yorkshire Police Angela Lawson Executive Project Manager West Yorkshire Police Chief Superintendent Paul Money West Yorkshire Police David Ingham Project Manager West Yorkshire Police Adrienne Cater Business Manager West Yorkshire Police Adele Attree Project Officer West Yorkshire Police Caroline German PFI Project Support Administrator West Yorkshire Police Julie McGee Project Assistant West Yorkshire Police Mark Smith Procurement Director Interserve John Paul Allen Project Manager Interserve Steve Spencer Architect - Jacobs Dan Webster Design Manager Interserve The panel delivered a brief presentation, which summarised the progress made on the project so far, next steps and an introduction to the successful consortium who will be responsible for Designing, Constructing, Financing and Operating the finished Facility. This presentation is available on the West Yorkshire Police PFI project website: Those present were thanked for attending and were advised that West Yorkshire Police valued their comments and input to the proposals presented. All present were invited to participate in three separate workshops during the evening. A summary of the points raised, (and responses where appropriate) are outlined below. 1

2 Design & Materials: Q How many people will be based at the Divisional Headquarters? A Approximately 700 people will be based at the DHQ however due to the nature of 24/7 shift working, and officers working in communities, the maximum number of people using the site at one time will be much lower. Q Will it look like a fortress? A No, the Headquarters itself is essentially an office building with adjacent custody facility and car park, we hope this is reflected in the artists impressions provided. Q Where is the plantroom and will it be noisy? A The plant room is on the roof enclosed with a screen and will be acoustically contained. Q How environmentally friendly is the building? A It is designed to BREEAM Excellent standard and also includes renewable technologies such as Photovoltaic panels to meet planning requirements. Q Is the glass self cleaning? A No but the 25 year contract includes glass cleaning Q Is the building white? A It is off-white precast stone and will be treated with an anti graffiti coating. Q Is it a concrete retaining wall to the rear of the operational car park? A Yes but this should not be visible from outside the site due to the planting arrangement and the topography of the ground allowing the car parking and wall to be cut into the embankment. Q Will there be public access to the gym as mentioned last time? A The Division supports this idea in principle and discussions are ongoing about how this can be achieved in practice. Q Is there a DDA compliant (accessible) cell? A Yes Q How high will the building be on Heath Road? A 3 storeys cut into the existing plateau at the corner of Heath Road and Elland Road reducing to 2 storeys along Heath Road Q Will there be a franchised café? A No, discussions are on going with community groups about the operation of café facilities which are being provided near the entrance to the building Q Will access be taken from Heath Road? A No unless the front entrance is blocked and emergency access is required e.g. a fire engine needs to get to the building. 2

3 Q How many visitor car parking spaces are there and will this be enough? A There are 21 visitor car parking spaces and additional overspill spaces are also to be created to the right of the access road which should provide another 8-10 spaces if needed. Q Will there be police dogs or helicopter at this site? A No those will continue to be based at our facility at Carr Gate (North Wakefield). Post meeting note: Police dogs may visit on occasions for operational reasons. A volunteer offered to review the accessible W/C design to ensure it is appropriate team to take drawing to next consultation meeting. Construction Principles / Introduction to Interserve Q When will you be working on site? A The working hours are strictly controlled and are restricted in the planning permission conditions. Interserve will incur penalties if they are not considerate contractors. Hours are likely to be: Monday Friday ; Saturday ; and not on Sunday s or match days, but this it to be confirmed. Q What is the construction period? A The construction period will commence in June 2012 (subject to planning approval) and is planned for completion in March Q What would Interserve do to control dust / mud? A Interserve are used to working near / next to homes and will use suppression techniques such as water spray to control dust. Vehicle covers and vehicle washdown facilities may also be provided to reduce the impact of this problem and Interserve will inspect the vehicles regularly. Q Will the public have any access to the site? A The site will be secure throughout construction with staffed security out of working hours. It is proposed that organised site visits for the public will be arranged in due course. Interserve will also provide construction updates via newsletters and letter drops and future public consultation events such as this. Q Will a night watchman be on site? A Yes, the site will be secure throughout the construction period 24/7. Q Which roads will be used for access by the site vehicles? A Interserve will implement a traffic management plan which will look to use primary roads as much as possible. The main entrance during the construction process will be from Elland Road. Q What will happen with the traffic light system at the junction? A Interserve are speaking to the Highways Authroity in order to improve the traffic lights and junction. 3

4 Q Will the DHQ be using a traffic light system such as used at Fire Stations? A This is unlikely, but discussions are ongoing. Q How well illuminated will the building be? A All of the buildings will be lit externally to allow people to be aware of its existence and to keep them safe when approaching, however low lighting will be used to keep light pollution to a minimum (i.e. no floodlights like at Elland Road). Q Where will the site workforce be parking? A All employees will be given appropriate inductions / information on where they can and should not park. Local discussions are ongoing about parking and Interserve will work hard to ensure there is limited impact on residents. Q Are any of the trees under protection? A We are aware of a number of trees which have a Tree Protection Order (TPO) and the landscaping plans are to take out as few trees as possible. Interserve will be planting many more trees than are actually being removed and are in discussions with the Local Authority on this matter. Q Can the community visit and use the completed building? A Yes and some rooms may be made available for community use for meetings / group activities etc. Q Would Interserve be encouraging the use of local companies? A Yes, meet the buyer events will be held shortly which will encourage local companies to meet Interserve representatives. Interserve is committed to ensuring 85% of subcontractors used will be local. In addition across the three schemes Interserve will provide 85 apprenticeships (across the construction and operational phases). Q What will happen to the existing police buildings? A All of the other sites will be closed and sold (e.g. Milgarth, Holbeck) although a City Centre Policing presence will be retained. The exact details of this are still to be confirmed. Q Is the 25 year contract flexible and what happens if Interserve go bust? A Stringent financial checks have been undertaken at this stage and there are provisions within the contract which provide for the contractor going bankrupt and allow first the funder and then the Police Authority to step in to deliver the contract. Under the contract there is a requirement for benchmarking and market testing to be undertaken every 5 years to ensure that the contractor is still providing value for money. Q What facilities will exist for workmen/women who smoke during the construction period? A Some form of smoking shelter will be provided on the site during the construction period. Smoking is prohibited on the construction site itself, and staff will not be permitted to smoke immediately outside the site entrance. The finished facility will be a no-smoking building. 4

5 Q Will you be able to present information on the scheme at summer community Galas? A We will consider this idea, please pass on the details and we will get in touch. Q The speed of traffic on Elland Road is an issue, what can be done? A We will address any concerns regarding the speed of construction related vehicles. This will also be addressed in the site management plan. Regarding speeding generally in the area, this matter will be referred to your NPT Inspector for further consideration / action. Post meeting note Local residents are encouraged to view the planning application ref: 12/00241/RM either through the Leeds City Council Planning website: Or view the plans at: Planning Services Leeds City Council Leonardo Building 2 Rossington Street Leeds LS2 8HD 5