The Coronavirus pandemic has had an impact on all aspects of the Council’s work in 2020. Arising from the update provided by the Leader and Chief Executive at 9 July 2020 meeting, the Committee has asked for a briefing at this meeting on the impact of Covid-19 on the Council’s major capital projects; in terms of how the pandemic has affected their timescales, budgets and strategic and operational outcomes.
To ensure the latest information is provided, the briefing will be in the form of a presentation by a Director and the Service Manager (Corporate Policy). The session is not intended as scrutiny of the projects themselves, only of the specific impact of the pandemic on them. Therefore, only a brief overview of the Covid-19 impacts will be given for most of the projects.
However, at the request of the Chair, the presentation will focus in more detail on the impact of Covid-19 on the Mildenhall Hub and Western Way Development projects to reflect previous questions from the Committee.
Minutes:
[Councillor Jim Meikle joined the meeting at 5.18pm]
The Coronavirus pandemic has had an impact on all aspects of the
Council’s work in 2020. Arising from the update provided by the Leader and Chief Executive at 9 July 2020 meeting, the Committee had asked for a briefing at its November 2020 meeting on the impact of Covid-19 on the Council’s major capital projects, in terms of how the pandemic had affected their timescales, budgets and strategic and operational outcomes.
The Committee received a presentation by a Director and the Service Manager (Corporate Policy). It was emphasised that the session was not intended as scrutiny of the projects themselves, only of the specific impact of the pandemic on them and was intended to focus on the most significant of the Council’s projects. A brief overview of the Covid-19 impacts was given on most of the projects but, at the request of the Committee, more detail was provided on the Western Way Development and the Mildenhall Hub.
The presentation set out: the business continuity process followed; general impacts of the pandemic; major projects which had needed to continue in March 2020; projects put on hold for review in March 2020 due to Covid-19; the Western Way Development (in terms of where the Council had got to pre-lockdown, the impact of Covid-19 on the development and next steps); and the Mildenhall Hub (including immediate impacts and Covid-19 actions, such as working with partners on how the Hub would operate if social distancing was still needed in Spring 2021 or in future pandemics).
The Committee considered the presentation in detail and asked a number of questions to which comprehensive responses were provided.
In response to a question raised regarding the impact of Covid-19 on the tendering and contract price for 17-18 Cornhill, officers agreed to provide a written response.
In response to a question raised regarding the Western Way Development and when the procurement process would commence, members were informed this was subject to Council approval in February 2021 on the outcome of the business case review with partners. If approved, a two-stage procurement process would commence from spring 2021 and would continue through the remainder of 2021. Members asked about the traffic impacts of the development, to which it was noted that there had been a full traffic assessment undertaken and considered when the development was approved by the Development Control Committee. The mitigation involved significant junction improvements and a robust travel plan.
In response to a question raised about the opportunities to engage with young people, and specifically the Youth Council, regarding the Western Way Development (WWD), members were informed that an equality impact assessment had been carried out for the project and the building would be designed similar to the Mildenhall Hub, with flexible spaces available to all age groups within the community. This could include the Youth Council, if they wished. In addition, space in the building would be available for use by West Suffolk College and local schools, as needed. Finally, although not exclusively a young person’s activity, the skate park users had also been involved in designing the new skate park and appointing specialist contractors.
Members were impressed with progress on the Mildenhall Hub, which they felt was an exemplar development. The Chair in particular wished to thank R G Carter and their team for all of their work, particularly through the pandemic, on the Mildenhall Hub, which he felt was a fantastic investment for Mildenhall.
The Committee noted the presentation and thanked the Director and the Service Manager (Corporate Policy) for providing a comprehensive presentation on the Impact of Covid-19 on the Council’s major capital projects.