Clos des Sables: further development – petition.

STATES OF JERSEY

CLOS DES SABLES: FURTHER DEVELOPMENT – PETITION

Lodged au Greffe on 6th July 2011 by Deputy M. Tadier of St. Brelade

STATES GREFFE

2011   Price code: B  P.121

PROPOSITION

THE STATES are asked to decide whether they are of opinion

1. to request the Minister for Treasury and Resources to instruct the Property  Holdings  Department  not  to proceed  with  plans  for  the proposed sale of 2 plots of public land (one adjoining 116 and 123 Le Clos des Sables and the other separating 132 and 145 Le Clos des Sables);
2. to consult fully with residents and parish representatives before any future proposals are pursued for the sale or development of public land in Le Clos des Sables or Les Quennevais Park.

DEPUTY M. TADIER OF ST. BRELADE

Note:   Deputy S. Power of St. Brelade (No. 2) supports this proposition.

REPORT

The residents of Le Clos des Sables, St. Brelade are of the opinion that this estate has more than its fair share of development. The area is already very built-up; in addition there is a large secondary school in the form of Les Quennevais School right in the middle of the estate which brings with it corresponding large traffic flows at peak hours during term time. The residents believe that those green areas which remain provide a vital breathing space' – both physically and psychologically; they enhance the aesthetics of the estate and in some cases provide an area for recreation.

In summary, the residents oppose any new development for two reasons: (1) The open spaces are valued in their own right and would be missed if they were removed. (2) The estate would become even more built up and busy.

Background to Petition

We  were  made  aware  in  2010  that  Jersey  Property  Holdings  were  tentatively considering the viability of the sale of 4 areas of land currently in their (public) ownership:  these  related  to  2  in  Le  Clos  des  Sables  (Appendix 2)  and  2  in  Les Quennevais Park (Appendix 3).

For expediency purposes, the petition was conducted by residents of Le Clos des Sables for that estate only. However, it is important to say that the same considerations should be applied to those sites identified in Les Quennevais Park, as well; the vast majority or residents in both estates are against any further development on either estate, which are adjacent and interconnected anyway. In total, 181 signatures were obtained. These were all from residents of Le Clos des Sables, and represent the vast majority of household on the Estate.

Pending development

During  the  recent  Island  Plan  debate,  several  references  were  made  to  the  long- overdue Lesquende' Development, relating to land which was originally obtained by the States in the early 90s and earmarked for (over 55s) development. In April 2007, Jersey Property Holdings instructed their architects to design a scheme for the area and an application was subsequently submitted on 24th December 2009 for the site. For one reason or another, the development has not progressed as quickly as was desired.

On 11th April 2011, a joint meeting was held by Deputy S. Power of St. Brelade and myself, which was also attended by the Assistant Minister for Treasury and Resources, the Connétable of St. Peter and the Principal Property Manager of Jersey Property Holdings.  The  meeting  was  relatively  well  attended  and  the  opposition  to  the developments was unanimous. One of the arguments put forward was that it would seem logical that, if new houses are required in the parish, it would be logical that sites which have already been identified for a significant number of dwellings, such as the Lesquende plot, should be brought forward before green areas in congested estates are considered. These developments should go ahead first, before looking to areas such as Les Quennevais Park and Le Clos des Sables. This is also an opinion shared by the 2 Deputies of St. Brelade No. 2.

It is also a consideration that, until it is clear what type/split of housing development is put on the Lesquende site, it will not be apparent what type of houses would be required on these other 4 plots.

It was suggested that the sale of these 4 plots from JPH's portfolio would free up' funding for much-needed improvements (parking, maintenance) in the estate. Whilst the  spirit  of  this  is  welcome,  it  is  the  opinion  of  most  residents  that  these improvements should not be at the cost of increased development. It is already a possibility that some green areas may be given over to create more parking areas. It would be unfortunate if, to fund this, more green areas were also sold and developed. We  would  encourage  Property  Holdings  to  work  from  within  existing  budgets, perhaps in co-operation with the parish and residents, to find funding to carry out necessary  improvements,  without  resorting  to  land  being  sold  and  developed  to achieve this. This said, if any sales do occur, we would insist that any funds arising from the sale be prioritised (and even ring-fenced) for the regeneration of the 2 estates.

Lastly, I would like to thank the residents of Le Clos des Sables who offered their time and energy to collect signatures in the Estate. It was they who initiated the petition and have done the ground work. I trust that their views will be taken on board by the department in any future deliberations.

Financial and manpower implications

As the plans put forward by the Department are still tentative, it is difficult to say that there will be direct financial implications from this proposition. Clearly, if this is adopted, any revenues realised from the sale of public land would not occur, but similarly the land (and so its realisable potential value) would remain in possession of the Department. There are no manpower implications.

Appendices 2 and 3

These are extracts from the Clos des Sables and Les Quennevais Park Development Masterplan – Site Plan identification of areas', provided for Property Holdings.

181 signatures

APPENDIX 2