Agenda item
Cabinet Decision Called-in: Corporate and Commercial Events in Parks (CAB 061/112)
To consider Cabinet Report (CAB 061/112) Corporate and Commercial Events in Parks which has been called-in.
Minutes:
The Committee considered Cabinet Decision: Corporate and Commercial Events in Parks (CAB 061/112) which was called-in for further consideration.
The Committee considered the views and comments made by Councillor David Snowdon in presenting the call-in, the information given by Councillor Rania Khan, Cabinet Member for Culture, with Stephen Murray, Head of Arts and Events, in response to Councillor Snowdon's issues and their answers to the Committee’s questions.
Councillor Snowdon (on behalf of the call-in Councillors) outlined the reasons for the call-in and responded to questions from the Committee. These are summarised below:
a inconvenience and detriment of the community:
· potential for disruption experienced
· adverse impacts on regular sporting and recreational activities
· exacerbated disruptive impacts resulting from restricted space and residential location of the proposed venues.
· greater demands on Council services during and after events
· greater traffic nuisance.
b the decision opposed a resolution made by Full Council on 21 September 2011:
· the Cabinet decision conflicted with the Council motion
· pursuing the decision opposed the authority of Full Council
· Isle of Dogs’ residents opposed the proposal
· costs had not been quantified
· responses to Councillor Snowdon's enquires concerning costs had been unclear
Councillor Rania Khan, Cabinet Member for Culture, and Stephen Murray, Head of Arts and Events, responded to the concerns raised. The response and answers to the Committee’ questions are summarised below:
a Financial matters:
· money involved in delivering these events would be small
· 10% of revenues from events would be reinvested in parks
· the majority of events were intended to be small scale.
· opportunities for showcasing new kinds of events and open new revenue streams would be created
· no specific revenue target had been set
· lessons learned from previous events management would be used in the delivery of events at the other venues
b Neighbourhood Issues
· by designating areas within parks for events residents would retain access to the amenities
· use of other venues would relieve pressure on Victoria Park
· there would be opportunities for local organisations to participate
· sports activities in parks were generally winter sports therefore the proposed events would have no impact on these
· there were well established post-event procedures to deal with the reinstatement of venues
· parks had been mapped out for suitability and collated data of what kinds of specific events would be suitable for specific parks could be made available
· suitability of the parks would be based on a marketing exercise
· access to children’s facilities in John MacDougal Park would remain
· the nature of events at each of the parks would be determined by the size of park and facilities available
· no issues had been raised around local impacts but it was intended to use the parks appropriately for the spaces available
· the proposal would help relieve pressure on Victoria Park
c Governance Issues
· the proposal was aligned to the Parks policy, not contrary to it
· officers had not been tasked to undertake major consultation
· post-event debriefs would inform future management proposals
Stephen Murray agreed that data of indicative numbers and nature of events would be collated and provided to Committee Members 4-5 weeks hence
Action: Stephen Murray, Head of Arts and Events
The Committee considered the views and comments made by Councillor David Snowdon in presenting the call-in, the information given by Councillor Rania Khan and Stephen Murray in response to Councillor Snowdon’s issues and their answers to the Committee’s questions.
The Committee's discussion of the call-in brought forward the following views:
It was noted the Committee was not opposed to the use of the borough's other parks for community events in principle as it would bring people together and offered opportunities to generate revenue. Notwithstanding this, the following concerns remained:
a Financial
· the projected likely revenues had not been sufficiently estimated taking into account the likely capacity of the venues and numbers of events that would be required to achieve the expected revenue of £100,000.
· only a small percentage of monies generated would be reinvested in the parks and there were no details of how this would be done
· savings had been identified but no clear plan on how these would be attained.
· there was no clear plan of how monies would be generated and how the events would be delivered
b Neighbourhood
· local concerns expressed to Ward Councillors had not been taken into account when proposals were formulated
· the risk of adverse effects on residents had not been quantified
· residents should have been consulted on the decision before proceeding to Cabinet
· it was considered inappropriate to encourage visitors to the borough at the expense of residents
· the Committee considered that suitability of parks for events could not properly be assessed without consulting residents
· there was a risk that that there would be pressure in some parks for events every week
c Governance
· noting Council’s resolution of 21 September 2011 concerning events in parks, it was felt that the decision opposed Full Council’s authority and had not been well thought out
· the proposal contained no checks and balances
· the methods of implementation lacked detail
The Committee also wished the following points to be noted:
· the events could be beneficial as the Olympics would bring visitors to the borough
· in principle, the Committee supported the creation of opportunities to use park facilities but there needed to be more regard to residents’ views
· there should be evidence of consultation with residents and consideration given to the community.
Having deliberated, Members of the Committee endorsed the reasons for the call-in. The Committee agreed that the provisional decision be referred back to Cabinet asking that (while there was no objection to the decision in principle) further consideration should be given on the basis of the views and concerns expressed.
RESOLVED
1. That the Overview and Scrutiny Committee endorsed the call-in on the basis of that, in taking the decision, issues of nuisance, planning and consultation had not been properly addressed.
2. That the Cabinet Decision called-in “Corporate and Commercial Events in Parks (CAB 061/112)” be referred back to the Cabinet noting that the Committee did not wish the decision to be reversed but that it be considered again in the context of the comments made
Supporting documents:
- 5.1 Events in Parks Call-in cover report, item 5.1 PDF 85 KB
- 5.1a Corporates Cabinet Report Jan 12 v3 final HB2212110917am, item 5.1 PDF 87 KB