Delivering Economic Growth

Transcription

1 Delivering Economic Growth

2 Delivering Economic Growth PBA, now part of Stantec, has been at the forefront of conceiving, planning and delivering transport oriented development for over 25 years. PBA was involved in early plans for development at Ebbsfleet and Barking Riverside in the early 90s. These projects are immensely complex, and serve to show that planning transport infrastructure to underpin development is no guarantee of a successful growth plan. Making economic growth a reality can be hard. Growth does not always follow transport investment in the way you expect. It is often assumed that increased connectivity creates opportunities for greater economically and socially useful activity at a lower environmental cost. But if there is insufficient demand for local economic growth, a likely alternative outcome is that local people will use better transport accessibility to travel elsewhere for their economic activity, with benefit flowing out rather than in, at least to begin with. So, a more nuanced approach is needed. Local strengths and ambitions are more likely to provide a robust foundation for growth, rather than assuming something new and exciting will come along to provide the basis for an economic transformation. This is why devolution has become an important part of this discussion. As is now widely recognised, local leadership is more likely to understand the local economic drivers, and how to build on them successfully. Unfortunately, there are serious pitfalls. For example, it is easy to become seduced by the enthusiasm and ambition that can be generated when planning a better future for your area. Sometimes, anything seems possible, even if the evidence to support an ambitious plan is a bit thin! Planning for growth needs to be founded in reality, even if the result is that a longer term plan is needed, built by providing places where the talents of local people and new communities can build and sustain their own future. This is often seen as less attractive to politicians, but perhaps more of this is what is needed. To make things more difficult, the world is changing very quickly. Just as we have begun to get our head around some of these complexities, the world has begun to shift again. Will the next ten years bring widespread use of Mobility as a Service (MaaS), autonomous and alternative fuels? Will we have more dispersed patterns of living supported by technology and more flexible working patterns. How will robotics and biotechnology affect our working lives? Are these things 2

3 unknowable? Does the past still provide a sensible guide to the future, or are traditional empirical methods of forecasting and appraisal now defunct - and if so, how should we do this now? We need to get better at planning for uncertainty. We need to embrace what is best about each local community, and create a local vision for new places that places HS2 at the centre of a wider transport mix, and which delivers communities which are best able to adapt to the challenges of each wave of rapid changes in society. We need to avoid plans that build in those futures that we know we don t want, and instead leave our plans open to other, more desirable futures; but how do we know what is a more desirable future and how do we define it? Creating a vision, underpinned by local realities, is a critical first step. Recent research* concludes that we need to put the vision of the new community at the heart of the planning process (vision and validate) and an adaptive management approach at the heart of delivery (monitor and manage). We don t need a wholesale change to do this - we can use existing techniques to support a more locally focussed approach to planning, design and delivery, and ensuring that we secure viable economic growth in a way that builds places fit for the future. Keith Mitchell Director, Community Development and Infrastructure PBA, now part of Stantec *PBA has published Places First which builds on recent research to develop the concepts of vision and validate, and monitor and manage as they relate to the planning for future development and infrastructure projects. 3

4 We are an HS2 delivery partner... Phase 1: Enabling works Fusion (a joint venture of Morgan Sindall, BAM Nuttall and Ferrovial Agroman) were awarded the central area package of HS2 s three enabling works contracts in Autumn We tendered the A413 Roundabouts and Haul Road enabling works package and in October 2017 were appointed to deliver Scheme Design, including stakeholder engagement and preliminary design of the project which will provide access for National Grid diversions and construction of the Chiltern Tunnel. The scheme will deliver improvements to two roundabouts and create a haul road through private land designed to be in place for a decade. Based on our work, we were then appointed to deliver the detailed design work in early Fusion has 400m of enabling work to deliver in the central package of Phase One and PBA encouraged them to develop a Framework to make procurement and delivery easier. As a result, the AW6 Enabling Works Framework was established to which we have been appointed, alongside three other consultancies. This framework will be in place for up to three years. 4

5 Phase 2B: Hybrid Bill Development Partner Bechtel was officially appointed Delivery Partner for the HS2 Phase 2B Hybrid Bill in June 2017 and are responsible for managing a team of over 100 professional staff, located at HS2 s Snow Hill office in Birmingham. PBA s senior managers are providing technical assurance and delivery of outputs covering transport planning, environment, utilities, geotechnical, stakeholder engagement and agricultural liaison support. Phase 2B recently hit a major milestone with the publication of the Working Draft Environmental Statement (WDES), comprising 11,800 pages of text, and 3,500 key stakeholder interviews. A 10-week consultation period, one of the biggest of its kind ever undertaken in the UK, is now underway. A series of public events are being held around the country between now and December, involving stakeholders from across the route. This exercise is one of the largest of its kind ever undertaken in the UK. Feedback will be taken into consideration and a final WDES will be submitted to Parliament alongside the Hybrid Bill....delivering economic growth 5

6 Creating value from HS2... Old Oak Common Old Oak Common is where HS2 meets Crossrail (Elizabeth line), two of Europe s largest infrastructure projects. PBA conducted a development infrastructure funding study for Old Oak Common to help West London seize the major growth opportunity presented by the infrastructure investment that accompanies HS2. The study provides a greater understanding of the scale, type, costs and funding of infrastructure required to support the proposed level of development at Old Oak, including the infrastructure requirements needed to support homes and jobs at development areas around the stations. The future Old Oak Common will be one of the UK s best connected places, with direct access to central London, Heathrow, Wales and the West Country, Birmingham and the North of England. These connections come as a result of a new Crossrail station, a new HS2 station, a new stop on the Great Western Mainline, and potential new London Overground stations. These new connections fundamentally alter the economic geography of the area. Our funding study at Old Oak used the vision as a starting point, and provided a greater understanding of the scale, type, costs and funding of infrastructure required to support the proposed level of development at Old Oak. We looked in detail at the infrastructure requirements needed to support homes and jobs at development areas around the stations, and how that infrastructure can be paid for. Our work focused on creating viable development opportunities at HS2 stations, and looked to leverage what can be achieved when public sector investment creates rising land values, which can then be used to deliver socially positive change for an area, both for new and existing communities. PBA is now part of the Master Plan Team appointed by Old Oak Common and Park Royal development corporation to work towards brining these proposals to reality. 6

7 Grand Union Park Old Oak and Park Royal Development Corporation...delivering economic growth 7

8 Creating an HS2-led vision... Northern Gateway Development Zone In 2016, PBA was appointed by the Northern Gateway Partnership, together with Urbed and the Futures Company, to prepare a vision for the Northern Gateway Development Zone. The Northern Gateway Partnership (now known as the Constellation Partnership), is an ambitious and collaborative venture, with seven local authorities and two Local Enterprise Partnerships working with investors, communities and landowners to optimise the sustainable and inclusive growth potential of the area and maximise the impact of HS2 investment. The vision will be delivered by driving strategic economic growth, developing radical and innovative propositions to deliver this potential across a diverse area, with an ambition to deliver 100,000 new homes and 120,000 new jobs by Situated at the heart of the UK, the Northern Gateway Development Zone extends from Staffordshire in the West Midlands towards Greater Manchester in the north, fusing those areas of the Northern Powerhouse and the Midlands Engine. The Northern Gateway region sits at the heart of the UK s national transport network and is a key transport node with nationally significant networks crossing the region. PBA engaged with political leaders and officers to understand the local context and plans for the future, and how this was likely to change over time as a result of the implementation of HS2, and other disruptive factors. PBA then worked with the Partnership to develop six place based ambitions covering: a spatial plan to deliver development in the right place in the right way, a programme of transport investment to enhance connectivity, a growth strategy to build on existing economic strengths, a skills development package to secure prosperity for local people, leadership and governance models to deliver change, and a communication strategy which provides an authentic and authoritative narrative to attract investors. Each ambition was underpinned by investable propositions to provide the basis for future implementation, and these have provided the basis for the development of proposals for funding, investment and development in the area. 8

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10 Creating shared ambitions for the north... Ambitions for the North: People & Place In 2014, a number of organisations came together to hold two events in the North West under the banner Framing the Future at which it was agreed that, in the absence of any serious national spatial plan, the north of England needed a plan of its own. In 2015, IPPR North and the RTPI issued a call for evidence, and organised 11 roundtable discussions in six northern cities, and a Northern Summit was held in January 2016, with debates and interactive voting. Through all of these activities stakeholders were asked Do we need a Great North Plan?. The response was an overwhelming yes. The RTPI believes the Northern Powerhouse needs to make places work better for people, with infrastructure investments that help to improve quality of life. The Institute is calling for an inclusive, collaborative and pan-northern approach to tackling issues such as demographic change, health, the future of town centres, rural and coastal communities, jobs and skills, graduate retention, and barriers to good growth. The RTPI s Yorkshire, North East and North West regions, in partnership with PBA and Newcastle University, have started a project called Ambitions for the North of England: People and Place. By promoting co-operation beyond traditional boundaries, it aims to create a joined-up approach that would help Northern towns, cities and rural areas develop sustainably, and ensure that prosperity generated by the Northern Powerhouse is shared as widely as possible, not just in the major urban areas. Roundtables will be held in places such as Bradford, Sheffield and Newcastle to explore how demographic, cultural and technological change will affect people s lives, the shape of the built environment and community identity. From these, the project will identify what ambitions are realistic and the responses that could be put in place. 10

11 We are delighted to lead this hugely important commission. There is a strong consensus and momentum in the North to take charge of its own destiny. PBA has a strong record of providing thoughtful, incisive and well-informed research tackling complex issues. The project provides a critical opportunity to explore key spatial issues affecting people and places across the North, and to catalyse stakeholders and decision-makers to take forward identified ambitions as part of a shared purpose. Bernard Greep, Director of Planning and Growth, PBA, now part of Stantec...delivering economic growth 11

12 Creating transformative projects... Tetley Brewery, Leeds Leeds is central to the Northern Powerhouse concept and its South Bank area is one of the most significant regeneration opportunities in Europe, providing high quality development in Leeds city centre, focused around the proposed new HS2 station, a growing major rail hub. The former Tetley Brewery land was acquired by our client Vastint and, after providing initial technical due diligence, PBA was appointed Transport Consultant. The current proposals centre around a new city park (3.2 Ha) which will form the heart of the scheme and provide benefits to the new development and the South Bank area in general. The new park will be lined by a new residential district (ca 850 units) to the north and a mixed commercial (ca 120,000m2) area to the south, consisting of office, hotel and creative spaces. Due to the site s location, transport aspects of the masterplan development were critical. PBA s comprehensive transport planning consultancy included the successful negotiation of low on-site parking provision, as well as a concentration on public transport, park&ride and pedestrian and cycling connections. PBA also provided strategic transport advice to support the wider aspiration to transform highway infrastructure through public realm improvements, green areas, shared spaces and pedestrian and cycle priorities right across the South Bank Development. Council chiefs on the City Plans Panel unanimously voted to move the plans on to the next stage in October

13 Tetley Brewery, Leeds David Lindsay...delivering economic growth 13

14 Creating a plan for infrastructure... UK Central The delivery of the UK Central Hub, around the new HS2 station due to open in 2026, encompasses major existing facilities such as the NEC, Birmingham Airport, and Birmingham International Station, and includes major employers such as Jaguar Land Rover and Birmingham Business Park. Meanwhile, alongside the new HS2 station that will open at The Hub in 2026 there are plans for new commercial and residential areas around the station, regeneration at the nearby Birmingham International Station and additional facilities at the NEC site and for Jaguar Land Rover. The Urban Growth Company wanted to both understand the infrastructure investment that will be required to capitalise on the major growth opportunity that is envisaged alongside the arrival of the HS2 station, and they needed to drill down to understand the way that infrastructure could effectively be delivered and effectively support both the station and the development. PBA provided the Solihull UK Central Triangle and Hub Development Infrastructure Study (DIF Study) in August 2015 which considered a range of transport, social and utilities infrastructure, what this might cost, when it might be needed and how this could be delivered at the wider UK Central site. In 2016, PBA provided a review of costings for the required infrastructure, based on changing circumstances, and undertook an Infrastructure Investment Appraisal. In the Infrastructure Investment Appraisal, PBA identified areas where infrastructure schemes could be phased or where there may be economies of scale that could be applied. The issues around lead times for planning infrastructure and phasing of delivery were also made clearer through this work. In all this work, PBA brought knowledge from other similar projects such as HS1 and Ebbsfleet. This was key in identifying sources of funding appropriate for specific schemes and to establish a robust plan for delivering. PBA s local knowledge was critical in developing an understanding of how best to deliver an integrated infrastructure plan. 14

15 We ve worked with the PBA team on a number of projects. Their insight is excellent and they also understand the need to work closely with multiple stakeholders. That combination delivers thoughtful solutions which have genuine buy-in. Philip Farrell, Interim Managing Director, Urban Growth Company...delivering economic growth 15

16 PBA, now part of Stantec Together, we ll design with community in mind PBA is a leading UK development and infrastructure consultancy of engineers, planners, scientists, and economists, delivering projects that create better places for the communities in which we work. Stantec is an international consultancy, headquartered in Canada that shares our strong values and focus on community. In September 2018, PBA joined forces with Stantec to accelerate our client-led strategy and achieve our shared ambition for growth in the UK and Europe. Joining forces means we will be able to offer a broader set of services and greater working experiences for our clients, and even better career development for our people. Stantec has 22,000 team members worldwide, with over 1,700 professional services staff based around the UK. Together, we will create communities fit for the future where people want to live, work and play. Our combined service offering covers these sectors: Community Development Buildings Water Energy & Environment Major Infrastructure To find out more about how we can help you, visit Peter Brett Associates info@peterbrett.com