Working party was 'really poor' in Vision 2031 debate, councillor admits
Friday, 30th August 2013.
Crestfallen councillors who admitted they failed the town in their response to the Vision 2031 planning document at the last meeting of Haverhill Area Working Party (HAWP) have been told they cannot bring their radical re-think to the group for debate.
Instead, Haverhill Town Council’s dramatic response in public consultation on the document, which demands changes on north-east Haverhill and inclusion of rail renewal, will have to be debated at the borough council’s next sustainable development committee meeting in Bury St Edmunds.
Cllr Maureen Byrne said members of HAWP, and she included herself, had done residents of the town a dis-service in the debate at their last meeting in June by not challenging the document robustly.
"We were really poor at our last meeting in thinking about what was best for the town," she said.
At that meeting the working party quite quickly agreed to support the final draft of Vision 2031 despite one or two misgivings from Cllr Byrne.
Now Haverhill Town Council has put together a substantially improved response which would be circulated to HAWP members.
Cllr Byrne wanted HAWP to adopt and support the new response, but was told by chairman Cllr Karen Richardson the HAWP decision to support Vision 2031 had already gone forward.
The next debate would be at the sustainable development committee to which the new response should be addressed.
Cllr Anne Gower asked that the new response should be sent to all borough councillors.
No members took issue with Cllr Byrne's assessment of their previous discussion and decision.
Instead, Haverhill Town Council’s dramatic response in public consultation on the document, which demands changes on north-east Haverhill and inclusion of rail renewal, will have to be debated at the borough council’s next sustainable development committee meeting in Bury St Edmunds.
Cllr Maureen Byrne said members of HAWP, and she included herself, had done residents of the town a dis-service in the debate at their last meeting in June by not challenging the document robustly.
"We were really poor at our last meeting in thinking about what was best for the town," she said.
At that meeting the working party quite quickly agreed to support the final draft of Vision 2031 despite one or two misgivings from Cllr Byrne.
Now Haverhill Town Council has put together a substantially improved response which would be circulated to HAWP members.
Cllr Byrne wanted HAWP to adopt and support the new response, but was told by chairman Cllr Karen Richardson the HAWP decision to support Vision 2031 had already gone forward.
The next debate would be at the sustainable development committee to which the new response should be addressed.
Cllr Anne Gower asked that the new response should be sent to all borough councillors.
No members took issue with Cllr Byrne's assessment of their previous discussion and decision.
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