City council Planning Convener Cllr James Dalgleish writes about a bold and ambitious plan agreed last week by councillors to make better use of land in the Capital:
Edinburgh’s population is growing fast and so a major highlight of City Plan 2030 is setting aside enough land to accommodate 53,000 much needed homes.
It will help to inform planning decisions going forward to guide sustainable growth and where we can we’ll agree the use of brownfield land rather than precious greenfield sites for new development.
Last year we declared a housing emergency to address the city’s chronic shortage of affordable housing so integral to the plan is that each new housing development will have to include a minimum of 35% affordable homes.
To look after the wellbeing of our residents and meet our climate goals we need to look wider than just providing new homes though. We’re going to create sustainable neighbourhoods fit for local modern living where people can afford to buy or rent their homes. Residents will have job opportunities nearby and be able to walk, or wheel to educational and healthcare facilities, enjoy cultural and sporting activities and easily access public transport to visit other parts of Edinburgh.
It is important that we meet the needs of everyone who wants to live in our beautiful Capital. Edinburgh is also an internationally renowned university city and the plan will help guide where and how much student accommodation we have in the future. On larger sites coming forward developers will be asked to provide other housing, particularly affordable homes, allowing students to live alongside a mix of others within communities.
The plan will also help Edinburgh to transition to net zero by reducing carbon emissions from new buildings and in areas of regeneration we’re delivering new heat networks and energy infrastructure.
New environmental policies are also key as it is vital we protect our beautiful green spaces, the wellbeing of our residents, reduce flooding and improve air quality.
I’d like to thank all those residents, community groups and businesses who helped us to get City Plan 2030 over the line and acknowledge the hard work of Council officers who were part of this.
Edinburgh’s new local development plan has received support from the Scottish Government.
City Plan 2030 – which sets out the strategy for development, proposals, and policies to shape development and inform planning decisions in the coming years – was subject to a 15 month-long examination by the Scottish Government Reporter.
In the report on the examination, published this week, the Reporter supported significant elements of the Plan – including affordable housebuilding targets, mixed used commercial development, and ambitious and sustainable development plans for West Edinburgh.
Planning Convener Cllr James Dalgleish said: “Our ambitious City Plan 2030 meets the needs of the Capital’s growing population, making better use of land across all neighbourhoods, and supporting our commitment to be net zero by 2030. I welcome the news that the Reporter has recognised and endorsed these ambitions, with only minor changes required to the Plan.
“We want to strengthen communities and make sure that our policies focus on the health and wellbeing of our residents. We want to build sustainable places where people can afford to buy or rent their homes, walk, or wheel to educational and healthcare facilities, enjoy cultural and sporting activities and easily access public transport to visit other parts of Edinburgh.
“Following today’s report, we can move forward with positive changes to our affordable housing policy, with developments now having to include 35% affordable homes. This will help address the housing emergency in Edinburgh. We can also take forward policies on student housing and reducing carbon emissions from new buildings, while our mixed-use approach for commercial developments is also supported.
“We won backing for our plans around creating new sustainable neighbourhoods with a new vision for the west and for sites elsewhere in the city to be transformed into net zero neighbourhoods fit for the 21st Century. This is all consistent with our 20-minute neighbourhood approach as well as directing development to and maximising the use of brownfield land rather than allocating new greenfield housing sites.
“I’d like to thank all those residents, community groups and businesses who contributed to this Plan and acknowledge the hard work of Council officers who’ve spent years preparing this complex submission. The fact that so few changes were made as a result of the Examination is testament to all the dedicated individuals who contributed to this Plan.
“I’m looking forward to final approval and implementation of City Plan 2030 – contributing to the ongoing success and sustainability of our great Capital City.”
A final version of City Plan 2030 will be considered by the Council’s Planning Committee and Council in June before being submitted to Scottish Ministers as the Plan the Council wants to adopt.
– Climate change – Affordability – Providing more homes – Providing more jobs – How people move aroundge
The proposal is a ‘comprehensive and bold plan’ to make sure future development in Edinburgh is sustainable, meets the needs of Edinburgh’s growing population and communities and helps the city achieve its Net Zero 2030 ambition.
This proposed plan for the next ten years sets out how areas of the city will be linked together building on existing transport networks as well as making full use of education and healthcare facilities already embedded in communities across the Capital. Resetting the direction of development to bring about a joined-up city rather than spreading outwards also provides a positive and sustainable step for future decades to come.
Edinburgh’s population is rising, and people are making huge changes in the way they live their lives due to the global climate emergency and the current health pandemic.
This is how the plan proposes to address these challenges:
Future development would be managed through the preferred approach set out in the ‘Choices for City Plan 2030’ document, which went through a major consultation exercise with Edinburgh residents and stakeholders.
The proposed plan will support the Scottish Government’s 20-minute walkable neighbourhood plans as well as directing development to and maximising the use of brownfield rather than greenfield land.
In the west a new mixed-use neighbourhood is to be created, well served by existing infrastructure, with the tram line running through as well as an adjacent station, in an area previously designated largely for business development in the 2016 plan.
New neighbourhoods on brownfield land at the Forth Waterfront will also be taken forward.
Land has also been designated for new developments at Seafield, Redford Barracks, Astley Ainslie, Edinburgh BioQuarter, Liberton Hospital, Bonnington, Fettes and other major sites across the city.
The draft plan also sets out how the Council will deliver land to meet Edinburgh’s housing needs over the next decade, securing a minimum contribution of 35% affordable housing from any new development as well as policies to help manage the number of short term lets (STLs) operating in the city.
Councillor Neil Gardiner, Planning Convener, said: “This proposed development plan can recalibrate how development happens in this city, positively shaping how our Capital grows and changes over the next 10 years and beyond.
“Rather than growing forever outwards, the proposed plan focuses on developing new communities on brownfield land which mix living, working and leisure uses. These locations utilise and add to already existing infrastructure. This plan is about us as a city collectively making the right decisions now so that our residents can make reasonable and informed choices about how and where they live and how they get around in the future.
“City Plan 2030 has been developed taking on board the views of residents, businesses, and other stakeholders from across the city to help us meet our core priorities for Edinburgh: making Edinburgh a sustainable city, which supports everyone’s wellbeing and enables our residents to access homes they can afford.
“The plan also facilitates travel options and networks so that residents won’t have to own a car to move around, while having every opportunity to share in their city’s success.
“Our proposal of mixed-use communities in the plan aligns to Scottish Government’s 20-minute neighbourhood vision, which is especially relevant now as the global pandemic continues to make massive changes to the way people live their lives. This includes how we all use and appreciate green spaces with the health and well-being benefits they bring.
“Community resilience also includes easy access to facilities and neighbourhoods need a mixture of services within easy reach such as shops, health and education, as well as the potential to find a job near where you live.
“We also need to rethink how we accommodate our growing population and I believe that our emphasis on prioritising brownfield land and making the best use of the limited space we have is the right approach.
In the west a new neighbourhood with a mix of uses within easy walking distance is to be created. This is also well served by existing infrastructure, with the tram running through the community as well as a mainline station. This area was previously designated largely for business development in the 2016 plan.
“Other significant sites across the city will all require masterplans ensuring that in each case the whole is much more than the sum of the parts, better meeting the needs of new and existing communities.
“Going forward we need to work with developers asking them to rise to the challenges of rapid climate change and finite resources. Developers need to think more carefully about location, using the land we have available effectively, with sustainable design. This proposed plan better connects existing communities through development of underused brownfield land.
“We need to protect Edinburgh’s beautiful green setting from the Pentlands to the Forth, increase biodiversity, physical and mental wellbeing, reduce flooding and other climate impacts, and improve air quality.
“Developers will need to make sure that one third of their houses in residential developments are affordable. We will also continue the city’s own programme to build affordable housing.
“Edinburgh currently has almost a third of all STLs in Scotland, policies included in the plan help us to take further action and manage these. This quantity of commercial use puts pressure on house prices and rents and takes much needed houses out of supply as well as causing issues such as anti-social behaviour, leaving hollowed out communities.
“Last year, we set out bold preferred options in ‘Choices for City Plan 2030’, alongside other viable alternatives which were considered during the public consultation. This had a massive response with around 1,800 contributions. I’d like to thank everyone again who submitted their views.
“We’ve listened carefully to the feedback provided and through regular meetings working with colleagues across all political parties throughout this process, I’m hopeful through this proposed plan we can agree on a positive way forward for Edinburgh at committee next week.
Councillor Maureen Child, Planning Vice-Convener, said: “To meet our ambitious climate change target and become a carbon neutral city by 2030, as the city continues to grow, we must develop differently in the future and our proposed plan sets out how all houses and other buildings will need be much more energy efficient.
“We’re already committed to building 20,000 affordable and low-cost homes by 2027 but the city desperately needs more housing. That’s why our proposals put particular emphasis on land for housing and affordable homes.
“We’ll also make sure that we protect people’s homes by making sure appropriate flood defences are in place for all new developments as we’re fully aware of the risk of flooding and the other impacts of climate change.
“Our rising population and the climate emergency were already posing huge challenges for us as a Council and the current health pandemic has greatly accelerated many changes to our lives – I believe our proposed plan takes account of these major societal transformations we’re currently experiencing.
“Connectivity is of course central to our success and our other aim is to guide development towards areas where facilities such as schools and healthcare centres already exist. Where these need to be developed we’ll listen to the needs of communities, taking them with us, as new neighbourhoods develop.
“Our Transport and Environment Committee has also already agreed our City Mobility Plan designed to improve sustainable transport over the next decade.”
Councillors on the Planning Committee will consider the proposed City Plan 2030 next Wednesday (29 September) before final representations are sought.
These will be considered by the Council before it is submitted to the Scottish Government for Examination. The Council can then consider adopting the plan to shape how the city develops over the next 10 years.
You can watch the webcast for the Planning Committee next week here.
A report outlining a revised timetable for the City of Edinburgh Council’s City Plan 2030 will be now be considered by councillors on Wednesday, 10 March.
The report, which will be made public on Thursday (4 March), will say that the proposed plan will now be considered by councillors in the summer with the preference being for a committee in August.
The proposed plan was due to be considered by the Planning Committee this month but Scottish Environment Protection Agency was subject to a significant cyber attack just before Christmas which is still affecting its services.
This is having an impact on work on the Strategic Flood Risk Assessment required for the proposed plan as well as many other matters.
Cllr Neil Gardiner, Planning Convener, said: “The proposed plan will be ambitious and will help us build a more sustainable future as the Capital grows in the coming years. When complete, the proposed plan needs to be robust and not open to challenge on the credibility of the flood risk evidence, which is why we need to postpone its completion.
“I have every sympathy with SEPA and the challenges they are experiencing as a result of this incident and appreciate they are rightly focusing at the moment on immediate risks of flooding or significant breaches of the other regulatory responsibilities they have.”
The Council has agreed a timetable to progress its next local development plan, City Plan 2030, to help shape a sustainable, inclusive and successful Edinburgh.
