You might imagine that former Cleveland Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC) Steve Turner is now putting his feet up having lost his post earlier this month in the PCC election. But no. Turner is still with us, on the planning board of Middlesbrough Development Corporation (MDC). And he is still providing back-up to his ally the newly re-elected Tees Valley Mayor Ben Houchen aka Baron Houchen of High Leven.
The MDC was established in February last year to fast-track redevelopment in areas of downtown Middlesbrough: the town centre and Gresham and Middlehaven wards.
While most planning applications for these locations are processed by the MDC planning agents using delegated powers, applications from the council have to be approved by the MDC Planning Board. And this is where we now have a bottleneck.
The latest council application was rejected by the Planning Board on Friday 24 May. This was after two postponed meetings. The application was lodged in February.
The project in question is the conversion of two units, empty for 13 years in the Cleveland Centre, into an expanded Live Well Centre.
The facility would replace one in the Dundas Arcade a few minutes’ walk away, the lease of which is up for renewal in December. The existing site is regarded as no longer fit for purpose.
The application was recommended for approval by the MDC planning agent.
According to the planning agent’s report, the centre currently works with various public and voluntary sector bodies. It provides a wide range of services: mental health, addiction recovery, sexual health, nutrition and physical exercise services, prehab programmes, condition management, health screening, employment, education and training, welfare rights support, smoking cessation service and adult educational courses. It’s an exploitation hub for young people.
Following the Health on the High Street initiative, the programme has built relationships with various NHS clinics including: community midwifery, pulmonary rehabilitation and newborn hearing screening. The project would have TB and infectious disease clinics and a diabetes remission service.
The Cleveland Centre is conveniently located near a GP surgery, a pharmacy and the Boots pharmacy.
What’s not to love?
But the planning board turned down the application.
Why was the application turned down?
According to Teesside Live, Houchen argued that he could not support the application based on real and perceived issues of criminality.
(Who knew that my Type 2 diabetes could trigger a shoplifting spree?)
Houchen was arguing about the addiction recovery programme. Yet the police comments on the planning proposal made no mention of crime at the Dundas Arcade.
The other reason for Houchen’s refusal was that the change of use from retail to council would erode the availability of retail properties in the town centre.
Yet like every other high street there are more than enough empty stores to go round. In Middlesbrough, the former House of Fraser and Debenhams- once Binns and Newhouses – competed to be the top department store, their luxury windows just across the street from each other.
Now these shopping palaces are empty, each of them with enough floorspace to kick-start a retail revolution.
Regardless of intentions for these two iconic buildings, the town centre is still littered with vacant shops.
But according to the planning board, two long-empty mall units are preferable to a cutting-edge health project, which would increase footfall in the town centre as well as improving everyone’s wellbeing.
The town’s CEO Clive Heaphy spoke in favour of the application, urging a more flexible approach to planning requirements. But he doesn’t have a vote.
The reason for the refusal lies in the voting make-up of the planning board.
Houchen as Chair has the casting vote in the event of a tie.
In a town with a Labour council, the elected Mayor Chris Cooke is the single Labour appointment.
Then there are the independent members.
Steve Turner was taken onto the Board when he was (Conservative) PCC. He is now described as an independent member.
Local businessman Idrees Rashid is another independent member.
Conservative councillor Mieka Smiles was invited onto the planning board when she was Deputy Mayor of Middlesbrough, appointed by the former independent mayor, Andy Preston. She lost her position with the mayoral election last year but she remains on the planning board as an independent member. It seems she did not attend the meeting on Friday 24 May.
Another independent planning board member, Paul Booth, has resigned in protest at the gifting of 90% of publicly owned Teesworks Ltd shares to four businessmen led by Chris Musgrave and Martin Corney.
The planning board has the same members as the MDC board.
Houchen and Turner voted against the health centre application. Cooke and Rashid voted for it. Houchen as chair voted against it again by using his casting vote.
The next meeting is postponed until after the AGM of the Tees Valley Combined Authority. (TVCA)
There has been criticism that Turner has not been allowed to vote since he has been out of office. We await Middlesbrough Council’s legal confirmation.
Mayor Cooke has alleged that the council officials proposing the application were not invited to speak at the meeting.
The questions to ask are: will Turner survive the TVCA AGM when new members are appointed? Will Mieka Smiles? Will they remain as independent members in perpetuity to back Mayor Houchen’s efforts to sabotage a Labour council, at whatever the social cost?
We will keep you updated when new information emerges.
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