(a)

the Plymouth Plan was being published in two parts; Members currently had the opportunity to comment on part 1 of the plan as part of the consultation process. The plan itself set out the shared strategic direction for the future of the city and would bring together approximately 130 plans and strategies into one, including the Local Economic Strategy, the Health and Wellbeing Strategy and the Child Poverty Strategy;

(b)

the updated Local Economic Strategy (LES) would feed directly into the Plymouth Plan reflecting aspirations of both the public and private sector. Six priority sectors were focused upon in the LES including Ocean City Infrastructure, Digital Economy, Business Growth and Investment, Learning and Talent Development, People Communities and Institutions, and the Visitor Economy and Culture;

(c)

preparations were ongoing for the Mayflower 400 celebrations with an exchange programme with US businesses as a key driver; it was essential that Plymouth’s infrastructure was in place to support this event to showcase the city at its best;

(d)

the Council had an existing portfolio of £112m and an income of £6.8m from business occupancy rates which were approximately at 90% capacity;

(e)

the Council’s commercial estate supported 326 businesses and 2670 jobs ranging from medical to manufacturing services; the economic development department acted as an enabler for economic growth in the city;

(f)

Langage Science Park was due for completion in July 2015, the 3000sqft site was expected to attract 80 new jobs; the £40m development of Bretonside bus station was expected to delivery 260 construction jobs.

(g)

the Plymouth Plan would bring together many strategies, with adoption of the plan expected by 2017; the plan would however be used for material consideration to make current decisions. Work linked to the Council’s Economic Strategy was still ongoing with an emphasis on job creation and support to enable businesses the potential to grow;

(h)

in relation to Policy 8 of the Plymouth Plan ‘Protecting and Strengthening Devonport Naval Base and Dockyard’s Strategic Role’, officers confirmed that the Council had a good relationship with the Naval Base and Babcock Group PLC.  The Devonport Task Group, of which both the Council and Naval Base were represented by the Leader of the Council and the Commander of the Naval Base, focused upon cooperative working to drive the city forward. A piece of work was due to commence, led by the University of Plymouth, to monitor the socioeconomic impact of the dockyard on Plymouth;

(i)

officers confirmed that they would review the wording of Policy 24 ‘Provision for Shops and Services’ as retail should be specified in the policy. It was also confirmed that the retail space targets specified on pages 61 and 62 of the agenda pack were considered realistic and were calculated based upon current shopping trends. Forecasted retail space figures did not include the vacant premises in the City Centre, including Derry’s;

(j)

a ‘dark shop’ was a premises laid out similarly to a normal supermarket however was not accessible to the public; this store would service online customers only;

(k)

dark stores were not considered to count against the retail provision targets and had been removed from floor-space plans. Banks would also not count as retail provision; the final Plymouth Plan would include a breakdown of district shopping centres;

(m)

arrangements for the Mayflower 400 celebrations were progressing; this was a fantastic opportunity for the city to showcase itself. The Leadership group was due to meet to discuss sponsors, events and Plymouth’s offer. This was a national celebration of importance, involving the USA, and arrangements for the celebration had to match the scale of the event;

(n)

the Council’s commercial premises occupancy levels were approximately 90%;

the Council offered flexible letting terms, a variety of premises in terms of size and location, and support from the enterprise zone to remain competitive. Officers were continually working to help businesses grow and attract new business;

(o)

with regards to Policy 8 of the Plymouth Plan ‘Protecting and Strengthening Devonport Naval Base and Dockyard’s Strategic Role’ officers would assess the wording to make it clear that not all MOD land was suitable for development;

(p)

officers acknowledged Members concerns that the City’s bus services were losing passengers due to the change in services provided and the reduction of bus routes; it was expected that this would be addressed in the Local Transport Plan 4.