Issue - items at meetings - Update on Final Future Cities Demonstrator Bid and Feasibility Study

Report of the Strategic Director, Place (copy attached).

That the Environment & Sustainability Committee note the report.

36.1         The Committee considered a report of the Strategic Director, Place that provided an update on the Council’s Future Cities Demonstrator bid.

36.2         Councillor West stated his disappointment that the Technology Strategy Board (TSB) hadn’t decided to take forward the Council’s bid to the next stage. He added that  the council had worked hard making very good use of the initial feasibility funding to develop a strong vision, and its legacy was extremely good news for the city.

Councillor West stated that the Council could still look to enact the vision through other channels, as through the bid development, new and important relationships had been forged and built upon across the city and beyond.

He supplemented that the Council were indebted, for example, to the contribution Ricardo had made to the initiative and the new strong links would stand the city and the wider economic area in good stead for the future.

The systems were sought to develop played to the city’s strengths, and would help realise a One Planet Smart City; develop the workforce, economy, and improve quality of life.

Councillor West supplemented that Members, officers consultants The Real Economy, and most of all partner organisations, had all worked extremely hard to pull off the feat of building the vision and making the submission in such short time

Councillor West invited members to join him in congratulating and thanking them.

36.3      The Strategic Director, Place stated his disappointment that the bid had not been successful. This decision had only recently been received and he would circulate a note to Members on the feedback from the TSB when this arrived. The Strategic Director added that new initiatives based on the bid submission were already being examined and there was some indication that the proposals could be implemented through a different course.

36.4      Councillor Deane expressed her disappointment that the bid had not been successful however, she felt a lot had been gained from the work already conducted including new relationships and the strengthening of pre-existing partnerships. She thanked officers for their work.

36.5      Councillor Sykes stated his regret that the bid had not been a success however, the £50,000 secured from being shortlisted and the new partnerships created had been very positive.

36.6      Councillor Janio agreed that £50,000 funding and the work conducted had been very positive. Councillor Janio hoped that the Committee would acknowledge central government for providing funding for the initiative.

36.7      Councillor Mitchell stated that she did not share Councillor Janio’s praise for central government who, in her opinion, were conducting an unnecessarily harsh austerity programme. Councillor Mitchell supplemented that she shared the disappointment expressed by other members of the Committee however, she believed the ideas and partnerships created from the work conducted would not be lost. She hoped that the ideas to come from the feasibility study would be incorporated into work on the City Deal and her hope that the work could be revisited in a better financial climate.

36.8      RESOLVED- That the Environment & Sustainability Committee note the report.