Agenda item - Project Approvals

(Lead Member: The Mayor, Director: Melanie Corcoran)

Resolved:

(a) In respect of the West Yorkshire Climate & Environment Plan – Wave 1, The Combined Authority approved that:

(i) The West Yorkshire Climate & Environment Plan – Wave 1 proceeds through decision point 1 (strategic assessment) and work commences on activity 2 (strategic outline case).

(ii) Development costs of £836,240 are approved to ensure staffing resources are in place and technical expertise is available for the next stages of business case development and programme management. Total scheme costs currently range from £42,500,000 to £66,000,000.

(iii) Future approvals are made in accordance with the assurance pathway and approval route outlined in this report.

(b) In respect of LEEDS 2023: Women of the World, Women of West Yorkshire, the Combined Authority approved that:

(i) The LEEDS 2023: Women of the World, Women of West Yorkshire scheme proceeds through decision point 3 (outline business case) and work commences on activity 4 (full business case).

(ii) Indicative approval to the total scheme value of £1,500,000 is given. The total scheme value is £1,500,000.

(iii) Development costs of £551,672 are approved in order to progress the scheme to decision point 4 (full business case) taking the total scheme approval to £551,672.

(iv) The Combined Authority enters into a funding agreement with Leeds City Council for expenditure of up to £551,672.

(v) Future approvals are made in accordance with the assurance pathway and approval route outlined in this report. This will be subject to the scheme remaining within the tolerances outlined in this report.

(c) In respect of Leeds City Centre Package: City Square Plus, the Combined Authority, subject to the conditions set by the Programme Appraisal Team, approved that:

(i) The Leeds City Square Plus scheme proceeds through decision point 4 (full business case) and work commences on activity 5 (delivery).

(ii) Approval to the Combined Authority contribution of £3,111,000, taking the total approval to £8,385,000. The total scheme value is £11,268,000.

(iii) The Combined Authority enters into an addendum to the existing Funding Agreement with Leeds City Council for expenditure up to £8,002,000.

(iv) Future approvals are made in accordance with the assurance pathway and approval route outlined in this report. This will be subject to the scheme remaining within the tolerances outlined in this report.

Conditions: The following conditions have been set by PAT to gain Approval to Proceed to Delivery:

(i) Submit an up to date Spend Profile.

(ii) Submit the contractor’s construction programme.

(iii) Supply the pre-scheme monitoring raw data.

(iv) Add SMART targets for the forecast outcomes.

The following further conditions have been set by PAT to gain Approval to Proceed to Delivery for Calverley Street:

(i) Complete the Detailed Design for Calverley Street works to inform a Final Cost and confirm it is within the scheme budget.

(ii) Submit a Carbon Mitigation Plan

The Combined Authority considered a report of the Director of Delivery on the progression of, and funding for a number of schemes.

Officers summarised three key schemes for progression through the assurance progress and approval of funding.

West Yorkshire Climate and environment Plan - Wave 1

This project aims to address actions identified by the Climate, Energy and Environment committee to reduce emissions over the next three years. The work will be carried out across a number of themes, and will include support for local businesses.

LEEDS 2023 – Women of the World, Women of West Yorkshire

This project is a major element of city of culture, aiming to increase engagement of women and girls in the fields of construction and design. The project will take involve a series of workshops delivered over 10 months across a range of venues.

Leeds City Centre Package: City Square Plus

This project Closing includes the closure of Leeds City Square, East Parade bus gate, Thirsk Row two-way operation, and the reconfiguration of Calverley Street. The scheme is in addition to other ongoing traffic management measures.

Members raised concerns that the diversion of traffic from the City Centre and the train station will direct traffic to nearby roads and increase congestion. It was responded that the volume of traffic using the City Centre already exceeds capacity, and that measures will be taken to negate the impact on other roads. There are already multiple park and ride schemes in operation seeking to reduce the number of vehicles travelling to the City Centre. Officers offered to share a map with more detail of measures taken to reduce the congestion in surrounding areas.