Stage One Consultation

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Stage One Consultation
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Introduction
Simons Developments Limited is delighted to
have been chosen as the development partner for
the Charles Street site. We understand how
important this project is to the future of
Dorchester and look forward to working with both
West Dorset District Council and the local
community. We know that a comprehensive
consultation process will help us build a vital
and vibrant asset, something that will complement
and enhance Dorchesters beautiful and historic
town centre. We look forward to hearing your
views. Mark Lewis Regional Director Simons
Developments Limited
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The Charles Street Project
Planning for the future The Charles Street
development will be a retail-led, mixed-use
scheme following the principles set out in the
adopted West Dorset Local Plan and related
supplementary planning guidance. Ongoing
investigations are being carried out to provide
data on important considerations such as shopping
patterns, car park usage, ground conditions,
archaeological remains and many other matters.
The exact content and design of the scheme will
be based on the results of these investigations
and on what the people of Dorchester tell Simons
they would like to see.
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The Charles Street Site
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The Charles Street Site

• The current site
• The site currently provides 484 car parking
  spaces, public toilet facilities and a small
  temporary skate park.
• Existing car parking numbers will be maintained
  and interim solutions identified and provided
  while work is in progress
• Brand new toilet facilities will be built
• Plans are already in place for the skate park to
  move to Little Fairfield
• Simons are working with Acland Road Evangelical
  Church to consider the possibility of including
  the church land within the site and providing a
  purpose built home for the church nearby.

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The Charles Street Site

• The planned scheme
• The planned scheme will include
• new shops to strengthen the town centre and bring
  more choice to the local shopping public
• places to relax
• additional town centre housing
• Effective integration with adjoining areas is
  considered essential
• Highways solutions, car parking, public transport
  and pedestrian flows will all be considered in
  the context of the town centre as a whole.
  Maintaining and improving existing links to South
  Street will be a key priority.

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Investigations and studies

• Investigations and studies
• A development of the size and complexity of
  Charles Street depends on a wide range of
  technical investigations to ensure that final
  plans take account of both aspirations and
  practical constraints. Investigations will
  include
• o Archaeological investigations
• o Flood risk assessments
• o Geotechnical surveys
• o Historical analysis
• o Parking studies
• o Retail studies
• o Services survey
• o Topographic surveys
• o Townscape analysis
• o Transport and movement studies
• o Tree and ecological assessments

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Investigations and studies
Archaeological Investigations These seek to
build the most comprehensive picture possible of
the archaeological remains under the Charles
Street site. They involve desktop studies to
collate known information, combined with small
scale archaeological test pits where there is
insufficient existing information. The
investigations are intended to provide sufficient
information to design a scheme that allows
important archaeological remains to be preserved.
The County Archaeologist and English Heritage
will be consulted as appropriate throughout the
process.
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Investigations and studies
Flood risk assessments Flood risk assessments
are a statutory obligation. The Charles Street
site is not at obvious risk of flooding but
Simons need to ensure that issues such as surface
water run-off following a sustained downpour of
rain are properly handled. These assessments
are carried out by civil engineers. Surface
water drainage solutions will be discussed with
the Environment Agency and other relevant parties
and the assessments will inform overall design
and engineering solutions.
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Investigations and studies
Geotechnical surveys Prior to the physical
investigations, a specialist engineer prepared a
schedule of test holes in consultation with the
project archaeologist and Dorset County Council.
Test holes provide evidence of ground
conditions including geological strata, load
bearing capacity and any contamination. The
information gathered will be used in conjunction
with the findings from archaeological
investigations to ensure that the most
appropriate foundation and other structural
solutions are used.
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Investigations and studies
Historical analysis A consultant team will carry
out research and make site visits to establish
the ways in which Dorchesters long and complex
history manifests itself in the built form of the
town. Potential historical influences on the
scheme design will emerge from this report.
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Investigations and studies
Parking studies Highways engineers have carried
out car parking studies on all car parking within
the town to gain an understanding of how these
car parking spaces are currently used, providing
a basis for assessing potential car parking
patterns within the town in the future. The
studies cover long and short stay parking dwell
times. They examine how individual car parks
are used both at differing times of the day and
throughout the week. The full extent and scope
of these studies was agreed with the Highways
Authority, WDDC and other relevant authorities.
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Investigations and studies
Retail studies Independent specialist
consultants have conducted a telephone survey of
a random sample of households across West Dorset
District, asking how and where people shop. The
scope of the survey was agreed with the Local
Planning Authority. Results will guide the
type of retail development on the site as well as
providing information that will help when
assessing car parking requirements.
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Investigations and studies
Services survey Structural engineers and
mechanical electrical consultants, in
consultation with service providers, have
identified where services are expected to be in a
desktop survey. Ongoing physical investigations
will be carried out where necessary to ensure the
services map is accurate. All services affected
will be surveyed, including water, sewer and gas
pipes electricity and telephone cables and
newer means of communications such as fibre optic
cables. This will identify any services that
need to be diverted to ensure their availability
for maintenance after the site is developed. It
will also ensure that there is sufficient
capacity in these networks to serve the new
development.
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Investigations and studies
Topographic surveys Independent specialist
surveyors have carried out initial dimensional
surveys of the site and surrounding areas to
identify key features such as site boundaries
heights of adjoining buildings and the position
of roads and services. Additional surveys will
be carried out if required.
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Investigations and studies
Townscape analysis Experienced consultants will
study the towns built environment to explore the
physical characteristics of the town centre.
Aspects considered will include street
patterns and spaces, landscape, building sizes
and styles, materials and the Conservation Area
and Listed Building context. Detailed evidence
will be analysed and used to ensure that the
scheme design is in harmony with its surroundings.
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Investigations and studies
Transport and movement studies Highways
engineers will use a variety of recognised
modelling techniques to predict how traffic to
and from the Charles Street site can best be
accommodated on the highway network, identifying
any necessary improvements. In collaboration with
the Local Authority and the Highways Authority
(Dorset County Council) the studies will allow
Simons to see if improvements can be made to the
reliability and accessibility of bus routes and
bus stops. Close attention will also be paid to
understanding how people move about the town
centre on foot, to ensure strong links to and
from existing shopping areas. The relationship
of the site to the proposals within the
Dorchester Environment and Transport Plan report
will be given full consideration. The full extent
and scope of these studies will be agreed with
the Highways Authority, WDDC and any other
relevant authorities.
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Investigations and studies
Tree and ecological assessments Independent
specialist consultants visit the site and carry
out assessments to identify any significant
features and determine appropriate protection
measures in consultation with relevant local
planning authority officers.
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The seven consultation strands
First stage public consultation During this
initial phase, Simons are asking for feedback
from local people, organisations and businesses
in relation to seven key strands. These strands
will support detailed consideration of each
aspect of the Charles Street Project. o
 Archaeology o  Housing o  Safer communities o
 Shopping, business and economic o  Social and
community o  Townscape and environment o
 Transport and accessibility There are no
designs or detailed plans for to comment on at
present. These will be developed following
analysis of feedback received and from the
results of the technical investigations.
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The seven consultation strands

• Archaeology
• Dorchester has a rich archaeological heritage.
  Simons know that remains of Roman houses and
  streets lie under the Charles Street car park, as
  well as part of a prehistoric ritual monument
  that consisted of upright posts set in large
  pits. The Roman Baths lie to the east of the
  Charles Street car park site, on the opposite
  side of Acland Road. Once Simons have established
  a site plan showing the extent and depth of
  archaeological remains, they will identify the
  most appropriate foundation and construction
  solutions. Where disturbance to areas of
  archaeology is unavoidable, these areas will be
  archaeologically excavated and recorded.
  Interpretations of Dorchesters archaeological
  heritage will also be considered as part of the
  scheme design.
• Areas for consideration include
• Preservation in situ
• Scope of any excavations
• Positively acknowledging archaeological heritage
• Interpretations of archaeology within the scheme

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The seven consultation strands

• Housing
• The Charles Street Project is an opportunity to
  provide new housing, to build a thriving
  community that is present night and day, and to
  increase activity in the town centre after the
  shops have closed. This location is within
  walking distance of both railway stations and bus
  stops and is served by many day-to-day facilities
  such as supermarkets and banks. It is an ideal
  place for people to live without needing a car.
• Areas for consideration include
• The nature and style of housing
• The mix of housing types
• Provision of affordable housing
• Integration of new housing into the existing
  community
• Sustainability

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The seven consultation strands

• Safer communities
• The planning system attaches great importance to
  the creation of safe communities and our aim is
  to create a development that is safe and pleasant
  to visit by day and night. Passive surveillance
  is one example of how this can be achieved. This
  means deterring anti-social behaviour by creating
  environments that give people the feeling they
  may be observed, either by people living on the
  site or by other people who are nearby. It also
  means avoiding features such as alley ways that
  provide escape routes and hiding places. It is
  important to Simons that they understand any
  particular concerns of local people.
• Areas for consideration include
• Car park design
• Lighting
• Layout

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The seven consultation strands

• Shopping, business and economic
• A key consideration will be maintaining and
  enhancing the economic health of the town centre.
  Simons goal is to make sure that future
  development has a positive effect on the town and
  meets the shopping needs of the surrounding area.
  An important aim is to attract more people to
  Dorchester for their shopping while maintaining
  the character of the town centre. Local traders
  and users of the town centre will all be able to
  contribute valuable insights.
• Areas for consideration include
• The type of shops to be included
• The mix of retail and leisure use
• How to complement existing provision
• Links to existing provision
• The economic health of the town centre
• Maintaining the character of Dorchester town
  centre
• Economic sustainability

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The seven consultation strands

• Social and community
• Properly planned town centres form the hub of any
  community. They are the most accessible locations
  and provide the greatest range of services in an
  area. It is important to Simons that they find
  out the views of all user groups and their
  aspirations for the Charles Street site.
• Areas for consideration include
• Mix of uses
• Public space
• Accessibility for all

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The seven consultation strands

• Townscape and environment
• Dorchester has a rich and valuable heritage,
  which will be embraced, and it is a priority that
  the design of the new development makes a
  positive contribution to the town centre
  environment. There will be opportunities for
  comment as the design emerges.
• Areas for consideration include
• Scheme content
• Scheme layout and building scale
• Links with adjacent areas
• Open space and green space
• High quality design and materials
• Environmental sustainability

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The seven consultation strands

• Transport and accessibility
• The Charles Street development provides an
  opportunity to address wider transport and access
  strategies for the town. Parking arrangements are
  a high priority and will be considered in the
  context of the emerging Dorchester car parking
  strategy. When agreed and adopted, this strategy
  will form part of the Dorchester Transport and
  Environment Plan. Highways solutions and
  improvements to public transport will also be key
  elements in planning the scheme.
• Areas for consideration include
• Public and private transport
• Parking and park and ride
• Servicing for new and existing businesses
• Pedestrian flows
• Provision for cyclists
• Environmental sustainability

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The seven consultation strands
Sending your views Simons welcomes the views of
local organisations and representatives and this
presentation has been produced to support group
discussion and feedback. Feedback will be
analysed under 3 category headings organisation,
individual and business. The deadline for first
stage feedback is 18 May 2007. Identified local
organisations and representatives have already
been sent feedback forms. Feedback forms are also
available o   To complete online at
www.CharlesStreetProject/.com o   As a
downloadable PDF from www.CharlesStreetProject/.co
m o   To collect from main reception at WDDC
offices, Stratton House, 58/60 High West Street,
Dorchester DT1 1UZ
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The Charles Street Project

• What happens next?
• After the feedback deadline on 18 May 2007
• o   Feedback will be analysed and a feedback
  report will be published on the project website
  at www.CharlesStreetProject/.com
• o   The Simons team will analyse feedback
  comments together with the results from their
  technical investigations and studies
• o   Simons will hold a public meeting to present
  their analyses and provide a forum for open
  discussion
• Second stage consultation activity will be
  planned in response to the findings from stage
  one
• If you would like to be told when the feedback
  report has been published, you can sign up for
  email updates at www.CharlesStreetProject/.com