Planning president impressed
Published: Wednesday, 24 August, 2016
‘Impressed and surprised’ was the reaction of Royal Town Planning Institute President Phil Williams after spending a day in Stroud.
Mr Williams was the guest of Stroud District Council’s planning team and toured Littlecombe, Dursley where the old Lister Petter factory site is being redeveloped for mainly residential use, before visiting the new M5 Gloucester services. He also took a boat trip on the Stroudwater Canal where he was able to view the contribution of the restored canal has had on achieving new high quality residential development.
Afterwards he said “There’s a lot happening here. For its size, Stroud District Council is leading some exciting projects that are transforming the area and bringing in huge investment. At the same time, the planners are managing these changes sensitively without putting the brakes on development.”
John Longmuir, the council’s Planning Team Manager said “It was an honour to have Phil visit us and to hear his comments. Sometimes, we don’t realise just how many quality things are happening here compared with other places.”
The Royal Town Planning Institute is the UK's leading planning body for spatial, sustainable and inclusive planning and is the largest planning institute in Europe with over 23,000 members.