A message from Cllr Kevin Guy, Leader of Bath & North East Somerset CouncilAs Leader of the Council I genuinely enjoy spending a lot of my time talking and listening to residents about the issues that concern them and the work the council is doing to improve people’s lives across the breadth of great services it provides. So, I was very pleased to join John Darvall on BBC Radio Bristol yesterday morning to answer listeners’ questions about issues that are important to them. It was interesting to discover the Royal Victoria Park pond generated most of the calls to the show. I want to reassure you that the council has enlisted the support of Wessex Water in a partnership to secure the future of the historic pond. Maintaining water levels in the pond has been a challenge for a number of years. The Georgian-era spring mains that supplied it became degraded and the water was re-routed because it posed a flooding risk to nearby properties. And during the long hot summer we have just experienced the pond completely dried out. The council is exploring options with Wessex Water to identify a longer-term water source for the pond and there will be an opportunity for engagement with the public over the coming months to consider all options in line with the council’s Greener Places Plan. Housing and the lack of affordable housing was also aired on the show. Across Bath and North East Somerset, the average house price is around twelve times the average workplace earnings and in Bath it is nineteen. The housing affordability crisis not only affects people’s quality of life; it directly impacts the local economy. We want to shape better places bringing housing, transport, business space, infrastructure and public spaces together. A series of Local Plan Options have been set out to help achieve this and cabinet will be considering these options at a special meeting next Thursday. We will be considering a new Local Plan Options Report which is set for public consultation. It outlines how places might change over the next 20 years to provide more of the right homes in the right places and enable economic growth. The report also sets out how this growth could be planned for, to create sustainable communities, protect the district’s unique character and address the climate and ecological emergency. This is an opportunity for ambitious, transformational change, but we need to work with partners and residents to manage the process. Finally, many of you will be aware that the council’s planning committee met this week to consider a Bath Rugby planning application for the Rec. The committee was minded to grant the application and will now refer the decision to Steve Reed MP Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, for the authority to proceed with that decision. As council leader I want to thank everyone who attended the meeting and took part. Have a great weekend. | 
