Land uses and creating balanced communities section highlights the following:
6.4 Neighbouring communities
Neighbouring residential areas are home to some of the city's more disadvantaged communities. This AAP and subsequent development proposals represent a significant opportunity to provide employment opportunities and other benefits to local residents.
Would the regeneration of the AAP site for residential, office and R&D purposes be the most advantageous way to provide employment opportunities on this site for those as described in paragraph 6.4 of the consultation document, adjacent "disadvantage communities"? It would be anticipated that those from the city's more disadvantaged communities will also have lower levels of education attainment and, therefore, they will be reliant on service / lower skilled roles being created on the site. Although we believe the site can offer opportunities for a wide range of employment uses, including offices and R&D, it will be important to ensure that opportunities are retained also for industrial uses.
6.6 Housing
There is a high level of housing need in the Cambridge area. While opportunities for housing on CNFE are limited, due to constraints such as odour and land contamination, the area can still make a valuable contribution to overall housing supply.
6.7 Community and Leisure Facilities
CNFE currently has very limited facilities (e.g. retail, leisure and community uses) both within its boundary and in the surrounding area. The AAP and future development proposals offer an opportunity for provision of a new community core with shops, services, restaurants, cafés etc. with possible links to improved facilities on the Cambridge Science Park.
Paragraph 6.6 highlights that the site will be heavily constrained in providing housing due to odour and land contamination issues but that the AAP site offers an opportunity to provide shops, restaurants and cafés.
If the site is largely unsuitable for dwellings both in terms of costs to mitigate contamination and odour issues why would it be conceivable that developments such as restaurants and cafés would be viable. Cafés, restaurants and shops will also require a high level of amenity and the income value on those types of uses will not provide developers with confidence to invest heavily in contaminated land remediation works.
The constraints listed are comprehensive but they give no indication of costs to mitigate against issues of noise, odour, vibration, flood risk or overhead power cables. A further constraint which should be highlighted at this point is that the AAP is reliant on sustainable transport measures being delivered. Failure to deliver these measures in a timely fashion will render the AAP site unsustainable and heavily constrained in its scope of development.