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JCA Notices

The cafe is back

Our popular Saturday morning cafe is running again

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Jericho Pantry

The main purpose of the Pantry is to make food that would otherwise be thrown away accessible to people who live locally who can make use of it.

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Life drawing classes

Explore your creativity -- all levels welcome. 

Local artist Mike England holds life drawing classes at the community centre.

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Join your local association

The JCA represents residents on local issues, organizes events, and runs the community centre. Membership is FREE.

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NEWS ITEM

Cornerstone planning appeal upheld

Development could now go ahead

Posted - February 10, 2023

On February 9, the planning inspector, Benajamin Webb, issued his decision on Cornerstone’s appeal against the City Council’s refusal of planning permission for their proposed development of Jericho Wharf.  

He accepted that, as the Jericho Wharf Trust argued, Cornerstone’s had underestimated the housing revenue. This was also conceded at the hearing by the developer and the planning officers.  However, he also believed that costs had risen since the planning committee’s decision and concluded that these changes would balance out, so there would still be no funds for affordable housing. Should there actually turn out to be excess profit he agreed that 60 per cent of such ‘uplift’ should go to the Council with 40 per cent  for the developer.

For the Jericho Wharf Trust, chair Phyllis Starkey commented: “We are naturally disappointed that the planning inspector did not uphold the City Council’s refusal of permission. And if, as we anticipate, this development were to deliver excess profit, the uplift could be spent on affordable housing – but not in Jericho, as there is no other housing site available here.”

Cornerstone could now go ahead with the development subject to a lengthy list of 21 conditions related to environmental requirements, for example, and to  operating plans for the boatyard and the community centre.

However, Cornerstone is under no obligation to proceed at all. Indeed, under the present ownership of the site there have already two abandoned schemes – one that obtained conditional planning permission and a second that went through pre-planning and a public consultation but for which permission was never sought. In principle therefore, they could now prepare yet another scheme…