Knowle saga continues
Two latest bits of news on EDDC's seemingly ill-starred relocation project are:
1. Pegasus Life have submitted another 28 documents, with amendments and revisions for their planning application for Knowle. DEADLINE FOR COMMENTS is FRIDAY 11th NOVEMBER.
2. The Information Commissioner has ruled that EDDC should comply with 3 recent Freedom of Information (FOI) requests, requiring yet more Knowle documents to be put in the public domain.
See www.saveoursidmouth.com for updates, and archives, on the sorry Knowle saga.
Meanwhile, the Herald has let us know where we're at with the second part of the saga - again, with thanks to the SOS blog:
‘EDDC is ordered to make Knowle information public’, Sidmouth Herald reports | Save Our Sidmouth
We now have comment from the District Council's chief lawyer on the WhatDoTheyKnow website:
The Council is currently considering the ICO's decision notice and we will confirm our position in due course. You will note the timescales that have been set out in the Decision Notice.
Pegasus agreement re Knowle - a Freedom of Information request to East Devon District Council - WhatDoTheyKnow
Projected maintenance costs for relocation project - a Freedom of Information request to East Devon District Council - WhatDoTheyKnow
To what extent are the bits of the 'saga' connected - the FOI requests and the latest plans to build at Knowle?
The District Council and PegasusLife would probably rather the ICO’s insistence that they publish the contracts/email trail/price-promise weren’t happening at this delicate time – just when the plans are likely to go to the DMC/planning committee:
Development Management Committee agendas - East Devon
Will the District Council prefer to to keep these documents away from Councillors and the public until a vote on the planning application happens?
Or will they risk potential humiliation (again, two years on from the last time...) at a Tribunal and risk further embarrassing muckraking?
And how will the District Council handle the ‘timescales’?
As detailed in the Decision Notices:
> The public authority must take these steps within 35 calendar days
of the date of this decision notice.
(35 days from Tuesday 25th October = 5 weeks = a Tuesday 29th November deadline to publish the documentation.)
> Any Notice of Appeal should be served on the Tribunal within 28
(calendar) days of the date on which this decision notice is sent.
(That is, if the District Council would rather go to the Tribunal, they have to do it within 4 weeks = a Tuesday 22nd November deadline to declare that intention.)
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