Author Archives: Cambridge Town Owl

…says Innovate Cambridge. So why isn’t it? On my way to/from a health check up in Cambridge yesterday… Above L-R: 1) State of Mill Road’s surface (reflecting high traffic volumes & poor maintenance plus lack of alternatives, 2) Public infrastructure from a previous millennium, now abandoned to the fly-posters from the local communist movement, 3)Continue reading “‘In Cambridge, we believe growth must be inclusive…’”

…and thus a complete waste of an evening going to the public consultation that took place the day before the news was announced! Have a listen to the extended intro Tom Keith-Roach of AZ here as he is asked by the Commons Science, Innovation and Technology Committee whether the leaked announcement is a pause orContinue reading “AstraZeneca chief tells Parliament the proposed new conference centre is on hold”

The hearing began today (16 Sept 2025) and the inquiry papers are here “About 300 objections have been made to a planned two-lane guided busway linking Cambourne to Cambridge away from existing roads.” Above – from BBC Cambridgeshire 16 Sept 2025 The inquiry is being live-streamed on the Greater Cambridge Partnership’s YT Channel here TheContinue reading “Cambourne-2-Cambridge busway public inquiry hearings begin”

On the never-ending saga of Cambridge’s transport problems – which included comments about e-bikes and e-scooters We found out the date the new strategy (which unlike the last one will have a light rail component to it) in the Transport Committee Papers from today’s meeting (15 Sept 2025) Above from late agenda item in theContinue reading “The next Greater Cambridge Transport Strategy – due for November 2026”

It’s on Wed 17 Sept 2025 at 5pm – get your final public questions in! The details are here and questions need to be in by Monday 15 Sept 2025. So…not long! The chronic lack of capacity in Accident and Emergency at Addenbrooke’s Back in January I wrote about holding healthcare organisations accountable. The failureContinue reading “Cambridge University Hospitals NHS Trust’s Annual Public Meeting”

The saga of one of Cambridge’s finest town buildings owned by St Catherine’s College fellow Mark Richer was heard before a planning inspector following his appeal against refusal of planning permission by Cambridge City Council You can read the article in the Cambridge News on the appeal hearing here One of the things that reflectsContinue reading “Planning inspector hears Hobson Street Cinema appeal”

I made my way to the Cambridge Biomedical Campus’s Hub on what was the last chance to say something on the proposed new conference centre being planned for the site TL/DR? See the consultation page here “What does the building look like?” Like this below – only I don’t like the way developers hide theirContinue reading “AstraZeneca consultation exposes Cambridge’s broken governance structures. Again.”

Organised by Real Estate Balance, I thought **Bold Move by Bidwells** given the number of controversial developments in/around Cambridge that their clients have instructed them on. Which means representatives of Bidwells often come face-to-face with community groups opposing said planning applications. At the same time, I wanted to get a sense of where the sectorContinue reading “Bidwells hosts debate on balancing growth with community inclusion”

Expect this to be included in Peter Freeman’s plans for the growth of Cambridge even though it is not in the current Cambridge Local Plan 2018-30, nor is it in the emerging local plan’s first proposals First things first, see their proposals here. Second things second, go to their consultation events : “You can findContinue reading “Cambridge Science Park makes a bold bid for growth – on the Greenbelt”

What are the alternatives to London as destinations for Cambridge spin-outs that grow too big for the university city? (And what opportunities does East West Rail provide?) The Centre for Cities wrote: “University towns like Cambridge shouldn’t always expect their university spin-outs to stay and grow. Having a local innovative ecosystem as a ‘nursery city’ isContinue reading “Could the Centre for Cities look at Bedford and Northampton as landing spots for growing Cambridge firms?”