METREX - The Network of European Metropolitan Regions and Areas. XIVth Meeting of the METREX Managing Committee, Stuttgart, Saturday 5 April 2003

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1 METREX - The Network of European Metropolitan Regions and Areas XIVth Meeting of the METREX Managing Committee, Stuttgart, Saturday 5 April 2003 Location Haus der Wirtschaft, Willi-Bleicher Strasse 19, Bertha-Benz-Saal, 1st Floor, Stuttgart (p ) Note for information There will be a concluding SocioMETREX project Workshop on Wednesday 2 April, hours, at the Wirtschaftsförderung Region Stuttgart GmbH, Friedrichstrasse 10, 8th Floor, Stuttgart (p 0711/ ). Partners please meet in the foyer of the Hotel Steigenberger Graf Zeppelin at (p ). AGENDA AND NOTES SATURDAY 5 APRIL ATTENDANCE AND APOLOGIES 2 MINUTES OF THE METREX MANAGING COMMITTEE MEETING IN GENOVA The Minutes have been published in the Network languages on the METREX web site at and can be downloaded using Acrobat Reader (which can also be downloaded from the web site). The Minutes are for consideration and approval by the Managing Committee 3 EUROPEAN AFFAIRS A The Strategic Environmental Assessment Guidelines The SEA guidelines have recently been published by the European Commission and apply to all levels of spatial plans. However, they do not seem to take the holistic view that is required for a sustainable approach, dealing only with environmental issues. This compares with the integrated approach taken in the SocioMETREX project (see paragraph C below). The SEA guidelines can be downloaded from the Europa web site at The Assessments cover "all plans and programmes for agriculture, forestry, fisheries, energy, industry, transport, waste management, water management, telecommunications, tourism, town and country planning or land sue and which set the framework for future development..." and will assess the likely impact on "biodiversity, population, human health, fauna, flora, soil, water, sea, air, climatic factors, material assets, cultural heritage, including architectural and archaeological heritage, landscape and the inter-relationships between the above factors...". The Managing Committee may wish to consider the implications of the SEA guidelines and whether it would be appropriate to make observations to the Commission from the metropolitan perspective 1

2 4 METREX INITIATIAVES AND PROJECTS A InterMETREX and PolyMETREX projects It is understood that the outcome of the InterMETREX and PolyMETREX Applications will be known shortly before, or during, the Stuttgart Meeting. At the Meeting, during the Thursday morning session, it is intended to give a briefing on the projects to the partners in both projects. If the projects are approved by the Interreg IIIC Secretariats (West and South) the first Workshops could be held in Stuttgart (InterMETREX) and Amsterdam (PolyMETREX) in late June. The financial implications for METREX are as shown on the attached Profiles/Operational costs for InterMETREX and PolyMETREX. The Secretary General will speak to these at the meeting. The Profiles formed the basis for the Co-financing Statements sent by the Secretary General to the Lead Partners for inclusion with the Applications. In effect METREX has undertaken to contribute as co-financing to InterMETREX and to PolyMETREX making a total of over the period 2003 to 2006, if the projects are approved. Of this, 50% will be refunded through the Interreg IIIC programme as co-funding leaving a balance of to be contributed from the income of the Network over 3 years. This amounts to a year as against the a year currently allocated for Projects in the METREX budget. The Managing Committee is asked to endorse the action taken by the Secretary General in sending the METREX Co-financing Statements in support of the InterMETREX and PolyMETREX Applications The METREX Secretariat/Interpretariat will provide co-ordination and support services to both projects. The operational costs for the project have been shared equally between the project partners and will be paid to the Lead Partners. The Secretariat/Interpretariat. will claim their fees and expenses from the Lead Partners. C SocioMETREX project The project has now held four Practice Workshops before the Rotterdam, Copenhagen and Genova Meetings and the Thessaloniki Conference. The outcome of the project as a whole will presented to a concluding Workshop on the Wednesday preceding the Stuttgart Meeting and to the opening session of the Stuttgart Meeting on the Thursday. It is anticipated that an outcome will result in further practice benchmarks to be considered, developed and applied through the InterMETREX project. A further outcome may be the identification of METREX indicators of sustainable spatial planning and development practice at the metropolitan level, the assessment of partner practice against these and the exchange of resulting good practice between the partners (see the Stuttgart SocioMETREX outcomes report). The seven Reports on the Workshops, and the Stuttgart SocioMETREX outcomes report, can be downloaded from the METREX web site as pdf files D Expert Group initiatives A Discussion was circulated to interested Members in June 2002 and discussed further at the Genova Managing Committee meeting. There seem to be two main areas of interest for future Expert Group working. Firstly, policy related issues as illustrated by the Discussion Note of retailing produced and presented by Max Cowan at the Stuttgart 2

3 Meeting (Thursday morning session). Secondly, project related issues such as Planning for Major Events. The Secretariat/Interpretariat remains available to arrange short, focussed, Expert Group initiatives as requested by the Members. Please bring suggestions to the Managing Committee Meting for consideration 5 BARCELONA CONFERENCE 2004 The Genova meeting considered feedback from the Thessaloniki Conference on budgetary, programme and organisational issues. The intention was to assist colleagues from Catalunya in their preliminary preparations for the forthcoming METREX Barcelona 2004 Conference. The meeting could continue consideration and discussion of the Barcelona Conference theme(s) and related budgetary and organisational issues. If the InterMETREX and PolyMETREX projects are approved then their interim outcomes will form substantive parts of the proceedings 6 BUDGET, ACCOUNTS AND AUDIT FOR 2002 The METREX budget for 2002 and 2003 was approved at the Thessaloniki General Assembly in spring The Accounts for 2002 are as set out in Appendix 1 and the METREX Accountant, John Brown CA, will give a verbal report to the Managing Committee The METREX Treasurer/Auditor, Jussi Vuorinen of the City of Helsinki, has carried out the Audit for 2003 and a verbal report will be made to the Managing Committee The procedural Memorandum approved at the Rotterdam Meeting confirmed a requirement for the Secretary General to give a Financial Report for the first six months of the financial year, to 30 June 2003, and the Accountant to provide an Income and Expenditure Account for this period. This will be given to the Stockholm Meeting in September MEMBERSHIP There have been three changes to the membership of the Network. The Comune di Genova has joined and will share membership with the Provincia di Genova from January The Ville de Bruxelles has taken over the full membership that was previously shared with the Région Bruxelles-Capitale. It is a requirement of the AISBL Statutes that the Network should have a Belgian Member. The City of Brno has withdrawn from membership and both it and the Région Bruxelles-Capitale have given the required notice of one financial year from January Their formal membership will therefore cease in January The Managing Committee is asked to note this position 3

4 7 ANY OTHER BUSINESS A Dates for Meetings in 2003 The dates for the Stockholm Meeting will be Wednesday 17 to Saturday 20 September. Colleagues from the City and the County of Stockholm have kindly arranged the Meeting and the draft programme is attached as Appendix 2. Colleagues from Stockholm will present this draft programme to the Managing Committee B C D E Stuttgart Trade Fair inquiry (Verband Region Stuttgart) Enloc project (Verband Region Stuttgart) GEOLAND project (Secretary General) Representations to Commissioner Barnier on the issue of metropolitan regions and cohesion (Verband Region Stuttgart) Note that these issues arose after the Agenda Notes were circulated and will therefore be explained verbally at the Meeting by the METREX Members involved or by the Secretary General. RR/7/2/2003 4

5 APPENDIX 1 INCOME AND EXPENDITURE ACCOUNT for the year ended 31 December 2002 OPENING BANK BALANCE (15,282) MANAGEMENT Income Subscriptions 196,800 Interest received 23 Project co-funding 13,830 Expenditure Secretary General 17,362 Communications & management 17,232 Project support 87,765 Interpretation & translation 34,588 Travel, accommodation & subsistence 21,946 Printing & copying 311 Postage, stationery & telephone 5,062 Accountancy 5,419 Miscellaneous expenses 9, , ,391 SURPLUS/(DEFICIT) 11,262 CONFERENCE Income Expenditure 36,968 ( 36,968) NET INFLOW/(OUTFLOW) OF FUNDS (25,706) EXCHANGE DIFFERENCE 2,230 CLOSING BANK BALANCE (38,758) 5

6 PROFIT AND LOSS ACCOUNT for the year ended 31 December 2002 Budget for year Actual for year MANAGEMENT Income Subscriptions Interest received Project co-funding 250, ,00 214, , ,153 Expenditure Secretary General 49,600 17,362 Communications & management 26,500 17,232 Project support 53,000 88,604 Interpretation & translation 25,000 35,963 Travel, accommodation & subsistence 28,000 21,622 Printing & copying 2, Postage, stationery & telephone 5,000 5,020 Accountancy 5,300 5,419 Miscellaneous expenses 12,000 10, ,40 201,460 SURPLUS/(DEFICIT) 43,600 26,693 CONFERENCES Income - Expenditure 20,000 36,969 (20,00) ( 39,969) CURRENCY FLUCTUATION 2,040 PROFIT/(LOSS) 23,600 ( 8,236) 6

7 APPENDIX 2. DRAFT STOCKHOLM MEETING PROGRAMME Metrex The Network of European Metropolitan Regions and Areas XVI Meeting of the Network, Stockholm September Ersta Conference Centre For each presentation in the programme written documentation should be prepared beforehand and submitted to the Metrex Secretariat for copying and distribution. Monday - Wednesday September - InterMETREX Workshop (Ersta Conference Centre or other) Stockholm, Helsinki, Venezia, Granada Metrex Secretariat/Interpretariat Wednesday 17 September - Reception Day 18 hours Registration Reception in City Hall, Prinsens Galleri Thursday 18 September - Conference Day 1 9 Opening of Conference Welcome addresses Mercedes Bresso, President t of METREX Dag Larsson, County Council Commissioner/Ingela Nylund-Watz 9 30 Presentation of key issues in the Stockholm region Börje Wredén, Director Office of Regional Planning and Urban Transportation, County Council The new Regional Development Plan for the Stockholm Region Göran Johnson, project leader 10 The City and its strategic planning Mats Pemer, Head Strategic Planning dept, Stockholm City Coffee 11 Congestion charges the Stockholm version The London case feed-back from half a year s experience of congestion charges Discussion 7

8 12 30 Lunch Excursion by bus New development areas and infrastructure Coffee stop Bus tour ends Boat trip in inner archipelago including dinner on board/or at restaurant Friday 19 September Conference Day 2 9 European Affairs Latest news from EU 9 30 The EU enlargement and its impact on European metropolitan regions Hallgeir Aalbu, Director Nordregio Discussion Coffee Co-operation in the Baltic Sea Region -projects and cases Vilnius Warsaw St Petersburg 300 years As alternative also parallel workshop on current theme/s Limited interpretation during parallel workshops/s 12 Lunch Presentation of InterMETREX and PolyMETREX activities Discussion 15 Conclusion of the Stockholm meeting Discussion 16 End of Conference 18 Option - Visit to Wasa Museum (War ship that sank in Stockholm harbour 1628 unique museum!) fo interested delegates Saturday 20 September. METREX Managing Committee Meeting Managing Committee Meeting - Ersta Conference Centre or other Lunch 8