ENVIRONMENT AND AMENITIES COMMITTEE / EXTRAORDINARY FULL COUNCIL MEETING
Lytchett Matravers Parish Council
Minutes of the meeting held on Monday, July 7th 2014, in the Sports Club Pavilion at 7.00p.m.
PRESENT:
Cllr L Wilson (Chairman), M Colvey, A Bush, K Norris, J Taylor, I Maitland (from 7:30),
Two members of the public were also present.
1. APOLOGIES. Cllr C Wood.
2. PUBLIC PARTICIPATION. Mr. and Mrs. Carswell offered comments on the planning application considered in the Full Council section of this meeting at minute ii) below. They acknowledged that there had been some concerns expressed by residents of Foxhills Crescent regarding the effect of the proposed new vehicle access to this development and potential loss or blocking of one or more of the dedicated parking area for residents of the bungalows at the end of Foxhills Crescent; and also for the use of that area by ambulances serving them. They explained that there was no intention to utilise any of the parking spaces. They assured the Council that they had explained this to the residents concerned. They had also addressed this matter with Synergy Housing, who still own this unadopted highway and car parking area; and also with Dorset County Council Highways Department. Mr & Mrs Carswell have given explicit assurances to both Synergy and DCC Highways Dept that there is no intention to use or block any of the parking spaces at any time. They also advised that Synergy Housing and Dorset County Council have lodged no objections to this proposal.
3. DECLARATIONS OF PECUNIARY INTEREST, AND CONSIDERATION OF REQUESTS FOR SPECIAL DISPENSATIONS UNDER SECTION 33 OF THE LOCALISM ACT 2011. There were none.
Extraordinary Full Council meeting BUSINESS
i) Consideration of estimates for removal of rubble & making good at the Allotments.
It was agreed to defer this item until after the Council had filled its current vacancies and had held a site meeting to consider its intentions for this section of the Allotment site.
ii) Consideration of Planning Application 6/2014/0288 Mr & Mrs Carswell. 10 Huntick Estate, Lytchett Matravers BH16 6EB. Erect detached dwelling; form new vehicular access from Foxhills Crescent. NO OBJECTION.
iii) Consideration of Annual Return.
It was noted that the Parish Clerk had circulated, as prior reading, the numbers for approval in section one (page two) of the Annual Return for 2013 /14). After brief discussion it was RESOLVED to approve this section. The council then considered each of the nine statements in section two (Annual Governance Statement 2013/14) on page three of the Annual Return. Each statement was agreed as a “Yes” (with the exception of #9 with was “N/A”) and it was RESOLVED to approve the completion of this section of the Annual Return.
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iv) Approval of payments due.
It was RESOLVED to approve the following payments:
Inv | To Whom | For What | Net | VAT | Total |
3334 | Brighstone Landscaping Ltd | Pruning work – Foxhills Open Space | 150.00 | 30.00 | 180.00 |
3335 | Tracie Tucker | Hand delivery of L Link | 80.00 | 0.00 | 80.00 |
3336 | The Landscape Group | Cemetery Maintenance – June 14 | 303.49 | 60.70 | 364.19 |
3337 | NW Adams | Annual safety check and reports – play areas | 252.00 | 50.40 | 302.40 |
3338 | HMRC | P32 PAYE & ENI Quarter 1, 2014/15 | 888.92 | 0.00 | 888.92 |
3339 | S Masters | Repairs to Rocket Park Fencing plus spare palings | 33.44 | 00.0 | 33.44 |
V) Other business deemed urgent and important by the Full Council Chairman.
There was none.
ENVIRONMENT & AMENITIES COMMITTEE BUSINESS:
4. Election of Committee Chairman
Cllr Wilson was nominated, and duly elected.
5. Election of Committee Vice Chairman.
Cllr Maitland was nominated and duly elected.
6. MINUTES OF ENVIRONMENT AND AMENITIES COMMITTEE MEETING HELD ON 12th MAY2014. It was resolved to accept the minutes as a true record and they were signed by the Chairman.
5. MATTERS ARISING AND ACTON POINT UPDATE.
The following comments on matters arising from the last E&A Committee meeting were provided.
Minute 6, 7 July 2011. Recreation Ground. Millennium viewpoint plaque. Ongoing.
Minute6, 6th January 2014. MUGA Path Lighting. In the light of an idea emerging from the Neighbourhood Planning process that this area might be used in some way to help alleviate the traffic congestion and parking problem at the beginning and end of the school day, it was agreed to defer this matter.
Minute 2, 12th May 2014. Hedges and Ditches. It was noted that formerCllr Talbot had been tasked with liaising with DCC Highways regarding ditches needing clearance and that Cllrs had passed on details of such ditches to Cllr Talbot. It was clarified that such problems can be reported direct to DCC by Council members and progress monitored using the DCC case number system.
Minute 3, 12th May 2014. Foxhills Open Space. Cllr Norris had circulated a reminder to all Council members on the background to this matter . The current signage is out of date, bye laws are in place and the Multi Use Games area needs to be included in the arrangements. There also needs to be new signage for the dog exercise area on the Recreation Ground. There are three areas of activity required: (a) choose signs and locations, (b) erect signage and (c) communications campaign. A Working Group consisting of Councillors Norris, Wilson and Maitland will progress this.
Minute 6, 12th May 2014. Royal British Legion Club premises. Councillors had seen Cllr Norris’ report which was emailed to all members. The Parish Clerk had spoken to Mr Miller to verify that the intended Working Group has not yet been set up as there is currently nothing to work on until the owners respond with any offer.
7. OPEN SPACES.
The following items were discussed.
Recreation ground/car park. The fencing contractor has repaired the vandalised fence and is supplying Terry Homer with a stock of palings to use as and when needed for further replacements or repairs.
The removal of the stand of Leylandii trees on the southern side is still awaited.
Row Park Paddock. Nothing to report.
Allotments. The quotes for rubble removal and backfilling have now been obtained. The contractor is awaiting a decision from the Council on whether he will be required to go ahead.
In preparation for the flower and produce show, the Allotment Society Chairman had been asked to arrange for their counterparts from Upton to judge the three “best kept” Allotments, as usual. As no response has been received, the Parish Clerk has now written to the President of the Allotment Society instead.
Library Walk. The contractor who maintains the Foxhills Open Space has been asked to look at the problem of the overhanging trees and make some recommendations.
Memorial Green/War Memorial. Nothing to report.
Cemetery. No further correspondence has yet been received from the Church Wardens regarding the wall to the churchyard, the gate, or the state of the chest tombs in the churchyard.
Club Hall. Nothing to report.
Hedges and Ditches. Nothing to report
Foxhills Open Space. The bridge handrail has been repaired. The trees around the boundary have been pruned. A call was received from an unidentified resident commenting that the grass was getting long. The contractor is due imminently to undertake the regular cut.
MUGA. Nothing to report..
Village centre project. Nothing to report.
Footpaths. The completion of the Foxhills Open Space – Deans Drove path is outstanding, due to supply problems for fence posts. In response to a question from Cllr Norris, Cllr Colvey explained that he had arranged for a temporary closure sign to be displayed until the contractor puts up temporary Herras fencing, or completes the permanent fencing. This action was prompted by a complaint from an adjacent resident who pointed out that without this her garden is accessible to the public using the path. It was noted that letters have been received from residents who have already started using the path. The letters ask why it has been “closed again”.
It was noted DCC have undertaken some maintenance on the footpath from Foxhills Rd to Post Green.
Other open spaces. Terry Homer has obtained the timber for the bench repairs.
- Fly Tipping – Foxhills Open Space
This has been examined and found to be minor, and judged not to justify the costs of removal (contractor, skip hire, disposal fee). Cllr Colvey reported that he had also discussed the matter with PC Jon Stuart regarding a dumped moped. He has asked for the identification number so that he can trace the last owner.
- Future of brick bus shelters in the village.
Cllr Bush explained that the Neighbourhood Planning “Schools” sub group considered that there may be an advantage in removing the bus shelter adjacent to the primary school entrance and replacing it with something more modern and open, as this could help to alleviate some of the congestion at this point. Whilst considering this point, he felt the Council may wish to replace all four brick shelters around the village. It is understood Mr David Brown from DCC took away an action point from the recent site visit to Wareham Rd to also look into the matters related to replacing the shelter adjacent to the school. Cllr Wood was nominated to lead on this. Cllr Bush indicated that he would follow-up on this matter with Cllr Wood. Action: Cllr Bush to speak to Cllr Wood about it.
10. CORRESPONDENCE.
A further letter from Mark Pincott which had either been backdated or not posted for 2-3 weeks. The letter asks those Council members who attended the investment consultation meeting with him to sign to confirm the accuracy of some details discussed at the meeting. Some concerns were expressed about the accuracy of details in the letter and Cllr Bush agreed to contact Mr Pincott about it.
A letter from a local resident who owns a small parcel of land and who had approached PDC Planning about offering it for development. The PDC officer had suggested that the resident contact the Parish Council to request that this be included in the Neighbourhood Plan. It was felt that the matter of this referral to the Parish was not appropriate, and the matter of such referrals is to be taken up with officers from PDC by the Parish Council members attending a meeting with PDC on 8th July. Action: Parish Clerk to scan and copy the letter to all Council members.
A complaint from a resident about the overhanging hedge and stingers along Wareham Road between Prospect Road to Eldons Drove. Councillors were reminded that responsibility for this hedge is disputed between Synergy and PDC. In previous years DCC Highways have stepped in to cut it.
11. MATTERS OF INTEREST AND INFORMATION.
Cllr Norris has written to the Scouts for an update on the Hall project.
Cllr Colvey reported on a conversation he had with a resident of a property in Hannams Close regarding possible water run-off from the High Street car park into his garden – which may be causing some flooding problems at times. It was suggested that the Council look into this to consider the evidence, and that the expert advice of the District Council Engineer, Mike Goater, is obtained. This action was AGREED.
The meeting closed at 8:30pm.
EnvAmenitiesMinutes 140707draft.doc