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MINUTES of the Meeting of
Wivenhoe Town Council held in the Council Chamber on Monday 20 April 2009.
Present: The Town Mayor, Cllr. F. Richards (Chairman),
Cllrs: C. Liddy, P. Kraft, C. Fox, N. Lodge, M. Iacovou,
R. Needham, K. Rogers, B. Sinclair and A. Vaughan (late)
County Cllr. J. Young, Borough Cllr. S. Ford.
Mrs. A. Stinson (Town Clerk) Miss N. Edwards (Admin)
Prior to the commencement of business members met with two officers of Essex
County Fire and Rescue to talk about the advantages and disadvantages of the
retained fireman scheme.
1. APOLOGIES FOR ABSENCE.
Apologies for absence were received from Cllr. D. Purdey and Borough Cllr.
A. Quarrie.
2. MINUTES. RESOLVED that the Minutes of the Meeting of the Town Council
held on 16 March 2009 be confirmed and signed as a correct record.
3. MATTERS ARISING FROM THE MINUTES.
10.1b) CAB Presence in Wivenhoe: No response had been received yet on this
issue.
4. POINTS RAISED BY MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC. None.
5. REPORTS FROM MEMBERS OF THE COUNTY AND BOROUGH
COUNCILS.
a) Essex County Council: Cllr. Young reported that she had visited the
public conveniences at the High Street car park to see how work was
progressing. The floor had been laid and furniture was in place but there
was still quite a bit to be done. Cllr. Young had also been pressing ECC
Highways about the High Street railway bridge, which had been scheduled for
early 2009 and so far appeared to be at stalemate, the proposals were still
with Network Rail; concerning the VAS indicator sign this was making its
progress through the channels, although its location had still not been
finalized. Cllr. Young had also attended the Community Safety Forum and the
recent ‘Support for Local Shops’ event.
b) Borough Council: Cllr. Ford reported further on the saga of the wrongly
placed dog bin which CBC was trying to relocate somewhere around the
Persimmon site. WRAAG (Wivenhoe Rail Access for All Group) had been given
some radio coverage on their campaign for better access for the disabled at
Wivenhoe Railway Station and even the MEP came to look at the site. Cllr.
Ford applauded the efforts of this Group. On a planning matter members spoke
about Tendring District Council’s Local Development Framework which
contained a proposal to develop land adjacent to the A133, near the
University. Both the Wivenhoe Town Council and the Colchester Borough
Council needed to make their representations known to TDC on this as it
could cause traffic implications for Wivenhoe. Cllr. Ford would look into
it.
c) Public Transport Representative: No report received.
6. COMMITTEE REPORTS.
6.1 Planning
a) Minutes of the meeting of the Planning Committee held on 31 March were
received and noted. As the next meeting was to be held the following evening
and there were only two minor applications it was AGREED that the planning
meeting be held following the Town Council meeting.
b) Section 106 Working Party (Cooks’): Cllr. Liddy reminded members about
their responses to the spreadsheet on the Cooks’ site which he had
circulated. When the responses had been received a site meeting would be
held to discuss the matter further.
c) Health Centre: Cllr. Lodge report that a planning application had not
been put in yet as negotiations were still ongoing concerning which
direction the Health Centre would face. The next meeting of LiFT would be on
28 April and he would report back.
6.2 Personnel, Finance and Administration Committee.
The next meeting would be held on 14 May.
6.3 Best Value Committee
a) Draft notes of meeting held on Tuesday 14 April were received and noted.
b) Items of Note:
The recommendation from Best Value for approval of expenditure of approx.
£500 for resurfacing of the pathway across the Mede Way open space was
AGREED.
The recommendation from Best Value for approval of sponsorship of £100 for
the newly formed Wivenhoe Assets Group towards set up fees was AGREED. The
purpose of the group, which arose out of the Town Plan, is to seek out
funding opportunities for Wivenhoe residents that are not normally available
to the Town Council.
7. WORKING PARTY REPORTS.
7.1 William Loveless Hall Working Party:
a) Notes of the meeting held on 16 April were circulated.
Cllr. Kraft advised that the tiled flooring in the bar area of the Wyvern
Room could be replaced at the same time as the new carpet is laid. As this
was general wear and tear the cost could be attributed to the Hall’s
maintenance budget. Members agreed that this was a sensible idea. Noise
levels were discussed and it AGREED to invest in a small hand-held noise
meter at £35. Hirers were to be reminded to be quiet when leaving the Hall
late at night and the daytime exercise classes would be asked to reduce the
sound volume of their equipment, especially when the doors and windows of
the Hall were wide open. New flooring for the main hall was still being
looked into and the Working Party would carry on with their research.
7.2 Estates (General Amenities & Landscaping) Working Party.
a) Notes of the Meeting held on 6 April were received and noted. Town Clerk
confirmed
that the issue of disabled access to the Council Offices had already been
looked into and
the paperwork was on file. Cllr. Lodge mentioned that the truck would be
undergoing its
hydraulic repair the next day.
7.3 Wivenhoe Wood Working Party: Cllr. Sinclair reported that lighter
volunteer work was going to be looked into as an alternative to the heavier
bridge-building type of work and he would try to arrange a meeting with all
of the volunteers. The recent interest of the Wivenhoe Society’s PP3 was
also spoken about and it was suggested that the Wivenhoe Society contact
Cllr. Sinclair on this.
7.4. Minibus Working Group.
Minutes of the meeting held on Tuesday 24 March were received and noted.
Cllr. Sinclair reported that the water problem on the bus had now been
solved. Replacement of the current vehicle was under consideration and
research into this would be carried out shortly. An up to date copy of the
terms and conditions was to be sent to the Town Council’s web-site.
7.5 Youth Facilities Working Party. Nothing further to report.
7.6 Members' Individual Proposals or Reports:
a) Mayoral Activities: Cllr. Richards reported on attendances at the
University pf Essex for a Reception and ‘Burrows’ lecture on 18 March; Civic
Dinner at the Moot Hall on Friday 20 March; Wivenhoe Gilbert and Sullivan’s
production of Guys and Dolls on Saturday 21 March; Civic Service at
Chelmsford Cathedral on 26 March; Wivenhoe Congregational Church Service
celebrating “the Church in the Community” and finally attending the Wivenhoe
Town Council’s sponsored football match at Wivenhoe Town Football Ground on
Saturday 4 April, where the Wivenhoe Dragons won their match.
b) Community Safety and Police Matters: Cllr. Rogers reported on some
call-outs to youths drinking alcohol on the KGV field and anti-social
behaviour at Mede Way play area. Concerning the CCTV the Post Office had
indicated that this was of low priority and therefore they would not be able
to contribute. Cllr. Rogers also reported that he had attended the Community
Safety Forum and supported the ‘Local Shops’ meeting.
c) Pharmacy: Cllr. Needham reported that the proposal for a new Pharmacy in
lower Wivenhoe had been rejected, following an appeal.
8. TOWN CLERK'S REPORT.
8.1 Burial Grants and approval of memorials.
The Town Clerk reported that one Burial Grant had been issued and one
memorial had been approved since the last meeting. Two interments had taken
place.
8.2 NALC/EALC Communications. The March monthly communications and
newsletters from both NALC and EALC were both available in office for
members to read.
8.3 Tenancy Allocations/Changes from Colchester Borough Council. None.
8.4 Work Management.
a) General: The Town Clerk reported that grass-cutting had begun in all Town
Council owned areas. The landscaped area in front of the Opticians had been
restructured with plants and bark being sponsored by Deans’. The gates had
been put back on the Old Cemetery and the area in front of the High Street
car park completed with new border stones and slate around the boat. The
number of visitors to the Council Offices for the month of March totalled
164.
9. FINANCE.
9.1 Current Financial Report
a) The March spending and income Report was received and noted.
b) Town Clerk reported the end of year balance to the bank to be
£102,204.55.
c) 2008/2009 Audit of Accounts: AGREED to appoint of John Turner as the Town
Council’s Internal Auditor, as per last year and to appoint Mark Bartlett of
the Audit Commission as the Town Council’s external auditor for the
financial year 2008/09.
d) 2007/2008 Audit of Accounts: Completion of Audit Year ended 31 March
2008.
RESOLVED that the External Auditor’s certificate and report for the year
ended 31 March 2008 be received and accepted.
9.2 List of cheques numbered 503065 -503077 drawn since the last Town
Council Meeting was approved and signed.
9.3 List of Payments made from the Imprest Account since the last Town
Council
Meeting was approved.
9.4 Motions Under Standing Orders Recommending Expenditure.
Mede Way path £500
Sponsorship of WAGCIG £100
9.5 Appeals for Financial Support.
a) Wivenhoe Regatta: AGREED that the Town Council assist by ordering the
portaloos for the Regatta in order to recover the VAT element. The Regatta
would then reimburse the Town Council for the net cost.
10. NEW BUSINESS.
10.1 Correspondence.
a) Essex Biodiversity Project: Members received and noted the information
leaflet regarding the Natural Environment and Rural Communities Act 2006 (NERC)
which states that:
‘Every public body must, in exercising its functions, have regard , so far
as is
consistent with the proper exercise of those functions, to the purpose of
conserving biodiversity’
The leaflet is designed to act as a source of general information, providing
practical illustrations of ways in which the Town Council’s duty under this
Act can be carried out.
10.2 Conferences/Seminars. None.
10.3 Notices. Members noted the following:
Mayor’s Charity Summer Ball 13 June
Town Council Annual Cricket Match – Friday 10 July
10.4 Licences. None.
10.5 Highway Matters.
a) ECC Temporary Prohibition of use (FP 12 & 18) (Extension)
Noted that Footpaths 12 and 18 (Cooks) will be closed until 26 September
2009 to
facilitate development works and in the interests of public safety.
Extension of
current closure, which commenced in 2006.
10.6 Press Releases.
a) Waste and Recycling information day: Cllr. Richards reported that there
was to be an information day at the William Loveless Hall on 30 May from
11.00am – 3.00pm on Waste and Recycling, Climate Change and Transition
Towns. More details would be available shortly.
b) Annual Town Meeting start time:
Although published in the Brightlingsea and Wivenhoe Chronicle to be 7.00pm
the actual start time of the meeting was 7.30pm. This later date is to
enable commuters more time to attend the meeting.
The meeting closed at 8.55pm.
CHAIRMAN
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