MINUTES OF THE MEETING OF BELPER TOWN COUNCIL HELD ON 4th SEPTEMBER 2001
PRESENT: Councillor Randall Sanders (Town Mayor) in the Chair,
Councillors Tim Benson, Alan Broughton, Ron Buzzard, Alan Cox, Ron Day, Michael Handley, Pete Leahy, Ben Miller, Joyce Sanders and Richard Watson.
- APOLOGIES FOR ABSENCE
Apologies for absence were received from Councillors Elaine Emmott and John Nelson.
- CHANGE IN ORDER OF BUSINESS
There was no change in order of business but the Town Clerk referred to an additional planning schedule and supplementary schedule of correspondence received to date, which had been tabled. He also circulated a letter concerning the Register of Members Interests and requested that Councillors complete and return it to him as soon as possible.
- DECLARATIONS OF INTEREST
Councillor Alan Cox declared an interest in item 10 (Planning Applications) and item 12 (Payments and Receipts) in so far as it related to the item on black spot lighting and item 17 (Milford Post Office).
Councillor Ben Miller declared an interest in item 11 (Justices and Entertainments Licences).
The Mayor (Councillor Randall Sanders) and Councillor Joyce Sanders declared an interest in item 10 (Planning Applications) in so far as it related to AVA/2001/0853.
- BELPER TOWN FOOTBALL CLUB U14 TEAM
Mr Chris Hodgson who had led the U14 Team's visit to Pawtucket, accompanied by several helpers and members of the Team showed a video of their visit and then spoke enthusiastically of the enjoyable time they had had whilst in New England. They thanked the Council for their generous contribution towards the £7,500 they had raised for the visit and spoke warmly of the friendships they had made whilst in the Blackstone Valley and the strengths of the twinning arrangements between Pawtucket and Belper.
- PUBLIC PARTICIPATION
Mr Butler of 6 Church Walk complained about the general appearance of Belper compared with Ripley. He identified the litter in King Street and the conditions of some of the channels. This led to a general discussion of the image that Belper presented to visitors. Members were especially concerned about weeds in the pavements and gutters particularly along the A6. It was agreed to write to the Borough Council about this and the cleanliness of King Street and other areas of the town centre. It was suggested that the Borough Council should clean the paved area in King Street to remove chewing gum and oil stains. The Council itself would also ensure that the channels for which it is responsible were weed free.
- ITEMS TAKEN IN CAMERA
It was agreed to take the Minutes of the Staff Working Group and Matters Arising therefrom in camera.
- MINUTES OF THE COUNCIL MEETING 18TH JULY 2001
The Minutes of the meeting held on 18th July 2001 were received and approved.
Councillor Alan Cox said he was in the process of installing the Agenda and Minutes of the Council and Committee meetings (since the Annual Meeting) onto the Council's web site.
- MATTERS ARISING FROM THE ABOVE MINUTES
At the completion of the programme of events, the Town Clerk was asked to prepare a financial statement showing the income and expenditure for the season as a whole.
Councillor Joyce Sanders said she had received very few comments from Members about the Local Plan Review. She had written to the Planning Authority on behalf of this Council identifying six areas of concern. They included the need for access to two sites on the Meadows and the possibility of a relief road through this area.
The Mayor had written to Commander Rolfe seeking to restore the strong connections that Belper had with HMS Brocklesby. Should this contact fail, another avenue of establishing contact would be explored.
- MAYOR'S ANNOUNCEMENTS
The Mayor reported that Belper had been put on the world map by Mr Potato Head. The story of this twinning gift had been blown out of all proportion but had served to publicise Belper on the other side of the world.
- PLANNING APPLICATIONS
Councillor Joyce Sanders reported that the planning applications circulated on 18th July and 21st August contained very few contentious issues other than the proposal for the development of Milford Mills. Reference was also made to the Convent site where the developers were still in the process of talking to the Borough Council's planning officers prior to the submission of an application.
- JUSTICES AND ENTERTAINMENT LICENCES
Councillors made no comments on the Justices Licences, the Protection Order and Entertainment Licences on the schedules circulated on 18th July and 21st August.
- PAYMENTS AND RECEIPTS
There were no comments on the schedule of cheques and income for the period from 4th July to 22nd August.
The Town Clerk reminded Council that it had approved an application for funding for black spot lighting at the Community Hall at their meeting on 3rd April. The scheme cost was estimated at £879 and an application had been made to the Borough Council to contribute 50% towards this. However, as it was in a conservation area, the Conservation Officer had recommended an upgrade of the three lamps which amounted to some £600. There were also several other minor improvements in relation to Health and Safety issues which meant that a revised costing of £1,700 had just been received. Council agreed to approve this additional expenditure subject to the Borough Council agreeing to pay 50%.
- POLICE
The letter from the Chief Constable dated 3rd August concerning the Community Beat Teams was noted with regret. Because of other commitments by Members, no representative would be able to attend the meeting at the Police Headquarters on Monday 17th September concerning the Chief Constable's proposals to improve local beat teams throughout the country.
- FLORAL DISPLAYS
In the budget for the current year, £4600 had been allocated for spending on floral displays. Sponsorship income of £1600 was anticipated, thus producing a budgeted net expenditure of £3,000. Some £4700 had been spent to date but sponsorship income would produce £3300. Accordingly the Town Clerk had negotiated with Broadholme Nurseries to supply winter bedding. It was proposed to bed out the D bed in the Memorial Gardens, the Field Lane bed, the Milford Triangle and the Talbot beds at a cost of £904, leaving a net saving of some £600 under this budget head. It was agreed to accept the quote.
- LARKS IN THE PARK
Councillor Richard Watson reported that he and the Town Clerk had met with the Assistant Chief Executive of the Borough Council and other Council Officers to analyse the summer events. The meeting concluded that apart from one or two minor incidents, there had been no complaints about noise and the "Larks" had been considered extremely successful, attracting audiences of some 300-500 on each occasion. It had been agreed to plan a programme of events in good time for summer 2002 so that the band concerts and the Larks were spread out more evenly than they had been this year.
- WORDS AND MUSIC
As some of the events were likely to attract audiences in excess of 60 people (which was the limit under the current Entertainment Licence), discussions had taken place with the Fire Officer as to what steps could be taken to increase the capacity of the Heritage Centre. It had been agreed that if the seating arrangements were reversed so that some of the audience sat at the altar end of the Chapel and the speaker and screen were backed up to the Council Chamber wall, then up to 100 people could be accommodated. However, in order to do this, it would be necessary to erect a balustrade along the top of the steps in front of the altar to stop people falling forward and a handrail leading up the steps to the Fire Exit. The cost of installing the balustrade and rail was likely to be in the order of £300-£350. In addition, it would be necessary to have a projector and screen which would cost in the region of £400.
Members were concerned that the proposed ironwork could affect the appearance of the building and that it may be necessary to obtain planning permission as well as the sanction of the Diocese. They also considered that the balustrade should be capable of removal and storage when necessary. Accordingly, the Planning and Church authorities would be approached and a projector and screen would be purchased as such equipment was needed for the Words and Music series as well as other events taking place at St Johns.
- MILFORD POST OFFICE
The letter from CCS was noted. However, the proposal that the Post Office should be on the first floor of the building meant it was unlikely to be approved.
- FARMERS' MARKET
The recommendations in the report that the Farmers' Market should continue on a monthly basis throughout the winter with an additional market coinciding with the Christmas festivities on 16th December and that the Market close at 2 pm, were agreed.
The report identified the problems of supervising the Market and the erection, dismantling and storage of stalls. Considerable debate was given to these issues and it was recognised that the present ad hoc arrangements could not continue. The Town Centre Manager would be asked to give the utmost priority to resolving the storage problems and the Town Clerk would explore other means of providing manpower on the Saturday. It was recognised that this would be more costly than the present arrangements. However, the markets had been extremely successful to date and the Council recognised that they were a means of bringing additional trade and visitors into Belper and that at the end of the day they were likely to have to subsidise the Farmers' Markets.
- PARISH BOUNDARY
Holbrook Parish Council's proposal for redrawing the boundary between Belper and Holbrook in the vicinity of Callwood Farm was agreed.
- BUDGET 2002/3
The Conservative Group did not wish to participate in the proposed working party but suggested that funds should be set aside next year to celebrate the Queen's Golden Jubilee. They also suggested that the sponsorship of Belper Town Football Club should be reviewed as it appeared that the Town Council's name was not visible on the new kit of the football team. Accordingly, the working party would be composed of Councillors Tim Benson and Joyce Sanders.
- GYPSIES ON THE SHOWGROUND
The County Council had been extremely supportive of this Council in dealing with the gypsies on the Showground. A bill had been received from the County Council for £820 plus VAT for direct legal costs that they had incurred in moving on the gypsies. A letter would be sent to the County Council thanking them for their support. In order to prevent further invasions of the Showground a demountable bollard would be erected at the Derwent Street entrance and the fencing at the foot of the access road next to Safeways would be removed and replaced by concrete bollards plus a demountable bollard for vehicular access. Quotes had been obtained for this work and one from ACS at a cost of £660 had been accepted. Work was due to be started shortly. A further charge of £50 had been made by the Borough Council for the removal of rubbish left behind by the gypsies.
- TRAFFIC CALMING
Councillor Alan Cox's resolution that "this Council notes the latest government research into road humps and urges Derbyshire County Council to utilise alternative methods of traffic calming so as not to add to atmospheric pollution" was agreed. Accordingly, a letter would be sent to the County Council. Of particular concern were the road humps on John O'Gaunts Way which had to be negotiated at a speed of less than 15 mph thus using fuel as vehicles accelerate from this speed.
- TOWN VEHICLE
Councillors John Nelson and Randall Sanders had been charged with the task of selecting a replacement for the Council's old Ford Pickup. In consultation with the staff, they had asked for quotes for a new one ton pickup powered by LPG and payment being under a contract hire agreement. The Town Clerk reported that he had talked to a number of companies and the best quotes had been received from TLS, who supplied the Borough Council with vehicles, for a Vauxhall Brava. With full maintenance for a three year period, the cost was £334 per month and for a five year period was £316 per month. If the maintenance element was removed, the costs would be £271 and £227 per month respectively.
There was provision of £4000 in the budget for this. However, some Members were concerned about the ongoing commitment beyond the current year and suggested that a used vehicle in good condition would be more cost effective. In accordance with Standing Order 64 the Town Clerk was asked to place an advert seeking a one-ton pickup, either new or used, which could be either purchased outright or leased or hired. Enquiries would also be made to local dealers as well as to Amber Valley Borough Council and TLS to see whether they had any three year old vehicles that were in good condition.
Because of the urgency of the situation the decision on a replacement vehicle would be taken by Councillors John Nelson and Randall Sanders in consultation with the two Group Leaders.
- CALDERS CORNER
It was agreed to meet half the cost of the name plate. However, it should be made clear to the Borough Council that they should take on board the maintenance of this piece of land and that no responsibility for it should fall on the Town Council.
- FAIR
It was agreed that the fee for the Autumn fair to be held from Thursday 1st November to Saturday 3rd November should be £1800.
- WINTER QUARTERS
The specific requirements for space had not been agreed but the Showmen had assured the Town Clerk that they would take up no more space than last year. This would be taken on board when discussing the marking out of the Coppice Car Park.
- AMBER VALLEY ACCESS GROUP
As there were two vacant posts on the Amber Valley Access Group, it was agreed to nominate Michael Bestwick and Frank Wheeldon as the Council's representatives.
- DERBYSHIRE FLOOD DEFENCE FAIR
A letter from the County Emergency Planning Officer was noted. The Mayor and Councillor Joyce Sanders would be attending the fair.
- SURFACING IN THE TOWN CENTRE
Councillor Michael Handley identified various sites in the Market Place and King Street where the Utilities had excavated the roads and pavement and left unsightly tarmac on a temporary basis. It was noted that the Utilities had up to six months to restore the surfacing to its original state. It was also noted that many of the cracked slabs in the pedestrian area of King Street were not due to the Utilities but to vehicles parking on this area at night. It was agreed to write to the County Council and Borough Council about their responsibilities in relation to the town centre. The former would be reminded in particular about its responsibilities in ensuring that the Utilities restore the surface that they have excavated within the six month time period. The latter would be asked to ensure that the central area was kept clean and the paved areas were steam cleaned to remove chewing gum and oil stains. Every effort must be made to take action to bring back the town centre to the state it was in when first improved.
- TRANSFER OF HIGHWAYS RESPONSIBILITIES
The contents of the letter identifying the responsibilities for highways matters in the Amber Valley area were noted.
- CORRESPONDENCE RECEIVED
The schedule of correspondence received which was circulated with the Agenda, together with that circulated at the meeting, were noted.