SHIPLEY AREA COMMITTEE and BURLEY PARISH COUNCIL
NEIGHBOURHOOD FORUM MEETING
Thursday 18 January 2007
Commenced: 7:30pm
Concluded: 9:15pm
Chair:
Ms Chris Flecknoe - Shipley Area Committee
Cllr Caroline Jones – Burley Parish Council
Clerk:
Mrs Jo Griffiths
1. Apologies
Dennis & Margaret Warwick, PC Sheila Sillence, representatives from the Environment Agency were unable to attend as they were required elsewhere to deal with the adverse weather conditions.
55 people attended.
2. Welcome and Introductions
Cllr Jones welcomed everyone to the meeting particularly the 10 people who had not previously attended a Neighbourhood Forum. Some changes to the agenda were necessary as representatives from the Environment Agency were unable to attend, the Parking Review was moved up the agenda and there would be an opportunity in the Open Forum to discuss issues relating to flooding. The Environment Agency would attend a Forum at a future date and they had also sent questionnaires that could be completed to provide feedback on issues in the village.
3. Minutes of the last Forum – 19th October 2006
It was proposed by Mike Harris and seconded by Cllr Tilford that these were a true and accurate record. There were no matters arising.
4. Parking Review
Cllr Palmer offered thanks to the officers from Traffic & Highways at BMDC for the work done and to everyone who had made suggestions and given feedback, further feedback and comments would be very welcome.
Simon D'Vali, Chief Engineer for the Shipley Area and Craig Williams from the Traffic & Highways Department presented the plans showing the proposed changes to parking in Burley. The plans sought to tackle issues surrounding resident and commuter parking. Consultation with the Parish Council had already taken place but further comments and feedback would be sought.
Station Road – junction of Prospect Road and Station Approach. No work would be carried out that would restrict the movement of the school buses. A bus clearway will be marked from no.s 94–104 Station Road to prevent any parking there other than by the buses; local residents had been consulted and were happy with solution. Double yellow lines will be introduced to protect the Smithy Lane junction.
Prospect Road – the problem of all–day commuter parking was highlighted here, the road is narrow and parking restricts the flow of traffic, it is proposed to formalise some parking along Prospect Road with passing places to ensure a good flow of traffic. The junction with Rose Bank will be protected with double yellow lines. It is also proposed to impose some parking restrictions e.g. maximum stay of 4 hours.
Station Road – double yellow lines will protect the junctions of Southfield Road, Hanover Way and Langford Road.
Q. How far along these roads will the double yellow lines extend?
A. Highways standard is 10–15m.
Parking at the bottom of Station Road near the shops will be formalised with parking bays and restricted waiting time of 1 hour outside the Post Office. It is proposed to extend the double yellow lines from the roundabout to the Parish Room to protect the junction.
Main Street, east of junction with Station Road – it is proposed to remove the double yellow lines on Iron Row and to formalise waiting restrictions on Main Street outside MCC garage to protect the station forecourt. Yellow lines will be added at the junction with York Road. It is proposed to introduce a limited waiting time outside the florist. Main Street, west of junction with Station Road – Traffic & Highways had considered removing the parking restrictions along West Terrace on at least one side of the road to ease residents' parking problems in this area. This was not considered to be a good proposition as it remained a busy road and a bus route. The Parish Council had encouraged Mr D'Vali to look at a scheme to introduce some formalised parking in sections along West Terrace that would allow for passing places, this is under consideration.
Q. Station parking – by imposing parking restrictions at the station would this not be just passing the problem to other parts of the village? It was well known that a number of people drive to Burley from Menston to catch the train to ensure they obtain a seat. Parking restrictions would not stop them doing this but merely that they would then park somewhere else in the village. Shouldn't the welfare of the residents of the village come before those of the people parking for the station?
A. The priority was to reduce the level of parking on Prospect Road – the road is narrow and some compromises need to be made. The proposed parking restrictions would remove 8 parking spaces along Prospect Road and it was the opinion of Traffic & Highways that some parking on Rose Bank was preferable.
Q. Little mention had been made of the problem for cyclists in turning from Rose Bank on to Prospect Road. At the current time they had to ride almost on the other side of the road in order to be seen, how would these measures help?
A. Double yellow lines at the junction will improve visibility for all traffic at this junction.
Q. Rose Bank is a bus route and with cars parked on both sides. It is very difficult for the bus to pass along the road how will increased parking affect this?
A. Increased enforcement of the traffic laws will help ease the situation and Highways have been in discussion with the local police regarding the issues surrounding these changes.
Q. More parking at the station needs to be provided to encourage the greater use of the railway. Are there any plans to offer more official parking at the station?
A. The land is not owned by BMDC and is the responsibility of Railtrack; Mr D'Vali offered to open dialogue with Railtrack to see if land could be made available.
Q. Pedestrians find it very difficult to cross at the bottom of Station Road near the roundabout, are there any plans to ease this situation?
A. Yellow lines are being extended in this area this will hopefully improve visibility. Mr D'Vali noted this concern and will look at it further.
Q. What additional enforcement will be available if these new measures are introduced?
A. Police have agreed to increased enforcement upon introduction of the changes. There are at least 2 PCSOs working in the area who have delegated powers to issue parking tickets.
Q. Rose Bank is a route to Burley Woodhead School, if there is to be increased levels of parking it will be more difficult to see to cross the road, won't this make it more dangerous for local children?
A. Mr D'Vali was very mindful of the issues regarding safe routes to schools and would consider these issues and some of the possible solutions e.g. walking buses, lobbying the schools and better information for parents.
Q. Cllr Tilford asked Mr D'Vali if he had any suggestions for improving safety on Moor Lane under the railway bridge. The footpath at this point is very narrow and is difficult to negotiate for parents with small children and prams. (Mike Harris also reminded the meeting that this is also a disabled access route from one platform of the station to another and as such should be a foot wider than it currently is).
A. Traffic & Highways to continue to look at this location, if the footpath did need to be widened by as much as a foot then some kind of give way restriction may be necessary. The traffic calming humps on Moor Lane that are currently insufficient are due to be up–graded and this should slow the speed of traffic reaching the bridge. Any give–way restriction raised issues about visibility and required further investigation. Mr D'Vali hoped to be able to present the finalised scheme to the Area Committee and then to widely advertise the scheme in the next 6 months. Comments and suggestions were invited in writing or in person to Traffic and Highways; the yellow 'Have your say' forms were available at tonight's meeting and could be obtained from the Parish Clerk at a later date. Thanks were offered to Mr D'Vali and Mr Williams for their contributions to the meeting.
5. Young People's Issues
Chris Flecknoe offered an update on the issues raised at the last Forum when members of the Anti-Social Behaviour Team had attended to talk about the concerns some residents had about young people in the village. Ms Flecknoe was very pleased to report that the issue concerning the take–away on Station Road appeared to have been dealt with but that the police continued to monitor the situation.
Abina Dorgan–Smith and Louise Hargreaves from the Youth Services team were introduced and gave a talk on the provision of youth services in Burley. Bradford & Keighley Youth Parliament were about to hold elections and a lot of work had been done with young people in exploring the issues and manifestoes provided by the different candidates and making the information more relevant to their communities. Polling stations would be provided at Ilkley Grammar School and at the Queens Hall, Burley. Louise Hargreaves talked about her work with Burley Youth Centre and described the community issues they had worked on recently including the rights and responsibilities of young people in the community and the consequences of their actions. Discussions with the young people attending the sessions indicated they had interests in sports, DJ–ing, basic graffiti art (on boards), dance, awareness of issues surrounding drugs and alcohol, safer sexual and personal relationships. Opportunities to attend residential courses helped them to learn new activities and explore new interests. It was hoped to offer an Open Evening in the future to show parents and the local community what the young people have been doing. The Youth Centre meets from 7-9pm Monday and Wednesday evenings at the Queens Hall for young people aged 12–19 years.
Comment from a member of the public: the young people in Burley are exemplary; he had worked with young people in a variety of different areas and thought that the work being done in Burley was terrific.
Angus MacIntosh, a former head teacher in Burley gave a talk on the work of the Cyber Café. The café had been formed 7 years ago and is very well attended and supported throughout the village, as an illustration Mr MacIntosh offered up the following information – that the café that evening had 34 young people attending and that the year 5 club had more than 41 young people attending. 27 leaders assisted at the cyber café ranging in age from 29 to 82 and offered a variety of skills from running the tuck shop to assisting with registration or talking with the young people. Very rarely were there words exchanged at meetings, young people were involved in a variety of activities from fundraising to taking in part discussion groups and performing 'alternative' interpretations of the nativity. Mr MacIntosh emphasised that the village was lucky to have a group of great kids and that as adults we should appreciate them and in turn they would learn to appreciate us.
Thanks were offered to Angus MacIntosh, Abina Dorgan–Smith and Louise Hargreaves for their attendance and contributions.
6. Aire–Wharfe Community Housing Trust: The Lawn Update
Mr Jim Smith from AWCHT was introduced. Cllr Chris Greaves declared an interest in this subject and stepped out for this item. Mr Smith offered apologies from Carol Bridges who had been the previous contact on this project and gave an update on the situation regarding The Lawn.
The Lawn is owned by AWCHT and had historically provided bed–sit accommodation for the elderly. At the time the last residents were moved out The Lawn was in a very poor state of repair and presented a significant problem to up–grade. Social housing rents were not sufficient to provide the funds for an up–grade to the accommodation and the proposed additional accommodation that would provide 10 new flats and 14 conversions from the original building. Grants were applied for but the bid was unsuccessful and the project has been reviewed with the aim of decreasing the cost of the project.
A new bid was submitted last week to provide accommodation to rent in the new building with shared ownership properties in the original building, both elements requiring the grant money to proceed. It was likely that if the bid was successful AWCHT would hear very soon and that they would be on–site within the financial year. Mr Smith gave some detail on the shared equity flats; they would be approx. 600sq.m with market prices determined at the time of sale and a 50% mortgage required.
Q. Will there be provision for the disabled?
A. There is no lift so only the ground floor would be available for disabled access.
Q. Why were the flats designed with the sitting rooms on the north side of the building?
A. Mr Smith was not sure about why certain design decisions had been made but his impression from the Open Day had been that the designs had been generally well received.
Q. Why had this taken so long? Two years ago names were placed on waiting lists and had the project moved ahead more quickly residents could have been in place and paying rent to AWCHT.
A. Any kind of social housing requires grant money and by taking longer it is hoped that more accommodation may be provided.
Cllr Palmer added some further information. The board of AWCHT had looked at funding the project without grant money; they would have been able to provide only 10 units for shared equity schemes, the village would have not benefited as much from this scheme. The local connections policy ensures that Burley residents will be offered participation in a scheme that involves 24 properties, a substantial increase in the amount of affordable accommodation in the village.
Q. What happens if AWCHT does not obtain the grant funding?
A. There would be a re–examination of the scheme as the building cannot be left empty for an indefinite period. AWCHT feel confident that with the support of BMDC and the feedback they have had from the Housing Corporation that their bid will be successful.
7. The Grange
Cllr Jones advised that the Parish Council was still working hard to find a sustainable use for the Grange. Discussions continued to take place with organisations interested in providing social housing on the top two floors with the downstairs for community use and business lettings.
8. Burley House Field
At the beginning of December it was resolved by the executive of BMDC that the land be leased to Burley Parish Council. The negotiations for ending the current lease will be carried out by Asset Management at BMDC and the Parish Council will shortly be contacting them to discuss the timescale. The ultimate goal would be for the field to be granted Village Green status. John Gundry had some further information on how the village green status could be achieved within the powers of the Commons Act of 2006 and had been in contact with a barrister, Mr Nigel Platen who would be able to offer an opinion on this subject.
9. Maintenance
Cllr Tilford gave an update. The Parish Council had taken over ownership and maintenance of some of the old Burley Community Council projects others had been retained by the Burley in Wharfedale Community Trust. The Parish Council had now established a maintenance group comprising Cllr Horton, Cllr Jenkins, Cllr Walker and Cllr Tilford to liaise with BMDC. Any issues regarding maintenance could be brought to the attention of these councillors or the parish clerk.
The maintenance group wish to establish a community group to work one morning per month on the last Saturday of the month to work on projects around the village e.g. removal of Himalayan Balsam from the becks and stream sides or maintaining particular flower beds. Anyone who wished to volunteer was encouraged to meet at 10am on the last Saturday of the month on the village green starting from the end of March. It is hoped to encourage young people and groups within the village to contribute for ˝ to 2 hours a month.
Cllr Tilford offered a gentle reminder to property owners to ensure that overhanging hedges and trees did not impede pedestrians. Any suggestions for maintenance work could be forwarded to the Parish Council either through the session on a Tuesday morning from 10–12noon at Open Door or by contacting the parish clerk via email or telephone. Cllr Tilford confirmed that a request had been made to Shipley Area Panel for funds to complete a community clean up in May.
10. Report Back and Open Forum
Ms Flecknoe directed attention to the cream coloured sheets that had been distributed that gave a report back on issues raised at the last Forum.
A member of the public raised an issue on Holme Park regarding dog fouling. Photographs taken on 2nd January were on display at the back of the hall to illustrate the extent of the problem. BMDC had provided a quick response with an officer on site to inspect the problem and to arrange for the cleansing service to attend; this was expected in the very near future. The Area Co–ordinator's office were arranging for a notice to be positioned nearby to encourage dog owners to clean up after their dogs. All dog owners were encouraged to clean up after their animals.
Q. What was happening about the proposed Burley Bridge?
A. Cllr Riley gave an update on what was happening on this issue. The current design was being reviewed as there had been some negative feedback. It was not believed any alternative sites were being viewed.
Q. Was it possible to do anything to repair the stepping stones in the interim?
A. The stones were for breaking the flow of water from the weir and there was still an injunction in force preventing anyone from working on the stones. Ms Flecknoe to check if there was any update on this issue as the legal issues had been explored by BMDC.
Q. What response had been given to the Draft Rights of Way Improvement Plan?
A. The proposed Burley Bridge was mentioned and Burley Parish Council had sent a submission and whilst not supporting any particular plan had supported the aim of a suitable crossing across the River Wharfe.
Q. What were the rules regarding fireworks – on New Years Day fireworks had been released at 2am, was this permitted?
A. Parish Council to look into the local by–laws.
Ms Flecknoe reminded everyone that copies of a map provided by the Environment Agency were available showing the water courses in the village and that a questionnaire had been provided to give feedback to the Environment Agency. If any member of the public had an urgent issue regarding flooding they could ring 01274 431000, any longer term issues could be forwarded through the Area Co–ordinator's Office.
Cllr Riley offered thanks on behalf of Burley Village Wildlife Group to the Area Co–ordinator's Office for the grant given by the Community Chest for the purchase of a heavy duty motorised lawn mower.
Next meeting:
Annual Meeting of the Parish
29th March 2007, 7.30pm at Burley Oaks Primary School
Shipley Area Co–ordinator's Office, Town Hall, Kirkgate, Shipley, BD18 3EJ Telephone: (01274) 43714 6 Fax: (01274) 532780
Burley Parish Council, 6 The Copse, Burley in Wharfedale, LS29 7QY. Tel: 07971 772181 Email: parishclerk@burley-in-wharfedale.org