Agenda and minutes

Councillors will say if there is anything on the programme which they have a personal interest in.

There were no declarations by Councillors.

Councillors will decide whether they agree that the record of the last meeting is correct.

RESOLVED:

that the record of the meeting held on Monday 11 December 2006 was agreed as a correct record.

Councillor Farmer stated that the police budget for the next financial year had been set, which meant the loss of up to 60 officers.  In the next 2 years this could rise to between 200 and 300 officers.   He again urged the residents to write to the Home Office Minister to express their concerns.

6.05pm

There will be a report back on the responses to questions raised by members of the public at the previous meeting.

A resident stated that in respect of question 100 that they felt that the alleyway had been in use as a public right of way for 20 years, therefore it was thought that it should be considered as a public right of way.  It was requested that the security gates be moved to cover up the entrances to people’s gardens.

6.10pm

Attached to the agenda papers is a report which gives details about the area which the Committee covers. The report also makes suggestions about the possibilities which exist for a community regeneration scheme in the area. Rebecca Hayward, Regeneration Officer will be in attendance to gather the views of residents and give advice as to how any ideas could be taken forward.

Members had previously raised concerns over the lack of funding that was available for the Eyres Monsell and Aylestone Wards.  The Committee had previously referred the matter to Cabinet and it was resolved that officers would work with local residents and parties to bring forward a regeneration project.  There were many opportunities suggested including work on the Riverside and Environmental visitors centre.

The Chair suggested that any ideas of how the regeneration money could be spent should be passed to the Council officers for consideration.

Residents re-iterated their concerns regarding the lack regeneration funding in the Aylestone and Eyres Monsell areas. Particular concerns were expressed about a general lack of facilities in the Aylestone area, particularly in view of the forthcoming housing developments.

It was felt that the figures in the report regarding population statistics were out of date.

Residents expressed concern about the planned Bloor’s development off Aylestone Road.  It was queried where the road exit onto the main road and any other access to the site would be.  It was also requested that the Committee be provided with details of the transport assessment that took place as part of the application process. A Resident also thought that complications had arisen with regard to sewers on the site and clarification on any difficulties in this area was requested.

The possibility of some community provision on Aylestone Meadows or on the Saffron Lane Sports Centre site was proposed.

A resident commented that there was funding available from different sources and that if the area committee put together some formal proposals, officers could investigate them.

Clarification was also sought with regard to the planning policies regarding public open space and play facilities in new developments. An area of particular concern was the potential for 500-700 new houses in the Aylestone area and the fact that there were currently very little play facilities in the area.  It was felt that the proposed amount of play / open space in the proposed Bloor’s development of Aylestone Road was far too small.

A comment was made about the importance of facilities for pedestrians and ensuring that trees and green areas were maintained and protected.

Councillor Farmer commented that Councillor Ramsdale was supportive of this report. He therefore recommended that Cabinet ask Officers to continue the work on regeneration for the area.

RESOLVED:

That Cabinet be requested to ask officers to continue the work on a regeneration scheme for the area.

6.30pm

Anne Provan, Riverside Development Officer will be in attendance to inform the meeting about the expenditure which the Council makes in the Riverside area. She will be able to respond to any questions about this and possibly take ideas from the meeting to inform how future expenditure is undertaken.

Ann Provan informed the meeting about the work that had been achieved and what was planned for the future of the Riverside area.  The area was originally a landfill site that was converted into a nature reserve around 40 years ago.  In 2005 a bid for capital funding was achieved which involved three projects, including encouraging wildlife, a grazing project and improving the nature reserve.  The project had already improved the entrances of the area by making them welcoming, with funding having been spent on new entrance signs that included maps and give details of which part of the area to look at.  The pathway networks had been improved using tarmac, gravel and grass, where appropriate to ensure that they were as accessible to as many people as possible.  It was noted that the boardwalk had been rebuilt using recycled plastic and there was an allocation for play facilities for young people to be built on the nature reserve.

Residents noted that the play facilities would be a welcome facility for the area but should not be used as an alternative to receiving new facilities within the new housing area. Some residents expressed concern that the facilities would be too isolated and unsafe.

A concern was expressed about the boardwalk not being finished. Ann commented that this was a priority, but noted that the plastic boards were considerably more expensive than wood, but would last a great deal longer.

It was also noted that there had previously been problems with youths and vandalism in the area but measures had hopefully been put in place to ensure that this was addressed including the use of bollards.

It was commented that the path that goes past the Kings Lock ended abruptly and that this was a problem for disabled people. Ann Provan commented that the path went up to the city boundary and beyond which the Council had no jurisdiction.

6.50pm

A summary of the current position and details of previous expenditure of the Committee’s budget is attached at appendix C.

Residents and groups are welcome to put forward requests for funding from the budget. However if requests are received at the meeting or just before, we cannot guarantee that we will be able to approve them at the meeting.

Details of the current budget requests are attached to the agenda papers as follows:-

D1 – Aylestone Park Residents Group – application for the cost of hall hire for Group meetings.

D2 – Southfields Library Boundary Gates Renovation – application to reinstate gates at the library to make it more difficult to gain casual access.

D3 – Linwood Centre Community Association – application to provide office and workroom equipment for community group

D4 – Saffron Community Website – funding to pay for an administrator of a website.

D5 – Saffron Community Food Workers – funding to pay for a training course for 10 – 15 people.

D6 – Linwood Community Luncheon Club – visit to another luncheon club.

Councillors will be asked to give their view on these applications at the meeting.

Jerry Connolly of the Chief Executive’s Office, Leicester City Council was in attendance to discuss four bids that had already been made.

1        Aylestone Park Residents Group – application for the cost of hall hire for Group meetings.

It was agreed to award funding of £102.00.

2        Southfields Library Boundary Gates Renovation – application to reinstate gates at the library to make it more difficult to gain casual access.

It was agreed to award funding of £2405.00.

3        Linwood Centre Community Association – application to provide office and workroom equipment for community group.

            It was agreed to award funding of £504.00.

4        Saffron Community Website – funding to pay for an administrator of a website.

It was agreed to defer this application as Members felt there was further work needed on the application.

5        Saffron Community Food Workers – funding to pay for a training course for 10 – 15 people.

It was agreed to defer this application as Members felt there was further work needed on the application.

6        Linwood Community Luncheon Club – visit to another luncheon club.

            It was agreed to award funding of £800.00.

7        Funding for a No Cold Calling Zone in Eyres Monsell

It was agreed to award funding of £900.00.

Councillor Farmer agreed to move the previously approved funding of £1,000 for a Skateboard Park Study from the general budget to the sports budget and to provide an additional £833 for this project.

7.00pm

Jerry Connolly from the Chief Executive’s Office undertook some research with regard to the possibility of a 20mph limit outside Granby Primary School. He will report the results of this research at the meeting.

Jerry Connolly informed the meeting that he had spoken with the Transport Section at the Council and with the head teacher from Granby Primary School regarding a possible 20mph speed limit outside the School.  It was reported that during the Head Teacher’s time at the school there had been no child related incidents.  It was felt that the aspect that was most likely to cause an accident was careless parking by parents outside the school.  Transport Officers were of the view that a 20mph limit would be possible but this would need to be in conjunction with speed humps, which could prove difficult for road users.  It was further noted that a peak times, it was rare that cars travelled over 20 mph on this stretch of road.

There was disagreement between residents on the need for and the type of speed restrictions in this area.

A number of suggestions were put forward with the aim of slowing traffic down and further investigation. These included a narrowing the road, a level crossing, a small chicane or repositioning the speed camera as a preventative measure.

Residents expressed concern that the light up sign that was in place did not encourage road users to slow down and that an accident was likely to happen if this continued.

Inspector Mansfield suggested that rumble strips could be used which would cause vehicles to slow down at a limited cost.

7.10pm

Jerry Connolly will give the meeting a brief update on a recent meeting held with the Cricket Club regarding parking problems on matchdays.

Jerry Connolly informed the meeting of the outcome from the recent meeting between local residents representatives, various agencies (Police, Traffic Officers, Parks Officers) and the Cricket Club.  This was to discuss the problem of careless parking on the streets for events such as the 20/20 at the Cricket Club.  The management at the Cricket Club took the problem seriously and agreed to try and address the issue with a letter to members asking them to park considerately, to be included with tickets and a copy of this letter would be posted on to the clubs website.  There was to be a joined up approach by the police and Council to try and enforce the traffic regulations especially the cars that were blocking driveways.  He also noted that it was proposed to seek an agreement between the Football Club and Cricket Club to provide a park and ride service from the football stadium but this would be a long-term solution as there were many aspects that would need to be addressed first. 

Residents generally welcomed the efforts to improve the situation for residents wishing to park near their homes on cricket matchdays. They did however express some concerns about the implementation of parking enforcement and the practicalities of delivering a bus service from the football ground.

7.15pm

A representative from the Police will the meeting a brief update on discussions at the recent meeting of the Joint Action Group.

Also attached with agenda papers are details of crime statistics for the area committee area. A representative from the Police will be able to provide background to these figures at the meeting.

Inspector Mansfield informed the meeting of the discussion at the recent Joint Action Group.  It was noted that the Group had been well attended and all funding applications had been agreed for local activities.  It was reported that the anti social behaviour around the mud humps and Aylestone Leisure Centre had been reduced but there was still work to be carried out, this involved action from partners to address the mid and long term solutions possibly being undertaken by youth workers to engage the young people.  Councillor Keeling had raised the issue of identity theft previously and this had led to a leaflet being distributed in the area and advice given on how to dispose of the confidential waste in an environmentally friendly manner.  The Domestic Violence Study Group had produced a poetry book and had planned a week of activities for May.

Councillor Chambers requested that the JAG meetings be held in different venues across the area committee area.

7.25pm

Members of the public will be invited to ask questions about local issues. The purpose of this session is to collect and clearly record the questions.

The Committee administrator will write the questions down. If we know the answer we will give a response immediately, but in most cases we will need to take the question to a relevant officer after the meeting for a full response. You can get more information about how to submit questions and what will happen to them from Your guide to Area Committees.

The following questions were either asked at the meeting or submitted on question forms during the meeting.  Discussions that took place about these questions are outlined alongside the questions below.  It was explained that any questions that could not be answered in full at the meeting would be submitted to the relevant departments for response at the next meeting of the Committee.

Members of the public will be invited to present petitions to the committee on local problems.

You can get more information about how to submit petitions and what will happen to them from Your guide to Area Committees.

There were no petitions.

Members of the public and Councillors will announce any forthcoming events in the area.

It was announced that the next meeting of the Friends of Aylestone Garden Community Group’s next meeting was to be held on 25 April at 7pm at the Bowl Pavillion on Aylestone Garden Hall Lane.  All residents were invited to attend.

The Aylestone Park Residents Association thanked the Councillors, Area Committee and local police for their support and announced that their next meeting would be on 1 March at 7pm at the Church on Cavendish Road.  The meetings are held every 1^st Thursday of the month and all local residents were invited to attend.

Inspector Mansfield stated that from 1 April the Basic Command Policing units in the area would be reduced from four to three.  This would be unlikely to affect the service, but Inspector Mansfield would be happy to discuss the changes with residents if they wished to contact him.

Jerry Connolly reported that the 101 non-emergency number was sponsoring a ‘local hero’ event. Nominations could be made about residents, which it was felt had really made a difference to their areas. Nominations should be forwarded to Rachael Dewis on 252 6093.

The meeting closed at 7.57pm.