Agenda and minutes

Councillors will elect a Chair for the meeting.

Councillor Kitterick was elected as Chair and he welcomed everyone to the Castle Community Meeting.

Apologies for absence were received from Councillor Follett.

The minutes of the previous meeting of the Castle Community Meeting, held on 12 March 2009, are attached and Members are asked to confirm them as a correct record.

The minutes of the Castle Community Meeting, dated 12 March 2009, were approved as a correct record of the meeting.

The first main item on the programme is Declarations of Interest where Councillors have to say if there is anything in the programme they have a personal interest in. For example if a meeting was due to discuss a budget application put forward by a community group and one of the Councillors was a member of that group, they would not be able to take part in the decision on that budget application.

Councillorsare asked to declare any interest they may have in the business on the agenda, and/or indicate that Section 106 of the Local Government Finance Act 1992 applies to them.

The next part of the agenda covers items where input from you on issues that affect your community is welcomed.

Councillors were asked to declare any interests they may have had in the business on the agenda, and/or indicate that Section 106 of the Local Government Finance Act applied to them.

No such declarations were made.

Officers will be on hand present information on Highways and Transport related issues in the local area.

Andrew Thomas, Head of Traffic Management was introduced to the meeting and gave a presentation on highways issues in Leicester and within the Castle Ward.

The main points in Andrew’s presentation were as follows:

Parking

• The Council were aware that there was a general lack of parking in the area;
• There was competition for road space – there were Victorian Roads in Leicester and the Castle Ward that were not designed for cars;

• Enforcement sometimes presented difficulties – in the past enforcement signs had been stolen;
• People who parked on the pavements and double yellow lines caused further problems;
• Civil Enforcement Officers could issue parking tickets;
• Police powers could be used under certain circumstances, for example where an obstruction was being caused; and
• Measures were available to address specific problems. These included:

1.      Verge hardening;

2.      Lay-bys;

3.      Residents’ parking schemes: Andrew explained that a residents consultation in South Highfields had demonstrated that a Residents Parking Scheme in the area was wanted, but a similar consultation in Clarendon Park had shown that such a scheme was not wanted there; and

4.      A system of ‘H Marking’, on the roads in front of peoples’ homes so that only the householder could park there.

Speeding Traffic

• The Council were in the process of introducing 20 mph speed limits in residential areas;
• In Avenue Road Extension, bollards which had been designed to look like children would be installed and the road would be monitored to see if these were effective in slowing down traffic; 

• The council could carry out a speed survey if residents felt there were problems with speeding;
• Vehicle Activated Signs - Andrew explained that these were effective, although some residents were concerned that they did not work;
• Speed cameras and traffic calming could also be used to slow down traffic; and
• Andrew added that during the Information Fair a member of the public had highlighted the issue of speeding traffic on Queens Road.

Public Transport

• The Council encouraged greater bus usage – by 2026 it was estimated that there would be a 25% increase in the number of houses in Leicester and the Council needed to find ways to cope with this. Andrew added that the Council would welcome a tram service in the south of the city;
• The bus companies were privately owned and as such the Council had limited influence over them. However, as part of the Quality Bus Partnership, the Council had regular meetings with Arriva and First Bus; and
• The Council provided subsidies on routes that were not economically viable and some of the income raised from parking enforcement was put towards concessionary bus fares and subsidies.

Condition of the roads and potholes

In respect of the condition of roads and footways, Andrew also mentioned that there was a Rapid Response Team, who could be called out to deal with urgent problems. Members of the public could report problems by phoning 0116 2527001.

Andrew opened the floor for comments and questions, and the following points were  ...  view the full minutes text for item 64.

Councillors are reminded that they will need to declare any interest they may have in the budget applications, and/or indicate that Section 106 of the Local Government Finance Act 1992 applies to them.

Kate Owen, Members Support Officer, will give an update on the Community Meeting Budget. The following applications have been received:

• Leicester Castle Park Heritage and Arts Festival – Appendix B1
• Thirlmere Gardens New Pedestrian Access Gate and Pathway – Appendix B2
• Community Allotment Project – Appendix B3
• Integration Through Sports – Appendix B4
• Safer Routes – Appendix B5

Kate Owen, Member Support Officer presented the Community Meeting Budget, explained that five budget applications had been received and these were as follows:

1.      Leicester City Council Festivals and Events Team requested £2,000 from the Ward Community Fund for the Leicester Castle Park Heritage and Arts Festival. The application form for this bid was attached at Appendix B on the agenda. 

Residents questioned why a section of the Council were applying to the Committee for funding and stated that this money may be needed for local projects. It was further suggested that the Terms of Reference for the Community Meeting should be changed so that such bids could not be considered in the future.

Councillor Kitterick explained that the funding would enhance the event by providing additional activities and that there was a considerable amount of community involvement in this festival. Councillor Kitterick added that the Community Meeting and old Area Committee budgets had never been spent in full and that Members welcomed further bids from community groups who might benefit from Community Meeting funding. 

RESOLVED:

that it be agreed that the funding application be supported to the value of £2,000.

2.      Parks Services and St Andrews Play Association requested £1,213.41 from the Community Fund to provide a new pedestrian access gate and a pathway at the main vehicular entrance to Thirlmere Gardens. The application form for this bid was attached at Appendix B2 on the agenda.

RESOLVED:

that it be agreed that the funding application be supported to the value of £1213.41.

3.      The St Andrews Tenants and Residents Association, De Montfort University and Groundwork submitted a joint funding application to request £1321 from the Community Fund for a Community Allotment Project.  The funding application for this bid was attached at Appendix B3 on the agenda.

Kate explained that the total bid was for £3963 and had been split between three Wards, the other two being Westcotes and Braunstone Park/Rowley Fields Wards.

RESOLVED:

that it be agreed that the funding application be supported to the value of £1,321.

4.      Kate explained that a funding application for a summer multi-cultural cricket camp, which was attached at Appendix B4 on the agenda, had been withdrawn as the applicant had been encouraged to apply for Corporate funding.

5.      The Hinckley Road Joint Action Group had requested £576 from the Castle Community Cohesion Fund for “Respect Your Neighbourhood” signage:  ‘Safer routes for students’. The application form for this bid was attached in Appendix B5 on the agenda.

Kate explained that this was a joint project and the total cost of the bid was £3468, but £576 was requested from the Castle Ward Community Meeting.

RESOLVED:

that the funding application be supported to the value of £576.

A resident questioned the community meeting budget process and Kate explained that:

• Each Ward had been allocated £17,000
• This money was split into three categories:

a. Ward Action Plan £10,000

b. Community Fund£5,000

c. Community Cohesion£2,000

• There was a Ward Action Plan in process. Residents  ...  view the full minutes text for item 65.

Kate Owen, Members Support Officer, will provide an update on the Ward Action Plan.

An update on the Ward Action Plan was not given at this time.

The meeting closed at 7.54 pm.