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Agenda and minutes

Agenda and minutes

Venue: Christ Church URC, Dumbleton Avenue, LE3 2EG

Contact: Randeep Singh Mattu, Ward and Community Engagement Officer (Tel: 0116 4541835) (Email:  randeep.mattu@leicester.gov.uk)  Elaine Baker, Democratic Support Officer (Tel: 0116 454 6355) (Email:  Elaine.Baker@leicester.gov.uk)

Items
No. Item

24.

INTRODUCTIONS AND DECLARATIONS OF INTEREST

Councillors will elect a Chair for the meeting.

 

The Chair will introduce those present and make any necessary announcements.

 

The Chair and any other Councillors who are present will make any declarations as required by the Councillors’ Code of Conduct.

Minutes:

Councillor Singh Johal in the Chair.

Everyone welcomed and introductions given.

No declarations of interest were made.

25.

APOLOGIES FOR ABSENCE

Minutes:

Received from Braunstone Blues and Nicole Humphreys (Nics Nappy Library)

26.

ACTION LOG OF LAST MEETING pdf icon PDF 131 KB

The Action Log for the last meeting held on 25 November 2015 is attached and Members are asked to confirm it as an accurate record.

Minutes:

Agreed as a correct record

27.

BRAUNSTONE HALL UPDATE

An update will be provided on the progress of Braunstone Hall.

Minutes:

All to note that building work has now started in the redevelopment of Braunstone Hall.

28.

BUS STOP CLEARWAYS ON WINSTANLEY DRIVE

An officer will be at the meeting to talk about proposed bus stop clearways on Winstanley Drive.

Minutes:

All to note:

·           To remove current problems with vehicles parking too near bus stops, clearways would be created at the seven bus stops in Winstanley Avenue;

·           It was anticipated that the impact on parking in the road would be small, as lines would be kept to a minimum and local features would be used.  There also could be limited times at which the clearways would apply; and

·           It was not feasible to build-out bus stops to create parking bays, due to cost and loss of parking.

Highways officers asked to monitor the effectiveness of the bus stop clearways and provide a full review their operation after six months.

29.

HIGHWAYS FEEDBACK

An officer will be present to provide an update on any Highways work being carried out in the Ward.

Minutes:

Further to action item 16 from the meeting held on 25 November 2015, all to note:

·           Pavement parking outside shops in Narborough Road was being monitored, but offenders needed to be caught doing it for action to be taken;

·           As a considerable number of bollards would be needed to stop parking at junctions on Winchester Avenue, consideration was being given to whether this should be a separate project, not funded from the general fund for bollards;

·           It had been advised that double-deck buses were needed on routes along Rowley Fields Avenue, as the buses were heavily used closer to the city;

·           A traffic survey would be undertaken at St Mary’s Infant School during the week beginning 7 March 2016, to identify issues and determine what action could be taken; and

·           If Ellesmere College was prepared to pay for signing and road markings at the College entrance, these could be put in place immediately.

Highways officers asked to:

o    Advise Leicestershire County Council that the potholes on Braunstone Lane East, near Ellesmere College, still need repairing;

o    Liaise with the Leicester City Football Club to see if public transport options for people attending home matches can be highlighted more; and

o    Investigate problems getting large vehicles down Raymond Road due to vehicles parked on the corner of the road and its narrow junction with Compton Road.

All invited to:

§   Let Highways officers know of roads where line markings have been worn away, it being noted that resources were not sufficient for every line to be replaced quickly, so decisions on replacement were taken according to the maintenance programme and safety; and

§   Advise the City Warden or Highways officers when pavements are damaged by builders.

30.

HOUSING UPDATE

Housing officers will be at the meeting to provide an update on work being carried out within the Ward.

Minutes:

All to note:

·           Ten environmental projects had been completed at various Council-owned housing sites in the Ward during the last financial year;

·           The average number of days for void properties to be empty in the Ward was 36.8.  The target was to reduce this to 25 days, but some properties needed a lot of work before they could be re-let, (eg, re-plastering, rewiring, or fitting new kitchens);

·           It was not usually difficult to let properties in the Ward; and

·           There were a lot of three-bedroom properties in the Ward, but a shortage of two-bedroom ones.  Therefore, in some three-bedroom houses, downstairs bathrooms were being moved upstairs in to one of the bedrooms and the former bathroom changed to a utility room or cloakroom.

31.

POLICE UPDATE pdf icon PDF 25 KB

The local Police team will be at the meeting to provide an update on police issues in the Ward and an update on Braunstone Blues.

Minutes:

All to note:

·           The update from Braunstone Blues attached at the end of this Action Log;

·           Braunstone Blues had been established in response to the number of 999 calls being made from that area to improve awareness of when to use emergency services and reduce the impact on them;

·           The allotments had been broken in to a number of times.   The Police would attend the society’s Annual General Meeting to discuss this further;

·           Consultation was underway on how the number of vehicles being burnt out could be reduced;

·           Patrols would be increased to try to prevent or reduce anti-social behaviour at Aylestone Meadows over the summer.  Consideration also was being given to other ways this could be addressed; and

·           The Police would like to attend meetings and events in the community, so always welcomed invitations to these.

B-Active asked to focus some activities on the edge of, or on, Aylestone Meadows to help address anti-social behaviour in that area.

32.

CITY WARDEN UPDATE pdf icon PDF 180 KB

The City Warden will give an update on environmental issues in the Ward.

Minutes:

All to note:

·           The update provided by the City Warden, attached at the end of this Action Log;

·           One of the main environmental issues in Rowley Fields is rubbish in gardens.  However, this can take several months to resolve, due to the legal processes involved;

·           Various notices have been served on businesses on Narborough Road for fly-tipping or using non-licensed companies for waste disposal;

·           The clothes recycling banks at the Brite Centre have been removed, as the company has ceased trading; and

·           Significant fly-tipping is occurring at “bring” recycling sites, often with non-recyclable material being mixed with items for recycling, so none of it can be used. Waste management services will be asked to undertake education work about these areas.

When dog fouling issues are reported, residents asked to note times as well as places if possible.

All asked to report incidents of fly-tipping to the City Warden as soon as sites are discovered.

City Warden to be advised if people are continually mending vehicles on their property, as change of use needs to be obtained for this to continue.

33.

WARD COMMUNITY BUDGET

Councillors are reminded that under the Council’s Code of Conduct they should declare any interest they may have in budget applications.

 

An update will be given on the Ward Community Budget.

Minutes:

·           Braunstone Foodshare – Grant of £1,468 to Braunstone Foundation supported, (application ref: 1600)

·           Nappy Library – Grant of £500 to Nics Nappy Library supported (Application ref: 1655)

·           Community BBQ – Grant of £476 to Rowley Fields Community Association supported (application ref: 1688)

·           Running to Win (application ref: 5156) – Forward in Faith Ministry advised to re-apply in the new financial year

All to note that £738.02 remains in the Ward Community Grant fund and will be carried forward to the new financial year.

34.

ANY OTHER BUSINESS

Minutes:

a)     Playground in Rowley Fields

Ward Councillors to investigate whether a children’s playground can be provided in Rowley Fields.

 

b)     Church Field Braunstone

All to note that an archaeological investigation is to be made of Church Field, (next to St Peter’s Church).  The community will be invited to dig pits under the supervision of members of the Braunstone Heritage Archive Group.

If possible, a presentation on this to be made at a future meeting to encourage community interest.

B-Inspired to consider how it can support this.

 

c)     Anti-Social Behaviour at Foxcroft Close

As the number of break-ins there was increasing, especially at the garages, and other anti-social behaviour was taking place, the City Warden to liaise with Community Safety officers to see what action can be taken.  Police asked to speak to the Estate Warden about the problems being experienced.

35.

CLOSE OF MEETING

Minutes:

The meeting closed at 7.00 pm