MINUTES
Minutes of a meeting of the OPEN SPACES COMMITTEE held at 7.45pm on Wednesday 19 February 2019 in the Mountfitchet Exchange, 72 Chapel Hill, Stansted Mountfitchet, Essex
PRESENT:
Cllr A Barnes (Chairman), Cllrs D Brett, M Caton, J Harding, J Hudson, J Kavanagh, T van de Bilt and D Wallace-Jarvis
ATTENDING:
Mr T Lloyd (Assistant to the Clerk)
Mrs Emma Philbrick – Admin Assistant
2 members of the public
262 TO RECEIVE APOLOGIES FOR ABSENCE
Apologies were received from Cllrs F Richards and Mrs R Clifford (Clerk)
263 TO RECEIVE DECLARATIONS OF INTEREST – none
264 TO RECEIVE THE MINUTES OF THE MEETING HELD ON WEDNESDAY 15 JANUARY
The minutes had been approved at Full Council meeting on Wednesday 29 January
RESOLVED to accept the minutes as a full and accurate record.
265 MATTERS ARISING AND ACTION POINTS
- 239-An order has been placed with Mercers in relation to tree work in Newman’s Plantation.
- 240-Cllr Barnes has not been able to contact Gareth Broad to date
- 240-Cllr Kavanaghs report is an Agenda item
- 241-The EA have been contacted and have cleared to offending items
- 242-Cllr Barnes has corresponded with County Councillor Gooding but his response was not encouraging
- 242-A site visit to Normans Way was undertaken. The path is hazardous because it is so uneven but the chances of flooding being an issue do not justify expenditure on warning notices.
- 244- Cllr Brett reported that although the tree was slightly loose, he did not consider it to be a potential hazard.
- 245-Two quotes for resurfacing had come in at around £3,000. A short-term resurfacing job costing £500 has taken place
- Essex Highways and the landowner need to be contacted to action the diversion of footpath 23
- Cllr Barnes has sent reports to Cllr Caton and Sell. A meeting will take place in the first quarter of the year.
266 CHAIRMAN’S REPORT
- Issues related to the training of volunteers or a council employee in the use of a chain saw and strimmer were discussed. It was suggested that a full cost and benefits study should be undertaken to see if this represented good value for money. Cllr Barnes will liaise with the Clerk. Cllr Wallace-Jarvis will seek action from Network Rail.
- Cllr Wallace-Jarvis has established that Islington Borough Council (IBC) own the land known locally as Galle End Meadow. Cllr Wallis-Jarvis, Harding, Brett and van de Bilt agreed to explore the possibility of working with IBC to improve the amenity value of the area.
- The management company that will be looking after Walpole Meadow have agreed to respond to the issues that have arisen with the hedgerow along Pennington Lane. Ray Woodcock was congratulated for his efforts in publicising this issue.
- A plan has been submitted for the orchard area at Walpole Meadow. Cllr Barnes and Brett will assess the plan and consider how it can be managed.
- Concerns have been raised over the state of the grass on The Rec. Groups playing football are likely to be a significant factor in wearing away of the grass. Our gardening contractor has been asked to take a look at the grass and give their opinion on the damage.
267 LITTER
Cllr Kavanagh raised concerns about a site on Water Lane that is becoming a dumping ground for litter and other waste. It was agreed to contact the landowners to take action.
268 FOOTPATHS
The report from Mr Stiles had been circulated prior to the meeting. The Stansted and Forest Hall School Litter Pickers had been contacted to deal with the litter issues. Essex Highways will be asked to take action on the fallen trees.
269 CEMETERY– No interments have taken place.
270 TREESa) NEWMANS PLANTATION
Cllr Brett said he was hopeful that Mercers could get the work done before the nesting season became an issue.
b) GENERAL
A resident of Jordan Close had been in touch regarding branches hanging from a tree which they were concerned about. Cllr Brett agreed to contact the resident as he had conducted a site visit and couldn’t see the branch they were talking about. It was also agreed that Cllr Brett would consult on the possibility of adopting protocols we would apply when dealing with specific tree issues being reported.
271 ALLOTMENTS
The Assistant to the Clerk reported that the Walpole Meadows allotment site now has its perimeter fence and access gate in place. There is still work to be done and there is no indication of when the handover date will be. The Tenancy Agreement for this site probably needs to have some different terms and conditions to the Elms Farm agreement due to its proximity to residential properties.
The Elms Farm Association have been awarded a grant of £1,000 by the Airport Community Fund to finance the purchase of communal tools and a storage facility.
272 ANGLIA IN BLOOM/Stansted in Bloom
The Assistant to the Clerk reported on a meeting with area organiser of Anglia in Bloom and confirmed that an entry will be made into this year’s competition. Sworders have indicated a willingness to sponsor the High Lane/Cambridge Road junction. Cllr Kavanagh offered to explore other sponsorship possibilities.
273 TO CONSIDER THE REINSTALATION OF THE REEVE ROAD PLAY EQUIPMENT
Cllr Caton reported that Roger Harborough had indicated UDC would cover “reasonable” reinstallation costs. The Assistant to the Clerk is exploring the possibility of Croudace transporting the equipment back to us at their expense. He is also seeking quotes for the reinstallation of the equipment.
274 REPORT FROM COUNCILLOR KAVANAGH ON VILLAGE NOTICBOARDS
Cllr Kavanagh reported on the location and state of repair of existing noticeboards in the village and went on to identify areas which were not well served by noticeboards. Cllr Barnes thanked her for compiling the report and suggested it might be possible to have a rolling programme to add new noticeboards and repair existing ones. Cllr Kavannagh was requested to recommend and prioritise which locations should be considered for new notice boards bearing in mind the objective of providing local information to those areas not currently serviced.
275 WORKING GROUPS
Newman’s Plantation
Elms Farm working group
Walpole Meadows working group
276 MATTERS TO BE RAISED AT NEXT AGENDA
Councillors were asked to consider any items they wanted to put on the agenda for the meeting on 8 April.
Meeting closed 9.45pm
ACTION POINTS
265 Footpath 23 – Highways and Landowner to be contacted by the Clerk
266 Cllr Barnes to liaise with the Clerk about chain saw and strimmer training.
Cllrs Brett, Harding, van de Bilt and Wallace-Jarvis to suggest a way forward for improvements to Gall End Meadow.
267 Office to contact landowner
268 Office to log footpath blockages on ECC website.
270b Cllr Brett to contact resident of Jordan Close and consult on the possibility of adopting protocols we would apply when dealing with specific tree issues.
271 Assistant to the Clerk and Cllr Barnes to review tenancy agreements.
272 Cllr Kavanagh to explore other sponsorship possibilities.
273 Cllr Kavanagh to recommend and members to consider which locations should be prioritised for new notice boards.
AGENDA
NOTICE OF MEETING A meeting of the OPEN SPACES COMMITTEE will be held on Wednesday 19th February 2020 at 7.45pm in The Mountfitchet Exchange, Crafton Green, 72 Chapel Hill, Stansted Mountfitchet, Essex.
1 To receive apologies for absence
2 To receive declarations of interest
3 To receive the minutes of the meeting held on 15th January 2020
4 Matters arising and action points from the previous meetings
5 Chairman’s report
6 Litter
7 Footpaths – to receive a report from Mr Stiles
8 Cemetery – interments and memorials
9 Trees
a) Newman’s Plantation
b) General
10 Allotments – to receive an update
11 Stansted In Bloom/Anglia In Bloom – To receive an update
12 To consider the re-installation of the Reeve Road play equipment
13 Noticeboards – To receive a report from Cllr Kavanagh
14 Working Party reports
15 Matters to be raised for the next agenda
12th February 2020 – Ruth Clifford. Clerk to the Council