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DUNPENDER COMMUNITY COUNCIL
Minutes of meeting held on 4th March 2004 in the Council Chambers, East Linton
Present: Mrs J. Priest Ms A CosgroveMs P. Stephen Ms J Pooley Mr J Robson Mrs L. Shaw-Stewart Mrs J Ferguson
In Attendance: Cllr. Broun-Lindsay Cllr. D. Berry Mr P Forsyth 7 members of the public
1.0 Apologies: Mrs J Boyd Mrs M. Alder
2.0 The minute of the meeting of 5th February was agreed to be a correct record. 3.0 POLICE REPORT
There was no police report tonight. Cllr Berry informed the Council that all calls to the Police are now routed through a new Force Communication Centre at Bilston.
4.0 MATTERS ARISING
4.1 Zebra Crossing Mrs Priest reported that drawings had been delivered by ELC this week showing a proposal to position a zebra crossing on East Linton High Street by Nonesuch House, with a resultant loss of six parking spaces. Recapping the situation regarding the crossing, 2 years ago DCC received a letter from the School Board requesting a zebra crossing to help children going to and from school. DCC replied that they would like to think about it once the yellow lines were in place. When Mr Forsyth mentioned at the meeting of 4th February that a crossing was to be created in the near future, it was the first DCC had heard about it since that time. A letter from the School Board indicates they are still keen to have a crossing and an email from Isobel Irvine supports the original thinking behind the request. (See 11.12 & 11.13) Mr Robson has asked local traders how they feel and says he found 90% to be opposed to the crossing, due to the loss of parking space. Some had suggested a lollipop person as in Haddington, North Berwick and Dunbar. Mr Anderson the butcher, who was present at the meeting, stated that his business was 5-6% down due to parking difficulties since the yellow lines, especially on Fridays and Saturdays. He feels that the possibility of businesses closing down altogether is a very real one. Mr. Forsyth informed the Council that for a crossing to be installed as a matter of course, certain numbers of vehicles and pedestrians must use the section of road in question. East Linton does not meet these criteria; rather, ELC is acting upon the request of the School Board. He mentioned that guidelines suggest that primary school age children should not be travelling to and from school unaccompanied. The Council members unanimously agreed that they opposed the crossing, as enough parking spaces have already been lost and it was felt that keeping our shops open should remain a priority. It was agreed that a lollipop person could be funded on a trial basis for 6 months. Mrs Priest will write to the School Board. Ms. Cosgrove reported complaints from residents of Stories Park about people parking cars and commercial vehicles there and also of dumping of cars in this area. Mr Forsyth was able to confirm that it is legal to park in Stories Park unless it is in a space allocated to a particular house or causing an obstruction. Mrs. Shaw-Stewart raised the question of the bridge and sign at Whittingehame. Mr. Forsyth was able to confirm that resurfacing work would be starting in about 2 weeks and that the sign would go up after that. Ms. Stephen informed the Council that she had heard from Brian Cooper and that he hopes the A1 exhibition is to be sometime in March. 4.2 Vacancies Mrs. Priest reported that Mrs. McLean had handed in her resignation due to work commitments. There are now three vacancies on the Council for East Linton ward. Mr. Robson will write a press release for The Courier regarding the impending elections on 6th May. He will also write to thank Mrs. McLean for her work on the Council. 4.3 Paths Mrs. Ferguson informed the Council that she had written to Balfour Beatty asking them to upgrade the steps on the walk to Hailes Castle. They have replied that it will not be possible, as there is no money left. Ms.Pooley has written a description of a circular walk around Whitekirk, which she feels is more suited for mountain bikes, as part of the walk includes the A198, which has no pavement or edge. Tony Hawkins from the Anglers’ Association has informed the Council that the information on angling has changed. This needs to be altered on the new East Linton leaflet. 4.4 Speed Bumps Rennie Place Mr. Robson has written to Mrs O’Donnell re the speed bumps, advising her to canvass residents of the area.
5.0 PLANNING MATTERS Mr. Perkins of Whitekirk has applied for planning permission to build a house. This will probably be approved, as it does not involve knocking the surrounding wall down. It was agreed to defer discussing Ms. Stephen’s attendance at a workshop regarding housing development until next meeting.
6.0 YOUTH MATTERS An email from Mrs McLean informed the Council that the youth club has restarted but can only run when staff is available. The discos are on hold for the time being, but there are a few trips planned. It is hoped that parents will come forward to help.
7.0 TREASURER’S REPORT Ms. Cosgrove reported a balance of £3293.10 after the transfer of £2000 to the Grants account, which has £5000 in it.
8.0 LOCAL PRIORITIES/CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT GRANT Ms Cosgrove informed the Council that there would be no Capital Improvement Grant for next year. 9.0 TOWN MAINTENANCEMrs. Boyd was not present to report on the progress of her applications for money for the Park. Mrs. Ferguson informed the Council that the Department of Community Well-being is suggesting we apply for a grant of up to £5000. It was felt that while this may not go far in the Park, it would help improvements to the Square. Mrs Priest to contact Ian Paterson [ELC Housing] to find out about a possible grant which could be used to complete the Toddler Park.
10.0 TOURISM INITIATIVES / SCOTLAND IN BLOOM 10.1 The Square Mrs. Shaw Stewart reported that the Planning Department has been very unhelpful with our application for landscaping of the Square. Regarding estimates for the works, the estimator for the Transport Department will not give a price, as this is not the sort of work they want. Borders Council will give a quote, but not until the end of the financial year. It was decided to ask Linton Landscapes to quote. Some residents of the Square are concerned about the proposed removal of the grass. The fountain lights are not working; this is ELC’s responsibility. Cllr Broun-Lindsay was asked to put in a request for maintenance.
10.2 Quarry at Pencraig The Council has been informed that Balfour Beatty will leave the quarry at Pencraig in a tidy condition but will not fund any further enhancement. 10.3 Lights Bill Kelly has said that the lights will be on site on 26th March and work is to start thereafter on Phase 1. Phase 2 – the bridge. The Council needs to be absolutely certain what lights are going to be installed on the bridge – Mr Robson to confirm this. 10.4 Chambers Door DCC must now pay for the door as ELC will not. Mrs Shaw-Stewart has asked McArthur’s for a quote.
11.0 CORRESPONDENCE 11.1 ELC: Notice of Meetings 11.2 Annette McLean: resignation (email) 11.3 PTA: Quiz 11.4 Comment via library / D.Bates: Litter from A1 site including thick sheets of plastic. Carl Bro has been contacted, they will send a van out to do a tidy up. 11.5 ELC: Community Council Elections 6th May 2004 11.6 Bass Notes 11.7 SEPA View Winter 2004 11.8 SCVO’s Rural Dimension 11.9 S. Executive: Rural Voices 11.10 AELCC: Correspondence re Transport Access to New RIE 11.11 ELC (Brian Cooper): Post Contract A1 Mitigation Works 11.12 School Board: Pedestrian crossing 11.13 I. Irvine: Pedestrian crossing(email)
12.0 OTHER COMPETENT BUSINESS Ms. Stephen suggested to the Council that the Dunpender website could be used as a notice board for placing small ads. She will contact Mr McLean. The Wordsearch prizes from December Dunpender News were allocated. There were 17 entries. It was noted by Mr Robson that it is the first anniversary of London Congestion Charging. The main effects have been reduced traffic in central London, significantly less income generated than was predicted and businesses in central London suffering as a consequence.
11.0 DATE OF NEXT MEETING Thursday 1st April at 7.30pm in the Council Chambers, East Linton.
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