Meeting Minutes: 22nd November 2018

KIMBOLTON & STONELY PARISH COUNCIL

MINUTES of the Council meeting held at 7 p.m. on Thursday 22 November 2018 at the Youth & Community Room, Mandeville Hall, Thrapston Rd., Kimbolton.

PRESENT  Councillors P Seabrook (in the Chair);K Hutchinson; Mrs D Hellett; Mrs R Lloyd ; D Poole; Ms S Mugglestone; Mrs J Stainer; Mrs S Hawkes & L Farrer.

IN ATTENDANCE  County Councillor Ian Gardener , District Councillor J Gray & C L Thatcher, Clerk to the Council.

174/18  APOLOGIES were received from Councillors Mrs E Milne & R Gooderham.

175/18  PUBLIC FORUM  was not used.

176/18  DECLARATIONS OF INTERESTS

Councillor Mrs Hellett declared her ongoing interest in the matter of Mulberry Cottage stables and Councillor Seabrook declared his interest in planning application 18/01411.

177/18  COUNTY COUNCILLOR

Councillor Gardener said that a decision on the route of the new A428 was expected in December, together with the commencement date.

A ‘dummy run’ has taken place with the gritters, to make ready for the winter and 10,000 tonnes of rock salt are in stock.

The Ely bypass is now open.

The route proposed for the east/west rail link is Bedford – Willington – Sandy North (a new station) – Gamlingay – Potton – Trumpington Park & Ride – Cambridge, with a possible new Park & Ride at Papworth on the A1198.

County Council staff earning over £25000 pa are to take 3 days unpaid leave over the Christmas period and councillors will take a reduction in allowances.

Councillor Farrer joined the meeting.

178/18  MINUTES of the Council meeting held on 25 October 2018 were read, approved and signed as a true record of that meeting, subject to clarifying that the tarmac on Carnaby footpath has been cracked since it was laid.

179/18  MATTERS ARISING

• Neighbourhood Watch.    No report
• Hearse House repairs   Nothing yet heard from John Lightfoot.
• Cemetery Extension

• It was proposed by Councillor Ms Mugglestone, seconded by Councillor Mrs Hellett and agreed to purchase an irrigation system & mesh fencing at a cost of £579.60 inc VAT.

ii           Seats.   Defer to a later meeting.

iii        Consecration.    The Clerk explained the implications of consecration and the documentation asked for by the Bishop’s office.   It was agreed to seek consecration of the whole area.

iv        Shelter.  It was agreed to defer consideration of the style of shelter until a later meeting.

• CCTV.  Awaiting information from Councillor Gray.
• Litter Pick.  Councillor Mrs Hellett said that it had been decided to postpone the litter pick until the spring.
• Causeway Oak Tree.  The Clerk reported that the County Council had agreed to pay for a tomographic survey.
• LHI Bid. The feasibility study has been received and Councillor Hutchinson will now attend the meeting in lieu of Councillor Mrs Milne, and will present our bid.

180/18     PLANNING MATTERS.

• Applications

18/01322  Land east of cemetery – retrospective change of roof colour.

Proposed by Councillor Poole, seconded by Councillor Mrs Stainer and unanimously recommended for approval.

18/02133/02134LBC Unit 2, Cromwell Court, High St – amend to 2 apartments

Proposed by Councillor Mrs Lloyd, seconded by Councillor Mrs Hellett & unanimously recommended for approval.

18/01411  Land east of Montagu Gardens – amended plan for 21 dwellings.

Councillor Seabrook declared an interest, vacated the Chair in favour of Councillor Hutchinson and left the room.

Councillor Hutchinson in the Chair.

It was proposed by Councillor Mrs Hellett, seconded by Councillor Ms Mugglestone and unanimously recommended for approval.

Councillor Seabrook returned and took the Chair.

17/01821  Land SE of 22 Main Rd Stonely – amended plan to erect dwelling.

Councillor Hutchinson said that he was concerned that this application was vague and only for an outline application and he wondered why.   The size of the trees shown on the plan is no way indicative of their actual size.

It was also pointed out that the driveway had been moved from the position now requested because the applicant had then considered it too dangerous to use in the original location.

The is still concern over the size of the proposed building and that it will be overbearing in relation to the Cottage opposite.   The indicative layout is not in keeping with the listed building opposite and, whilst in principle not being against development on this site, it was felt unable to support this application due both to the impact on the Cottage and to the road access.  It was accordingly proposed by Councillor Poole, seconded by Councillor Mrs Stainer and unanimously agreed to recommend refusal for the above reasons.

• Ongoing Matters.     Mulberry Cottage stables.  No report.

181/18    REPORTS

Allotments  Councillor Mrs Hellett presented her report.   The condition of the allotments was mixed and of course we now have a number of vacant plots.  The allotment hedge needs cutting and garden waste is appearing in the bonfire area.

Playpark     The Clerk has spoken with Neil Rook who is willing to help with occasional maintenance, but he is not available at this minute and will be in touch when he is able to undertake work.

It was agreed that the large tree in the playpark needs pruning and that two trees in the cemetery should be felled.

Outside Bodies

Mandeville Hall.  Councillor Mrs Lloyd said that the floor in the main hall is being refurbished.  The ‘Queen’ concert in December has sold out but Peter Pan and the film ‘The Wickerman’ didn’t work out and were cancelled.   At the AGM in April it is understood that Stan Rhodes will be standing down as Treasurer and Bookings Secretary though he is hopeful of remaining on the committee.

Kimbolton School Governors.  Councillor Mrs Hellett reported that a Health and Safety Committee meeting had recently been held and the full Board Meeting will be on 30 November.

Kimbolton Trust.  The Chairman said that the charity (formerly Kimbolton Parochial Charities) was looking for needy people who they could help and they would welcome suggestions.

182/18  CORRESPONDENCE

• Update to Local Plan 2036.   Councillor Hutchinson said that the Inspector’s initial findings have now been published and  he thinks that the Plan is sound for the most part, though  some major modifications will be suggested and probably the most significant will be to Great Staughton, Bluntisham and Alconbury which, although listed as development areas, have been struck out.  Presumably there will be a 6 week period of re-consultation.

Councillor Gray joined the meeting

• A letter from a contractor offering to stage outdoor cinema events was noted.

183/18  LEAF VACUUM.  

The Clerk suggested that it may be worthwhile to consider purchasing a ‘Billy Goat’ leaf vacuum, as this would considerably speed up the collection of fallen leaves and would compact them into a mulch for disposal.  The professional version is, however, about £1800.00.

It was agreed to defer consideration for this year but to see if a vacuum could be hired to check on its suitability.

184/18  TRAFFIC ‘NO WAITING’ CONES

In the absence of Councillor Gooderham it was agreed to defer this item.

185/18  20mph LIMIT IN HIGH ST

Councillor Farrer said that he felt strongly that the introduction of a lower speed limit was necessary and he thought that the section from London Rd to Thrapston Rd by Budgens (to include the area where the pavement is very narrow) would be appropriate.  The Chairman said that he favoured installing a roundabout at The Butts, as this would force traffic to slow down.

It was proposed by Councillor Farrer, seconded by Councillor Poole and unanimously agreed to ask County Highways to undertake a feasibility study.

186/18  FOOD & DRINK FESTIVAL

The Clerk said that he had met with a representative of Market Square Ltd, who was keen to hold a weekend food and drink festival in High St on 28/29 April 2019.  

Members looked at the format proposed and said that they would like to visit one of Market Square’s events and asked the Clerk to obtain information as to where and when they take place. The Clerk is also to speak with County Highways to see whether our market Charter will permit closure of the road for additional days.

187/18  ACCOUNTS

a)The following were proposed and approved for payment –

Vision ICT Ltd          website fee                                     348.00 inc VAT

CGM Group Ltd       Grasscutting                                   785.89   “     “

W T Saunders         Preparation of grass cemetery       690.24   “     “

K & M Lighting         Streetlight mtnce                            125.48   “     “

Shaw & Sons Ltd      Burial register                                226.82   “     “

Wicksteed leisure      Replacement playpark seats        302.06   “     “

Anglian Water           Allotment water                             242.17  no   “

Fishers                      Sundries                                         36.95  inc   “

JD Gardening & Landscape  cemetery fence etc           579.60   “    “

E-ON                         Energy                                            54.29   “     “

D Eades                      November work                          460.04  no   “

Payroll costs             Pay PAYE & NIC                        2108.43   “     “

C L Thatcher         Fuel & stationery reimbursement       69.63 inc   “

 b)  Budget 2019/2020.     The Clerk circulated figures relating to actual and estimated total costs for 2018/2019 together with his forecast for the following year.

c)  Precept 2019/2020.    The budget figures were considered and a proposal was made by Councillor Mrs Lloyd, seconded by Councillor Mrs Hawkes, that an increase in precept of 2.5% be approved.  This was not supported and a counter proposal by Councillor Poole, seconded by Councillor Mrs Stainer of an increase of 2% was accepted and approved with 6 in favour.

188/18  DISTRICT COUNCILLOR

Councillor Gray referred to the proposal for CCTV and said that consultation was underway with Stevenage and he should be able to provide information soon.

He said that Huntingdonshire District Council’s net budget used to be £24M, now it was £18M and by 2022 it will be £16M.

He has been contacted by local residents regarding empty houses owned by social landlords – one of which is in Maurice Close – and he has been told that they intend to dispose of it as it needs too much money spending to upgrade it.  There is a significant issue with there not being enough empty houses in this district and HDC is proposing purchasing some empty properties.

He mentioned the Community Land Trust and that Gr Staughton PC is using land they own to create private and affordable housing and they think they have overcome the ‘right to buy’ constraint.

189/18  HIGH STREET CAR PARKING  No report.

190/18  MEMBERS’ POINTS OF INFORMATION.

Councillor Mrs Lloyd said that she had slipped on leaves on Carnaby bridge and asked that leaves on bridges be attended to.

Councillor Mrs Hellett said the cobbles at the churchyard entrance from East St are breaking up.   She also said there is a school pupil who would like to litter pick an hour or two a week.

Councillor Mrs Stainer thought that the cemetery gate looks good now that it has been re-painted but that the memorial area is looking tatty.

Councillor Poole reported that the bus shelter uprights in Stonely need attention as they appear to be rotting.

191/18  DATE OF NEXT MEETING

The next normal meeting of Council will be held on Thursday 20 December 2018, commencing at 7pm in the Youth and Community Room at the Mandeville Hall.

There being no further business, the meeting closed at 2210 hours.