Unadopted
CROMARTY AND DISTRICT COMMUNITY COUNCIL
Meeting held on Tuesday June 28th 2005 at the Hugh Miller Institute Present: Community Councillors: CC Secretary:
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Chairman’s welcome: AH welcomed CC members to the meeting, and thanked VG for attending to minute the meeting |
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Apologies: Ronald Young, Cllr David Alston |
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3
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Approval of previous minutes: Amendment re Pt 4.1 : AS had asked the treasurer for a breakdown of the Common Good Fund; this had not been minuted.Amendment re Pt 11.5: MB stated that it was clear that the depth of feeling on the subject under discussion was stronger than usual, and this and the Chair’s offer of resignation should have been minuted. The last sentence should read "All (not Some) CC members felt that they should have been involved. " It was agreed to amend the minutes to reflect and include the above points. Proposed: Anne Short Seconded: Douglas MacPhee |
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4 4:1
4:2
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4:3 contd.
4:4
4:5
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4:7
4:8
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4.10
4.11 |
Matters arising: 4:1 Cromarty Outdoor Bowling Club Improvements: Membership of the club is now up to 39, which demonstrates that good demand for the facility exists. A Senior and Junior coaching programme is now in operation. Confirmation has been received from all funders and the full amount needed has been raised, so remedial works to the Green and equipment purchase will go ahead. The HC has approved £500 from the Common Good Fund. MB stated that since the CBC is a separate club, she felt that it should not appear on future CC agendas. AH stated that he was reporting back on behalf of the sub committee formed by the CC. A CBC EGM is to be held next week, at which a Club committee will be elected.
DMP confirmed that there will be a Senior & Junior Bowling Trophy, to be awarded during Gala Week; Irene Mackay is liasing with the CBC on this matter.
4:2 Allan Square Toilets : AH apologised for postponing the date of the previous meeting, this was rearranged for Monday 4th July, at 3pm at the Allan Square toilets.
4:8 Housing Allocations: A meeting was held with Tracey Urry, who provided a 16 page Allocations Policy document, which AH will circulate to interested members, upon request. Tracy Urry explained how allocations are made, using a points system, but with other factors involved. She confirmed that there are two ongoing ASBO investigations in Cromarty. HC will listen to and act upon complaints made to them, and that it is up to the community to complain, if they are witnesses to anti-social acts, or suffering problems with neighbours. Tracy is willing to come back and work with CC on issues.
4:4 Library Tables: RR awaiting a visit for valuation from Helen Gardner and Jean Henderson
10:6 Public seating at the harbour: AH reported that there has been a request that any new seats be sited around the corner from the present position. RY should discuss this suggestion with the ‘end’ users. The next stage is to obtain installation estimates for both ‘on grass’ and ‘on concrete’. RY to take this further. AD suggested that if the seats were sited facing the harbour, then it might be possible at a later date to erect a shelter over them.
10:7 Mechanical Road Sweeper: No report as RY not in attendance.
10:10 Open Land in Cromarty: JC read out a list of open land – Allan Square needs ownership of open land and the parking arrangements clarified; also the grass alongside the Surgery Car Park, which John Nightingale has agreed to upgrade. It was felt that the Right of Way which formerly existed on the path between Robert Hogg’s house and that of Johnny Grey was probably unable to be reinstated, since it had lapsed 30 years or so ago. Other areas are Well Lane; the grass alongside Burnside Cottage; Little Vennel Right of Way; Townlands Barn meadow, and the land opposite Stornoway House. Brian Lowe’s new garden used to be council land, with a public bench on it, and MB stated that David Alston should follow this up to see if the HC has any record of ownership of the corner, and to whom the bench belonged. MB is expecting contact from a solicitor, within the next few days, with the format of a letter to be used by the CC in their enquiries. AH read an e-mail from JN re the question of ownership of sections of land around Cromarty: JN –" the only way of establishing a procedure would be for me to lease any land to the CC at a peppercorn rent". This assumes that he owns the areas in question. AD asked whether the CC would have to pay legal fees for the drawing up of any leases.
11.4 Links - school bus shelter: Ian Hay, HC TEC Services, has confirmed to AH that the shelter is in the Highlands, and he will check progress with Jim Yuill; it is possible that the complaints received have stopped the progress on this matter. JC asked whether a petition in support of the shelter should be raised by the schoolchildren, and MB agreed that it should be addressed to HC and given to them at the next John Duncan meeting. Ian Hay has confirmed that the HC Roads Dept.’s next task is to work on the January 05 storm damage to the road and pavement of Bayview Crescent.
12.7 Harbour Ferry Signs: No report as DA not present. 12.13 Calor Awards: MB stated that the entry has been posted; CC members thanked MB and others for the hard work put in on this. Next stage is a meeting in September – if the entry is selected.
12.12 Dog Notices: AS has still to put up the notices for new volunteers to empty the dog bins. |
AH/AD/DC concluded
MB/AS/AH ongoing
CC ongoing
RR ongoing
RY ongoing
RY ongoing
MB, AS, AD, AH ongoing
JC/AH ongoing
DA ongoing
AS ongoing
AS ongoing |
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5 5.1
5.2
5.3
5.4
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Youth issues: Sports Multi-Court: The group met last week, and formed a committee comprised of school children, in order to carry out a feasibility study, which will be filmed by Don Coutts involving the children interviewing older people. They will also think of local fundraising ideas, to assist their case when making grant applications. There will be a regular meeting every Thursday in the HMI at 4pm, so the library’s PC facilities can be used for poster making etc.
DMP mentioned an article in the North Star, which reported that £125k, had been raised and spent on Youth provision in Cromarty; he asked whether CC could have a breakdown of this figure, possibly from Cllr Alston. MB will e-mail DA with a request for this information.
JC asked whether there was any provision on the Lottery ‘funding stream for play equipment’ for a Black Isle swimming pool, since she felt that it is a safety issue that children should be able to swim. AS stated that Healthways should be involved, and Susannah Standish-White may be able to assist with information.
DMP reported that all is in place for the Gala Week, and the timetable of events will be advertised soon. AD asked for an inventory of the prizegiving cups to be drawn up and given to him, as the cups will belong to the CC. |
JC ongoing
MB ongoing
JC ongoing
DMP ongoing |
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Queen Mary II Day: All agreed that the day was very successful. AH is to write to Sergeant Nicholson thanking him for the policing work. The use of the Victoria Park for overflow parking to avoid a bottleneck/ gridlock situation as cars left Cromarty was a very successful idea. |
AH concluded
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7 contd.
7:1 |
Community Housing development The CC meeting was attended by Di Alexander and Issi McGrath from HSCHT, Donald Lockhart from Albyn Housing Association, Alan Ogilvie - HC Planning Dept. and Tom Duff - LDN Architects. The meeting afforded a glimpse of possibilities for the land behind Townlands Barn. There will be a public meeting in September, which will give the same presentation but in more detail, plus a Q&A session. The value of the land depends on what is to be built on it. Four C.Cllrs attended the meeting, and RR stated that the architect was very good and reassuring that the access for any Townlands Barn development would be across the top of the Victoria Park (skatepark area); the developers would have to comply with a 75% affordable low cost community-housing ruling. 27 units are being proposed for the site, contained within 21 building, as there are to be 6 flats in 3 of the buildings. AD asked how many of the units would be rental ones.AH will e-mail C Vawdrey’s notes of the meeting to C.Cllrs.
It was stated that HC would not encourage further development at Whitedykes if the Townlands Barn plan went ahead, as ribbon development is undesirable for Cromarty.
AS asked if the CC had received any previous notification of the Cromarty Mains proposal for an L shaped development at the corner of the Mains road junction. AH stated he had not. No one on the committee had been aware of the proposed plans. RR said the CC could have objected to this plan had it been known prior to the meeting, and if the CC had been allowed to speak. MB asked who had apparently written saying that the CC did not wish to speak at the meeting. She asked for this matter to be investigated.
MB asked who holds the complete Ross & Cromarty Draft Plan, and whether the Cromarty Mains plan was mentioned in it. The assumption has been that the excerpts, handed out by Alan Ogilvie, contained all the information relevant to Cromarty , but this would seem not to be the case. AH confirmed that the Draft Plans were held on file by the CC, had been circulated, and were on display at the Planning meeting, held in the Royal Hotel. |
CC/AH ongoing |
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8 8:1
8:2
8:3
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Treasurer’s Report: Bank balance: (excluding bank interest for June) - £16,776.49 Income since my last report was £10,925.81
Expenditure - £759.44 £500 of this was the Common Good money which we obtained for the Youth programme, but which was not given to CAYP as the bus shelter was not painted as agreed, June Forsyth of HC has said that the £500 will be credited to our account.
AD asked about payment of the solicitor’s bill; once the invoice has been received, check if it can be paid from the Common Good Fund.
Common Good Fund £900 of this year’s allocation already spent; £500 to Cromarty Bowling Club, and £400 to Primary School. AS stated that all applications to the Fund should come via the CC to enable us to keep records up to date. AH stated that while this would be ideal for CC book keeping it was not a requirement of the HC. £800 has been allocated to the Victoria Hall plus £200 from the Stalls account re disabled toilet facilities. MB asked why RY had been told that there were no funds available for seating, when we were unclear as to the balance in the fund. AH declared this statement inaccurate and that on the committees approval money had been allocated temporarily from the CC a/c. AS said that June Forsyth should be asked for spend and balance details. |
AD ongoing
AD ongoing |
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9 9:1
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Highland Councillor’s Report: AH read a letter from DA re Black Isle 2007 elections and ward reform, which will constitute a major change in local government. He emphasized the importance of attending and supporting the meetings of the Black Isle Forum. MB stated that she volunteered to become a CC member because of Cromarty, not the Black Isle as a whole. and the CC members agreed with this statement. AH will attend Black Isle Forum meeting on 29th June and voice CC’s general opinion. |
AH ongoing |
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10 10:1
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Planning Matters : MB reported the following applications: W Shepherd, 31 Bayview Crescent – erection of conservatory P Bird, 8 Braehead – erection of garden shed J Scott, Cromarty Mains House – Alteration & extension- planning & listed building consent sought. B Lowe, 81 Big Vennel – External paint finishes. Planning & LB consent sought. Colours would have to be within the approved spectrum, MB to consult Erica MacArthur to check. |
MB ongoing |
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11 11:1
11:2
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11:4 11:5
11:5 contd.
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Correspondence: AH read a letter from Plexus Media asking about their buying the communitycouncil.org domain name from the CC. It was agreed to contact a HC computer expert for advice.
Benefits Presentation: A letter has been received from Karen Shepherd, HC Benefits Promotion Officer, asking if CC would like a short presentation on benefits available for the elderly; AS will suggest a visit to the Fourways Club.
Condition of the Beach: Neil Campbell of the Royal Hotel has written stating that the beach is a mess – weeds, rubbish, dog excrement etc. He would like an annual major cleanup, using heavy machinery to clear the beach; also to designate a dog free area from the Harbour to the slipway west of the hotel; DA has contacted John Hammond of HC about this, and says that it is impractical. The letter is to be referred to the meeting with John Duncan. MB stated that Bayview needs a facelift
3 Year Schools Capital Plan: DA has sent an e-mail re the Cromarty Primary school refurbishment, and has asked for copies of any motion passed by the CC to be sent to Bruce Robertson, Director of Education, and Cllr. Andy Anderson. Cromarty has been very successful in attracting families, which is reflected in the rising school roll. The decisions on future funding will be taken at the HC Capital Plan meeting on the 11th August. It was agreed unanimously to support the school in their bid. AH will write on behalf of CC and all councillors were encouraged to write as individuals, making their views known.
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AH ongoing
AS ongoing
CC members ongoing
AH/CC ongoing
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Any Other Business:
Community Noticeboard: Lonna Davidson has asked about the geographical remit for the Noticeboard, since she is unclear about notices from organisations outwith Cromarty, It was agreed that Cromarty based notices should take priority, and that job adverts for posts within Cromarty were permissible. A Vote of Thanks was given to Lonna for her splendid work in maintaining the Noticeboard.
Environmental Health: Robin Fraser, HC Environmental Health Dept., has received complaints from the public about the, rubbish/rubble strewn, derelict outbuildings at Townlands Barn adjacent to the swings and play park. CC has no power to enforce the clearing and making safe of the site, which may contain asbestos sheeting. The owner will be approached by the Env. Hlth. Dept.
Burial Plots: DMP stated that HC are planning to charge £25 to nominate a person for a second burial plot from 1st July; this matter to be referred to John Duncan
Rapson’s buses: DMP had received a complaint from a Rapson’s passenger on a bus that broke down; when complaining by phone, she was subjected to verbal abuse from the Rapson’s employee. It was agreed that this should be referred back to the complainant, to follow up with the bus company’s senior management.
Cromarty Guidebooks: JC reported that she has placed copies in Borders at the retail park, and Ottakers bookshop – both sale or return, Inverness Museum has also bought 10 copies of the Guidebook.
Bottle Banks at Whitedykes Industrial Estate: AD has written to John Clark of HC Architectural Services regarding the availability of the Whitedykes Industrial Unit, for CC use as a recycling centre, and awaits his reply.
CromartyLive! Website: to be discussed at next meeting
Next meeting with John Duncan is at 10am on Wednesday 27th July at HMI
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AH ongoing
AH concluded
DMP ongoing
DMP concluded
JC ongoing
AD ongoing
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Date of next meeting:
Tuesday 26th July 2005 at 7.30pm in the Hugh Miller Institute |
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