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agreed at the meeting that developments such asWaterside Park should only be considered when all brownfield sites had been exhausted. Therewas a perception at the meeting that therewas a willingness among Maidstone councillors to approve Waterside Park instead of considering the views of the residents who elected them. Leak There had been a nasty accident involving two cars and a telegraph pole in the area of thewater leak in Eyhorne Street. Fortunately, the driverswere not seriously hurt. South EastWaterwas still to complete the repairs to the road. Neighbourhood plan Itwas noted that a neighbourhood plan could cost up to £10,000 and that finance might be available from Maidstone Council which is holding government funds for neighbourhood plans. The Maidstone local planwas yet to be completed and the delay had allowed developers to propose schemes which might not be permied if a planwas in place. Parks report Itwas agreed that items left in the Cardwell Pavilion by regular hirers, such as a Christmas tree,were there at their own risk. Aachments to thewalls or ceilings should be made with adhesive tack not sticky tape. Country Eye PCSOs RyanWaring and Dave Rowley outlined the new police initiative in promoting rural safety. Country Eye is similar to NeighbourhoodWatch but for rural areas. PCSO Rowley stressed the importance of obtaining vehicle registration numbers so the owner can be traced. Crime report Two arrests had taken place at Bicknor following robbery from Bicknor Church and the theft of red diesel. The maer also resulted in the crushing of three vehicles belonging to the perpetrator. There had also been an assault in Hucking but the police could not comment on this. There had only been one crime in Hollingbourne in the previous month – a burglary (non dwelling) in Greenway Court Road. White van Following the incident last month of a white van driver intimidating a young woman near Station Approach, Eyhorne Street, another van had been seen following a local lady, offering her lifts. The police visited the driver and gave them advice. Salt The clerk would arrange for salt bags to be delivered for use on icy roads. They would be outside the school and the church. Pavilion The asbestos survey contractors would be authorised to carry out works at Cardwell Pavilion. Planning The decision for the planning permission for 14 houses on land next to 103 Eyhorne Streetwas still pending on Maidstone Council’swebsite. Thiswas possibly to do with the section 106 requirements and the £78,000 requested from the developer for local infrastructure. The parish had not received a response to its leer to Alison Broom, chief executive at Maidstone Council, for her comments on the lack of drainage and the fact that £78,000 was insufficient. The clerk would send a follow-up leer requesting a response. Water Cllr Dr Susan Bauer had received many telephone calls regarding the cuing off of villagers’water supply when the Eyhorne Streetwater pipewas repaired. Trees The Christmas trees looked beautiful in the village and leers had been sent to Leeds Castle and Kingswood Christmas Trees to thank them for their generosity. Fete The new fete co-ordinatorwas Cllr Lee Vallins. The first meeting had gone very
well. The event would be very similar to last year’s and any suggestions for a theme would bewelcome. Jean Duffy had agreed to arrange the bookings. There would be a Zumba competition. The next meeting would be on January 26 at 8pm in the Dirty Habit and all arewelcome to aend. Off-road bikes Maidstone Council had issued the organisers of the club with an enforcement order to level hills and restore the land to its former condition by October 31. In November, an excavator did some work on the land, but itwas not completed. Unfortunately, even if eventswere not organised for the off-road motorcyclists, a lot of riderswere aware of the venue and quad bikeswere still geing on the land, which made the enforcement order powerless. Ironically, the organiser of the events had reported a theft of goods from his container on the land for which planning permission had not been granted. The police would look into this maer and check the Facebook page relating to the quad bikes. Police can issue section 59 notices to motorcyclists if they are causing a nuisance to residents. Anyone experiencing problems with the riders should telephone 101 when it happens, not after the event, if youwant police to help. TwinningAlongstanding resident wished to arrange a twinning event for the village at the school for the evening of the fete. This had caused a number of issues, especially as the schoolwas not big enough, therewas no overnight accommodation for 100 French guests, and the visitors would be going home before the proposed dinner took place. Finance Cllr John Cobbe reported that the VAT input tax had for some years been reclaimed for the parish council in the sum of £3,633, but it appeared the parish had suffered additional audit and late filing costs, losses due to a failure to reclaim other VAT, plus the refusal of Maidstone Council to pay for street lighting in the year ended March 2014. Itwas estimated that the total losseswere about £6,000 over a period of years. Since the start of 2014, financial controls had been tightened and the financial situationwas improving. Street lighting funding of £2,000 for 2013/14was still awaited from Maidstone Council. The failure of KCC and/or Maidstone Council to adopt Hollingbourne’s street lighting meant that the parish precept would have to increase by 50% from April 2015, costing £20 to £30 per househld. The lightswere listed on the parish council’s fixed assets register.
Leeds
Public forum Itwas reported that the pavements and bus shelter in the parish were in a poor condition. The clerk had reported these to Maidstone Council.A resident said a lot of coneswere being left in the parish by contractors. The clerk would notify Kent Highway Services. Leaving PCSO Richard Kirbywas leaving the area and a replacement would be appointed in the near future. ClockArequest had been received from the church seeking financial assistance for repairs to the church clock, for which the quotewas £1,066. Itwas agreed this would be favourably considered and placed on the next agenda. Playing field There had been an increase in rubbish left at the playing field following the football matches on Sundays. Lierwas
being left around the bin in small bags. The clerk would liaise with Maidstone Council to discuss the options for refuse collection and Cllr Bob China would liaise with the football team regarding the rubbish. Tennis The quotes for resurfacing the tennis courtswere discussed. Itwas agreed they were too expensive to progress. Spring clean Itwas agreed that a clean-up of the playing field should be undertaken in the spring and suggested this could be a project for the Community Payback scheme. Pavilion Cllr China suggested hiring out the pavilion for clubs and activities. Itwas agreed that this should be pursued where possible. Hewas thanked for his work in the parish. MinutesAresident asked why the minutes had been taken off the parishwebsite. The clerk said thewebsite had been hacked and therefore these had been removed. They were due to be uploaded in the near future.
Lenham
Ramp The BMX ramp maintenance and repairswere being undertaken, including replacing sections and repainting. Police report PCSO Dave Rowley reported nine crimes in the previous month. The chairman thanked him for his hard work in the parish. He would now be working on the rural country eye initiative and PCSO John Boyd would cover the parish. Moles Mole removal would be organised at the cemetery,William Pi field and the churchyard. GroomWayAsite meeting would be arranged to discuss the proposed local needs housing project. The development in Groom Way would be namedWealden Square and would be gated to protect residential parking facilities. The planning commiee missed the proposal of gates on the original applications and recommended that future development siteswere not gated. Highways Old Ashford Road and Maidstone Road both required repairs. Kent Highway Services recommended the re- surfacing of Old Ashford Roadwas done after the development work had been completed. Community centre Following a risk assessment survey, the buildingwas found to bewell maintained with only a few minor repairs needed. Council vacancy Three residents had shown an interest in joining the council. Paul Hewish, Mark Homes and Paul Scrivens would be co-opted at the next meeting. Neighbourhood plan Kingsley Hughes and David Parfiwere providing professional consulting services. Public toilets Thesewere to be surveyed to assess the upgrade requirements, but in the meantime therewas to be an extensive clean-up following the contamination.
Ulcombe
Planning Regarding the Maidstone Council’s latest call for sites, itwas confirmed that the proposed sites in Ulcombe would be rejected. Highways Itwas reported that boles, cans and other rubbish had been found by the polytunnels at Church Farm. The chairman would contact the farmer. Speedwatch The clerkwas still awaiting information from Boughton Malherbe Parish Council about using its Speedwatch
Maidstone East January 2015 47
Parish Councils
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