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Continued from page 34 Nameplates John Edwards at Maidstone Borough Council (MBC) said the nameplates for Leeds Road and Grasslands had been ordered. Parking The clerkwas liaising with the communitywarden about vehicles parking on the verge at the corner of Ulcombe Road and the Leeds Road. Budget Itwas agreed to generate a precept of £20,014 from the tax base figure of 496.2 which equates to £40.33 per band D property. This is an increase of total funding from 2016/17 of £2,6732. An increase of £5.25 per band D property. Churchyard Itwas agreed to give a sum of £500 to Otham and Langley PCC towards the maintenance of St Mary’s churchyard. Neighbourhood plan PMC Planning had withdrawn its services to produce a neighbourhood plan for Langley. Further quotes would now be sought.
Linton
Resignation The chairman had received the wrien resignation of Cllr Richard Buers, due to work commitments. Highways Cllr Whitmarsh said there was a large pothole onWesterhill and the Lacys Lane sign at the junction with Barnes Lane was missing. Cllr Firmin would report these to Kent Highways. Cllr Firmin had got a quotation for an additional light at the gate by the church car park for £540 plus vat. Itwas agreed to go ahead with this.
Crossroads Cllr Mortimer said Maidstone Borough Councilwas querying the S106 allocations for the A229 Linton Crossroads and had asked KCC for its plan for the crossroads. He raised concerns that KCC did not seem to have any schemes drawn up for the crossroads and said the chief executive had taken this up with KCC and would report back. Budget Itwas proposed by Cllr Whitmarch to set the 2017/18 precept at £12,271, which was agreed. Allotments Rabbits had been found in two gardens in Wheelers Lane so the allotment holders had been asked to be vigilant, making sure the gate was not left open. Therewas one new person on thewaiting list, but he currently had transport problems. Speedwatch Representative Mrs Sawyer said a member had been inactive and had resigned. The remaining Speedwatch team recorded seven speeding vehicles in November and two in December. The chairman said he hoped a councillor could take on the Speedwatch role and Cllr Cresswell volunteered. Village hall The refurbishment of the small room had been completed. Community liaison The chairman said the noticeboards needed to be maintained and updated regularly. Itwas agreed that the clerk would forward all notices to Cllrs Smith and Burden. The chairman said the draft minutes would be posted on the website.A budget of £60was allocated for the purchase of an A-framed notice board to publicise parish council meetings. Lier pick Itwas agreed that the parish council would arrange a lier pick event and Cllrs Whitmarsh and Firmin would undertake the risk assessment. Annual meeting This would take place on April 18, 2017. Itwas suggested that
36 Maidstone Weald March 2017
presentations from local businesses might be of interest.
Loose
Cold callers Liz Lova said cold callers continued to be a problem – scams with poor ID and home security. Shewas happy to provide security advice if necessary or to give talks to local community groups. CCTV Following an aack in Shepway Cllr Sue Grigg had investigated the possibility of CCTV alongside the Brooks in Loose village. However, the cost would be £20k, so itwas not a viable option. Other options were available, and fundingwas possible. Damaged fenceA fence had been damaged in the car park after youths had been riding around in the industrial bin. Greenway Public rights ofway officer Colin Finch would not be looking at extending the Greenway cycle route in Loose but would look at making the pathway morewalkable. Old Loose Hill There had been problems with dust carts and grier lorries not being able to access the hill due to parked vehicles at the top. Double yellow lines were suggested on one side of the road. It was agreed to write to KCC Cllr Eric Hotson. Phone boxes BT would be removing redundant phone boxes in the village. This would not include the red phone box on the green, which is owned by the parish council.
Marden
Howland RoadA member of the public asked if a meeting could be set up with the developer of the Howland Road site. The concerns included contractors using the access road to MeadowWay, whichwas said to be unsuitable for heavy vehicles. The clerk said a meeting would be set up as soon as the “reserved maers” had gone through. Police report There had been one crime since the last meeting – the theft of a builder’s buggy in Plain Road. The chairman raised the concerns of parking and driving outside the primary school. PCSO Morris would try to visit the school when she could. CCTV policy The clerk had obtained information of signage and ascertained that whatwas currently being usedwas complaint. The policywas adopted. Play equipment Cllr Boswell said four quotes had been received on the play equipment for Napoleon Drive. Cllrs Boswell, Tippen and Robertson would meet to discuss these with the assistant clerk. Puffin crossing The clerkwas asked to contact KCC Highways to arrange a site meeting at the primary school as a developer had said only minor works would be undertaken.
Nelestead
Football goalsA new set of goal nets had been delivered. Police report Crimes reported included a van broken into in Bishops Close and tools stolen from a van in Bryant Close. Chaerbox The Christmas party had been verywell received and aended. Fashion show The final figure for the
fashion show in the village hallwas £621.80. Dog bins The parish council would be receiving a co-mingle bin which would replace the parish-council owned bin in the KGV field. Itwas felt having two bins would mean the parish council would also have to empty a bin with dogwaste in, whichwas felt to be a health and safety risk. The clerkwas asked to contact MBC and ask them to empty the bin, whichwas overflowing. Trees The clerk had contacted UK Power Networks whowere only prepared to cut back the trees by a metre as thiswas the legal requirement for trees near low voltage power lines. Itwas decided to allocate money in the budget over a two- year period towards having the trees cut down. Play area The loery grant application for replacement of the play area surface had been successful and the full amount had been awarded. Itwas agreed to hold a site meeting before instructing the company to carry out the work. Footpath The clerkwas asked to contact KCC Highways regarding the footpath from Neestead Green along the Maidstone Road, as itwas almost impassable in places. Noticeboard Neither insurance company would accept responsibility for this. The parish council could go to the small claims court and the clerk would look at cost. Alternatively it could just replace the noticeboard. The Hop Pole pub was suggested as a location for the noticeboard and Cllr Benne would speak to the landlord about this. Defibrillator The clerk had spoken to Marden History Society regarding its defibrillator and had several questions answered. The clerkwas also planning to speak toWateringbury Parish Council which had a defibrillator on the village hall.
Precept Itwas resolved to increase the precept by 10% from £14,939 to £16,433.
Staplehurst
Annual parish meeting Cllr Brice asked that the format of future meetings be reviewed. Members discussedways to generate more interest in the meeting and acknowledged that it should be resident- focused. Ideas included aweekend forum for village organisations followed by questions. WWI commemoration Itwas agreed to participate in beacon lighting on November 11, 2018, and to discuss the location of a beacon at the next meeting. Carnival and fete Therewas a suggestion that the fete and funfairweekend be separated into two events. The commiee needed additional resources to keep the fete going – instead smaller funfair weekend and music events would be organised. Itwas agreed to use the Surrenden Field for two events. Therewas a discussion about how to encourage helpers for the events. Hen& Duckhurst farm Crest Nicholson said it would be delivering the homes agreed andwas working with Civils to develop a master plan. Cllr Buller said the meeting had been positive and the visitors demonstrated a good knowledge of the Staplehurst Neighbourhood Plan.
Parish Councils
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