Landward Caithness Ward Forum
Action Note Of Meeting Held On 11 December 2007
at R.I. Halkirk
Attending
Cllr David Bremner (Chair)
Cllr Robert Coghill
Cllr Willie Mackay
Cllr David Flear
Mrs Anne Alexander – Watten Community Council
James Macdonald – Watten Community Council
Douglas Fraser – Castletown Community Council
Mrs Elizabeth Geddes – Castletown Community Council
William Manson – Halkirk Community Council
Mrs Janet Mowat – Halkirk Community Council
Neil Buchanan – Berriedale & Dunbeath Community Council
Mrs Elizabeth Cameron – Berriedale & Dunbeath Community Council
Donald Henderson – Tannach & District Community Council
Mrs Elizabeth Henderson – Tannach & District Community Council
Sgt. John Crawford – Northern Constabulary
Iain Moncrieff – Principal Engineer, Highland Council T.E & C.S.
David Sutherland – Ward Manager, Highland Council
Alec Macmanus – Ward Manager’s Team, Highland Council
8 members of the general public including reporter from local press (CA Mackay).
Apologies – Ian Hargrave – Corporate Manager, Highland Council
Action Note of Meeting held 2nd October 2007
Additions – List of attendees to include Mrs Anne Alexander and James Macdonald both from Watten Community Council with apologies to both for their omission.
Deletions – Item 3 whole section commencing ‘Mr Holmes, from ……to…….did not qualify’ as factually incorrect with apologies given to Mr Holmes who was in attendance as a member of the general public.
Action Note updates
1. Ward Manager has spoken with TECs over tree and hedge issues in the County. Problems identifying who owns trees and bushes at Castletown and this is not TECS responsibility. Where the parcel of land included a house and garden it was easy to identify ownership and responsibility. TECs have been getting vague or negative responses. One piece of land has been asked for action via Agents in the South. Notices require to be sent but if no identification available it is difficult to be actioned. If trees or bushes are cut back without permission the landowners could sue. Castletown CC spoke about the strips of land at Harland which the residents have requested to be cut back to aid road safety. Landowners were confirmed as Geddes, Ian Gunn. Barrock and Alex Grant. Notice had been served on his agent. If any trees and bushes are deemed as an immediate hazard then due process requires to be followed.
ACTION POINT – LEAVE THIS ISSUE ON AS STANDING ORDER TO MONITOR SUCCESS.
2. Ward Manager’s Team have contacted Scottish Provincial Press over lateness of Caithness Explorer. Lateness put down to machinery problems but confirmed verbally that next year’s edition would be out by Easter. Calendar note taken for early March 08 to check on progress.
3. Caithness Transport Forum meeting not attended.
ACTION POINT – WARD MANAGER HAS MEETING ARRANGED WITH CTF, MEMBERS AND RAPSONS.
Recycling Performances
Performance figures were circulated. With these figures now available it was proposed that a competition be organised based on increased percentages. Following a debate it was decided that the Ward Manager would draw up an equitable scheme to measure increases which would help reduce the Councils landfill targets. Rewards would be payable from discretionary budget and a figure of £1,000 per community and £1,000 per primary school was agreed.
ACTION POINT – WARD MANAGER TO DRAW UP EQUITABLE REWARD SCHEME FOR COMPETITION.
Community Safety
Nuisance Fireworks – Issue raised by Berriedale & Dunbeath CC. Many complaints raised over fireworks being let off months before and months after 5th November. It appears to be the same individuals letting of these fireworks. What is position over storage of fireworks in council houses and private houses? Is storage governed by Law? The Police are keen on getting the sale of all fireworks banned to the general public. It was noted that the sale of fireworks can now be done over the internet without any apparent age restriction and available all year round. Cllr Flear suggested that perhaps Trading Standards should be addressing this issue. The introduction of any bye laws would be difficult to enforce given the nature of the fact.
ACTION POINT - WARD MANAGERS TEAM TO CHECK WITH TRADING STANDARDS OVER THESE ISSUES.
Road Issues
Iain Moncrieff, Principal Engineer – Lists of work undertaken – Culvert & ditching at Dunnet, Slickly, Burnside Gills, Murkle, Ballnafettack Bower and Thrumster culvert. Repairs to the bridges at Rhinullen (?), Watten and Lythnot. Patching at Houstry Road, Dunbeath and pathway at Watten to Campster road end. Drainage improvements have been carried out at Glengolly although Cllr Coghill adviced that this work had not been completed satisfactorily. Iain Moncrieff would see the farmer concerned.
As from April 2008 TECS in Wick would not only be responsible for Caithness but also the North Coast of Sutherland. Flooding is a high risk issue at this time and it is impossible to prevent. TECS are now looking at reducing the risk and would like to hear for anyone who has flooding risk issues. TECS have had one engineering looking at flooding risks for the last three years
Cllr Willie Mackay spoke in support of Iain Moncrieff and his department. One day of flooding in Caithness alone cost £250,000 to rectify. Cllr Flear stressed that house builders require to carefully look at potential for flooding before building new homes especially on known flood plains.
Community Safety Action Team
Safer routes to school first stage at Watten has now been completed. Funding for SRTS ends in March 2008.
Ward Discretionary Budget
Present balance in Budget is £38,812. The £4,000 to Wick High School Parents Council is in respect of an application for £12,000 to help part fund the purchase a suitable mini-bus for the school. This was agreed by ward members who felt that this would also benefit the Landward pupils who attended Wick High School. There are applications in hand from Halkirk Community Council for £5,000 for ‘speed smiley faces’ and from Lybster Community Association for £1,345. An application is expected soon from Castletown Parents Council for playground equipment. Encouragement should be given to all suitable groups to apply for budget funds by the end of March ’08. It was felt that funds so far requested from the budget had been well spent.
Rotation of Councillors with Community Councils
There are four Landward Members and nine Community Councils. The Members are in post for four years and it is felt that it would be beneficial to members and community councils that they rotate around each community council. It was recognised that all the Ward Members have a united front when representing Caithness at full Council meetings.
Date of next meeting
Tuesday 5th February 2008 at Ross Institute, Halkirk at 7.30pm
Any other Business (AOB)
Castletown Community Council – Concerns over apparent lack of gritting. Wick to Watten road did not appear to have been done. Can Community Councils get copies of gritting maps?
ACTION POINT – WARD MANAGER TO CONTACT TECHS TO GET MAPS FOR DISTRIBUTION.
Routes are gritted per priority. 1 to 4
Isolated showers can and do wash salt and grit off
Gritters are out by 6.30am until 10am as deemed not necessary after that time. However heavy snow would dictate different and ploughs would operate to keep routes open.
Motorists should be driving with due consideration to road conditions at all times.
Met Office forecasts are used but also at times a judgement call may need to be made.
Tannach Community Council – Issues over speeding and overtaking at the bus stop and bridge at Haster. Can bus shelter not be moved back towards Watten? TECS will look at this. Speeding issues are more than likely down to a minority. There is one traffic counter available but will take weeks to get. After analysing results these are then put to police. Also the Smiley face Unit is operating at another site in Highlands. TECS will also look at bridge site with consideration given to signage, hatchings. etc.
Castletown Community Council – Reminder that a close look at planning matters on flood plains. All consulted and fully informed before decisions are made. SEPA indicative flooding measures 100/200 year flood. Damaged or broken culverts can be a good indication of flooding problems.
Sgt John Crawford left the meeting at 9.05 pm.
Question and answer session
- Q. - Mr Holmes questioned why there are no brown bins allocated to the 33 houses in Braal Castle Road as they are within the Halkirk 30mph signs. A. - Ward Managers Team would speak to June Ross from the Council’s recycling Unit in Dingwall to get a definite answer to this issue.
- Q- From Diane Craven. A question was asked at the last Landward Councillors meeting regarding whether Highland Council could give us assurance that they will stand firm on their Renewable Energy Strategy (RES) (and other planning policies which influenced its production), given that the Executive appears firm that the Council will have the whip hand when considering the extent to which they will adhere to the RES. The question was not answered because "prejudging the local authority's core committee answer would be wrong. If a member stands up at this meeting and says 'I oppose windfarms,' when it comes to a meeting where an application is being considered they will be disqualified by virtue of having made their position clear. Members must absolutely avoid expressing personal opinions about this issue or any other which is going to be the subject of a planning application." It was stressed that members could express no opinion at all. I would like to submit that the answer given (by Mr Hargrave I believe) was disingenuous and did not answer the question. The question was merely "will Highland Council stand firm on their renewable energy strategy. In no way did it pertain to any particular windfarm or even any particular form of renewable energy. Therefore, I would respectfully like to ask the question again, which is: "Can the public be reassured that Highland Council stand firm on all the provisions of its Renewable Energy Strategy?" A - Members are bound by their Code of Conduct and the Ward Manager read Section 7.10 of this Code to the meeting as follows :- ‘If you propose to take part in the consideration of planning applications at a meeting of a committee or of the Council, you must not give grounds to doubt your impartiality. You must not make public statements about a pending application, to ensure that you are not seen to be prejudging a decision which will be made at the meeting where all the information required to take a decision will be available. You must not indicate or IMPLY your support or opposition to a proposal, or declare your voting intention, before the meeting. Anyone who may be seeking to influence you must be advised that you will not formulate an opinion on a particular proposal until all available information is to hand and has been duly considered at the relevant meeting.’ Members will make use of the Highland Renewable Energy Strategy and Planning Guidelines May 2006.
- Q – From Brenda Herrick - I saw a mention of the Castletown parking problem (outside the shop) in the Groat recently and would like to know what progress is being made. Why do the police not ticket vehicles parked there? According to the Highway Code 242 You MUST NOT leave your vehicle or trailer in a dangerous position or where it causes any unnecessary obstruction of the road.
Code 243 DO NOT stop or park opposite or within 10 metres (32 feet) of a junction, except in an authorised parking space Cars parking outside the shop are right by one junction, opposite two and they force other drivers onto the wrong side of the road when it is not always possible to see oncoming traffic. I simply do not understand why it is allowed. There is a perfectly adequate car park right opposite the shop. A - The problem of parking at the shop in Castletown is well known. TECS have the problem on their to do list and it will be looked at. It is felt that yellow lines may not solve the problem. Police have been speaking to those who choose to park outside the shop advising them that they are causing a traffic problem. A pavement barrier has been talked about but the shopkeeper has indicated that there will be a problem getting supplies into his shop and also may affect his passing trade. Castletown CC disputes this fact as the supply lorries can park on the road down towards Murrayfield. Cllr Coghill reported that the Princes Foundation had plans to redevelop the Square. The Community Council supports the idea of barriers but would wish to speak to the local Castletown community first to gauge the feeling of the village. Cllr Coghill said that he would contact Lisa MacKellaich, the Council’s Road Safety Officer, about this issue.
- Q – from the general public. Are postal addresses of objectors to wind farms taken into account when planning applications are being looked at? A – All objectors’ names and postal addresses are made available to all the planning committee members for all applications?
Mrs Denise Brown had asked a question at the Landward Forum meeting on 2nd October 2007 which she, at the time, did not receive a reply. However her question has now been answered.