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Clerk to the Council: - Mr. R. Stopford 147 Warrington Road Penketh Warrington WA5 2EN 01925-723124
Minutes of the Parish Council meeting of Walton Parish Council held at St. John's Community Church Hall, Old Chester Road, Walton, on Thursday the 1st November 2007.
Present Councillor H A S Hardie Chairman Councillor J A Ashcroft Councillor R D Bennett Councillor R Hardie Councillor R Hewitt Vice-Chairman Councillor Y. Shaikh Councillor P Morgan Councillor D Meacock Councillor C Chadwick Councillor J Ward
In Attendance 6 members of the Parish Roy Stopford - Clerk to the Council Madam Chairman opened the meeting at 7.30pm and formally welcomed Residents and Councillors to the meeting.
The Clerk reported that Councillor Lacey had tendered her apologies for not being able to attend.
Madam Chairman invited a motion to adjourn the meeting to allow residents to address the Council. Councillor R Bennett proposed and Councillor R Hardie seconded a motion to so adjourn. Motion approved. The meeting adjourned at 7.32pm.
Mr. Dobbs, the owner of property at Porch House Farm addressed the meeting and outlined the work undertaken that is the subject of 3 retrospective planning applications recently considered by the Parish Planning Committee. Work had been stopped in 2006 and the current applications are to correct the situation. Following the comments by Mr. Dobbs, Councillor R Hardie made comment and confirmed that the Committee had considered the matter and had found no objection or comment to the applications.
Madam Chairman thanked Mr. Dobbs for his comments and reconvened the meeting at 7.40pm.
- 52 Minutes of the Previous Meeting
The minutes of the meeting held on the 4th October 2007 were reviewed.
Councillor Shaikh sought clarification regarding the minute on page 255 under Road/Traffic and the authority or process to apply the criteria in deciding the matter relating to the parking restrictions on Old Chester Road.
Councillor Ashcroft noted that at item 44 on page 253 the reference on line 4 should read Mr. Jack Scott-Lindfield.
In referring to the item 44 line 12, Councillor Ashcroft asked that his comment at the meeting be added to the record viz: "Councillor Ashcroft stated that Cheshire County Council had determined that Mill Lane was a through road from the A56 to Runcorn Road".
Councillor Shaikh requested that the word "After" at the end of line 12 together with the last 4 lines on item 44 be amended to "In response to a query regarding legal documentation, Councillor Shaikh suggested that this was a personal matter for the property owner and not the responsibility of the Parish Council".
It was proposed by Councillor R Hardie and seconded by Councillor Ashcroft that, subject to these amendments, the minutes be accepted as a true record. Motion approved.
- 53 Reports on Matters Arising from the previous minutes
All matters were noted as being listed on the Agenda. - 54 Borough Councillors Report
In view of the fact that Borough Councillor Walker was not in attendance, Madam Chairman moved to the next item on the Agenda
The Clerk issued with the Agenda the Financial Report and a copy of the Receipts and Payments Account for the current year to date.
Councillor Meacock noted the typing error in the amount of the cheque in respect of the work at the War Memorial as shown on the Receipts & Payments account. The amount should read £230.00p.
Madam Chairman submitted an account in the sum of £35.00, being the cost of the wreath for the Remembrance Day Service and the Clerk asked that this be added to the accounts for payment.
The Clerk reported that, at the request of the Chairman of the Betterment Committee, he had provided his personal credit card details to enable the purchase of the bulbs to be planted in the Parish. Since he had not received the paperwork he was unable to present the account for payment. Councillor Ward promised to chase up the paperwork with the supplier.
Councillor Ashcroft requested an update on the application and grant of funding to the Walton Lea Project regarding the classroom equipment. Councillor R Hardie responded following a recent visit. Everything is now in place to complete the project and a request for the funding is likely to be submitted by the end of the year.
The Clerk presented: - Cheque number 000531 payable to Mr. R Stopford £ 268.33p Cheque number 000532 payable to Mr. R Stopford £ 101.56p Cheque number 000533 payable to Mrs. H A S Hardie £ 35.00p
It was proposed by Councillor Ashcroft, and seconded by Councillor Shaikh, that the Financial Report and the accounts for payment, including the invoice submitted by Councillor H A S Hardie for the poppy wreath, be approved. Motion approved.
Madam Chairman and Councillor Hewitt signed the cheques.
The Clerk drew attention to the draft Budget and Precept for 2008/9 and commented on the information distributed at the Parish Council Liaison meeting that he attended, relating to election costs for the 2008 local elections. Further discussion followed regarding proposed projects by the Betterment Committee. No detailed costing was available and Councillor Ward agreed to have these available for consideration at the next meeting.
The Clerk issued with the Agenda the Planning Committee Report, a copy of which is attached to these minutes. Councillor R Hardie reviewed the Planning Report and the items noted as still to be reviewed. He also commented further on the 3 retrospective applications in respect of Porch House Farm. Councillor Hardie also commented on the application by TGD for the storage of hazardous materials at Acton Grange and invited Councillors to comment. Councillor Shaikh commented on the non-residential location and suggested that the response should be one of "no comment". After further discussion and comment it was proposed by Councillor Meacock and seconded by Councillor Morgan that the Planning Report be accepted. Motion approved.
- 57 Report of Appointed Representatives
WYFC Councillor Morgan - nothing to report Transport Councillor Ashcroft - nothing to report. Arts Councillor Ashcroft - nothing to report. Publicity Councillor Chadwick - commented on a delay in issuing the Parish Magazine and confirmed that it and the Newsletter would be delivered by the end of next week. Madam Chairman confirmed that Councillors had delivered their allocation of copies and thanked them for doing so and also the Clerk for producing the Newsletter. Police Forum Councillor H A S Hardie - Commented on the meeting at the Town Hall on the 16th October 2007 and the very poor attendance. The Deputy Chief Constable attended and there was a display by the Force Operations unit. Madam Chairman also reviewed the latest crime figures. Footpaths. Councillor Morgan - Gave his report that included details of a footpath that is not recorded, from Walton Road to Osborne Road. This footpath has been reported to WBC. Councillor Morgan also highlighted the extensive work being undertaken by Halton BC on the footpath to the Bridgewater canal inside their area. Councillor Morgan also reviewed the Right of Way Improvement Plan developed by WBC but concluded that there was nothing in the report of any interest. After his report Councillor Morgan excused himself from the meeting. Waste Councillor R Hardie - nothing to report Road/Traffic Councillor Bennett - Again reported that many of the items he raised at the previous meeting were still outstanding. The Clerk confirmed that he had still not received any response from WBC. The chevron signs at the Runcorn Road end of Holly Hedge Lane are in need of attention. The Cyclist signs on the A56 opposite Old Chester Road are obscured and in the bushes and shrubbery. The area around the reservoir has been tidied up but there are still trees near the water line that need attending to. The name signs at the top of Hough's Lane still need attending to. The Park Lane sign has been defaced and the Hough's Lane sign damaged. The Holly Hedge Lane sign at the Runcorn Road end is obscured. The hedge on the LH side of the ford on Park Lane is overgrown. Councillor Morgan stated that he had been authorised to undertake the work. The signage light at the Runcorn end of the bridge on the A56 is not working. Unit 11 opposite the Crematorium is still not working. The dual carriageway sign at the Daresbury end of the A56 has still not been replaced although the post is still in place. The area around the litterbins at Underbridge Lane has not been cut back or the litter around the area cleared for some time. The Hill Cliffe Road sign at the triangle with Whitefield Road is damaged.
The Clerk issued with the Agenda, a Report on Parish Matters, a copy of which is attached to these minutes. Councillors accepted the report.
Risk AssessmentCouncillor Ward confirmed that the work on the benches has been completed and the final bench will be in place before the next meeting.
Betterment Committee The bulb planting had been postponed due to bad weather and will now take place on the 18th November 2007.
Councillor Ward reported on the donation of trees to the Parish Council. The Parish Tree Warden, Mr. Peter Priestner has submitted the proposal for the donation. Councillor Ward outlined the species of trees selected and the areas in which it was proposed to plant them. Councillor R Hardie requested details of any costs that might be anticipated in respect of planting the donated trees.
Councillor Ward outlined a proposal for a second Christmas tree to be erected on the land owned by the Parish at the junction of Walton Road, Hill Cliffe Road and Worsley Road. Councillor Shaikh suggested that a permanent tree should be considered. It was noted that there was no amount included in the precept for a second tree in the current financial year. A discussion followed and the costs identified as: cost of providing a suitable power supply cost of the decorative lights. cost of the actual tree. cost of suitable fencing around the site of the tree.
Councillor Ward suggested a limit of £500 be considered.
Councillor Shaikh suggested that there were too many unknowns and it could prove too expensive for such a limited display.
After further discussion, it was proposed by Councillor Ward that the Betterment Committee be authorised to review the costs of providing a second Parish Christmas tree and provide same up to a maximum amount of £500. Councillor Meacock seconded the motion.
Councillor Bennett proposed an amendment that the limit should be £400. This amendment received no support and failed.
Councillor Shaikh proposed an amendment that the matter be deferred and come back to the Parish Council once the costs are known. This amendment received no support and failed.
The original proposal was approved For:6; against:1; abstained:1; Madam Chairman did not vote. Councillors confirmed that the limit is to be strictly applied i.e. over the limit, no tree.
Street Lighting The Clerk reported on the response received from WBC regarding the units previously reported. The unit in Councillor Bennett's report is a different number to that previously reported.
Village Centre/Triangle Councillor R Hardie highlighted the quotation from Springbrook Nursery for maintaining the area. The cost was discussed and Councillor Hardie agreed to send the quotation to Alistair Brown.
Other Parish MattersThe Clerk outlined the notification from WBC regarding the non-notification of Planning Decisions to Parish Councils and the personal letter of objection that he has sent. Madam Chairman asked Councillors to support the objection by the Clerk in that he be asked to submit a formal letter on behalf of the Parish Council. All Councillors agreed. Councillor Hewitt reported that the 4 gully's on Mill Lane have still not been attended to. Councillor Ashcroft pointed out that the 2 holes in the pavement on Stetchworth Road have not been attended to. The Clerk drew attention to a consultation document received from WBC in respect of Grappenhall Hall Special School. Councillor R Hardie pointed out that a "No Smoking" sign should be displayed in the Parish Bus shelter.
Chairman's Diary Madam Chairman reported on the Regimental Service that she attended on behalf of the Parish Council and commented on the poor attendance. Only 4 Borough Councillors and 2 Parish Chairmen attended. Madam Chairman, Councillor R Hardie and Councillor Ashcroft attended the Military Presentation at the Halliwell Jones Centre
Madam Chairman noted the other correspondence not dealt with under Agenda items.
The Clerk was asked to contact the Church to amend the heating times for future meetings.
- 59 Date and time of next meeting
The next meeting of the Parish Council will be held on Thursday 6th December 2007 at St. John's Community Church Hall, Old Chester Road, Walton, commencing at 7.30pm,
Madam Chairman thanked everyone for attending and closed the meeting at 9.45pm.
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