Minutes:
County Council and other bodies have been invited to participate in ‘No Mow May’ which they opted to participate in again this year; this was an issue due to it being a very wet spring which saw grass grow very quickly. For OWBC the tractor driver that pulled the mower left the authority and there was a gap where no mowing could take place; steps are being taken to ensure this is not a reoccurring matter. The first round of mowing for all Council owned grass has taken place, and they are now being revisited.
Cllr. Boulter highlighted that a resident reported a patch of grass and a tree previously maintained by the Council had not been addressed. The Council looked in to this and found that they did not own the land and so could not maintain it due to insurance reasons. A review of all land in the Borough took place and landowners contacted stating that they should either maintain the land themselves or can pay the Council a fee to do so; non-compliance could result in the Council cutting the grass and fining the landowner. All landowners have until the end of this month to respond to the Council’s letters. Landowners are also responsible for trees etc. on their land.
The Spinney on Launceston Road is owned by the Council – a resident noted that a tree in the spinney is blocking her view and asked if she can arrange for it to be cut. This would not be allowed and the resident has been directed to contact the Council for it to be addressed. Cllr. Charlesworth will look into this.
Weeds on the highway were also raised by residents – this falls under the responsibility of the County Council who spray with a contact weedkiller; other weedkillers aren’t able to be used as they enter the water-table. This is done twice a year and should be done shortly.
Queries were raised around what happens to land that the Council has maintained for a number of years; could the developer state that precedent has been made for the Council to continue to maintain the land? No, the land remains under the control of the landowner.
Now the Council has highlighted packets of land that developers still own is there a risk that the land is now used for further development? It is unlikely that any planning application for these packets of land will be permitted as they don’t feature in the Council’s local plan. There is a risk that the landowners opt to fence the land they own off instead of maintaining it; the Council could then serve untidy site notices on the landowners should this occur.
Changes to Government level planning may affect how land in the Borough is utilised in the future.
Developers pay the Council 106 monies that can cover a large number of things pre-agreed as part of the planning application process; land maintenance could be a part of this in the future.
The corner of Meadow Way and Newton Lane saw flooding earlier in the year; likely due to drains not being cleaned out. LCC Highways changed their schedule of drain maintenance to take place between 12 and 18 months depending on how blocked the drains are. Problems should be reported to LCC so that flooding does not reoccur.
The stops are no longer in use but people do stand there on a regular basis. These are the responsibility of the bus company and not either Council.
This is overgrown and can hardly be seen; the Council’s Clean and Green Team will address this.
The fencing around the courts was removed without Members’ awareness; it was noted that this was because it was unsafe. Members are seeking its reinstallation.
Residents proposed and seconded a bench is installed at Willow Park. Costings for this should be brought to the next meeting of the Forum to be voted on.
Residents queried the Grant raised by the MP pre-election. Cllr. Gore noted that this was promised under the previous Governments’ ‘New Town’ scheme and would have come with a number of conditions. It is unclear if this grant would be honoured by the incoming Government and the MP has been contacted asking for clarification on this grant. Cllr. Gore will share any response with all Borough Councillors.
Residents queried if this money is still available. Cllr. Boulter confirmed that the money is still within the Council and Cllr. Bentley provided further information that this funding was part of the UKSPF funding, around £1.3m, that the Council received to spend on specific projects over 3 years. There is £700,000 remaining that will be spent across the three town centres over the coming year. A second bid was made for improvements to the access routes to the Borough but this bid was not supported or successful. Businesses were able to apply for grants through the Borough’s UKSPF funding for shop front improvements which is an ongoing process.
The site has been cleared again but it is unclear as to what the purpose of this is.
Development appears to have halted and signs have appeared suggesting that the company responsible for works has changed hands.
Dog waste can be placed in regular bins around the park from now on. Residents noted that there is a lack of bins on the Aylestone Lane side of the park.