Full Council Minutes 27th March 2013
MINUTES of the Meeting of the HARWICH TOWN COUNCIL
held at
The 1912 Centre, Cow Lane, Harwich
on Wednesday 27th March 2013 7.00pm
| Present: | Councillors Brown, Calver, Day, King, McLeod, C Callender, R Callender, Fowler, J Henderson, I Henderson, Thompson and Todd |
| In the Chair: | Councillor J Thurlow |
| Clerk: | Mrs Michelle Townsend |
| Also present: | 8 members of the public and 1 member of the press |
| Prayers were said by Rev Peter Mann | |
| 167/12 | APOLOGIES FOR ABSENCE Cllr Flavell |
| 168/12 | DECLARATIONS OF MEMBERS’ INTERESTS None |
| 169/12 | PUBLIC QUESTIONS Dr Rogers informed members that he has discovered unhelpful inconsistencies with the HTC website when trying to print minutes and asked members if they would undertake to ensure that the site is of a consistent high quality. The clerk confirm that there had been recent changes made by the webmaster which included an automatic print icon to help with the progression to publishing being undertaken by the staff in the office but would test the facility tomorrow to ensure that it is working correctly.Betty Holbrook spoke on behalf of the Fellowship of the Sick regarding the Hopper Bus service which is a godsend for local people. Following recent publicity in the local newspaper, she wished to confirm that the Hopper Bus service has no connections with any political party. Deborah Rich asked if HTC had put forward a representative to attend Cabinet meetings at TDC following discussions with TDC at Tendring Question Time. Councillor Calver confirmed that this was a TDC matter not HTC. |
| 170/12 | MAYORS ANNOUNCEMENTS The Mayor gave an account of some of the engagements attended since the last meeting, which included Ramsey Manor where they have opened a new cafeteria for visitors and residents, Upper Dovercourt Church for ‘women of the world’ prayer day, Trinity House to attend a royal visit and the Harwich Society annual dinner.The Deputy Mayor informed members that he represented HTC at the Salvation Army reception for Andy Peddleand an Easter tea party at Tendring Stroke Society. |
| 171/12 | MINUTES OF THE LAST MEETING RESOLVED That the minutes of the meeting of the Town Council held on 13th February 2013 (previously circulated) be approved by the Chairman and signed as a true record. FURTHER RESOLVED that the confidential minutes of the meeting of the Town Council held on 13th February 2013 (previously circulated) be approved by the Chairman and signed as a true record. |
| 172/12 | MATTERS ARISING FROM THE MINUTES A120 Improvements – Cllr Calver confirmed that at a meeting of TDC last night, the Leader of the Council brought forward a response that he had received. The manner in which the Highways Agency intend to make it safer is to close off the gaps and of course this caused outrage because of the inconvenience this would cause and danger due to redirected traffic. Cllr Ricky Callender requested that HTC give Peter Halliday support to resolve the situation. RESOLVED: Clerk to write to the Highways Agency and MP. Copies to be sent to Cllr Peter Halliday. |
| 173/12 | DISCUSSIONS WITH PETER HALLIDAY REGARDING REGENERATION OF HARWICH AND EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITIES Cllr Halliday confirmed that Cllr Candy was attending a Planning meeting and therefore was unable to attend. Dovercourt Rediscovered was discussed and an agreement was made to set up a working party to discuss S106 monies and uses for the funds. A plan will be agreed with all parties which is viable and deliverable as there are many quick win action that could take place. Members raised concerns with the high level of fly tipping and untidy sites which creates a bad visual impact for the Town. Cllr Halliday requested copies of e-mails sent to TDC highlighting problem areas and confirmed that it was his intention to send a letter to the Co-op building in Kingsway in the hope that the condition of the building would be improved. Other issues discussed included the need for improvement to the public transport infrastructure, changes urgently needed for the A120 and lack of employment opportunities. Cllr Halliday confirmed that an economic development strategy for the whole area has been commissioned which will address many issues and thanked members for their invitation which has led to a positive and productive meeting. |
| 174/12 | MAYOR MAKING PROTOCOL Cllr Calver confirmed that there will be an appendix added at a future date once discussions had taken place with Trinity House. RESOLVED: To adopt Harwich Town Council’s new Mayor Making Protocol. |
| 175/12 | TRANSFER OF LAND – HILL SCHOOL SITE RESOLVED: To authorise the red seal of legal documents on behalf of Harwich Town Council. |
| 176/12 | HARWICH FESTIVAL OF THE ARTS RESOLVED: Approval granted for the Gaol at the Guildhall to be used for part of the Poetry Trail during the Harwich Festival of the Arts. |
| 177/12 | COMMITTEE RESTRUCTURING Cllr Calver gave an overview of the work undertaken by the working party to simplify the committee structures and make it more fit for purpose for the future. Cllr Brown confirmed that he found the informal meeting helpful and hoped that the changes would be put in place on a trial basis as he had concerns regarding the workload of the office and that some of the committee meetings would become more extensive. Cllr Calver confirmed that this would not be run on a trial basis. RESOLVED: To approve the recommendations of the working party for committee restructuring for the next municipal year. |
| 178/12 | STANDING ORDERS RESOLVED: To approve the reviewed standing orders to take effect from the next municipal year. |
| 179/12 | MINUTES OF LAST GUILDHALL MEETING RESOLVED: that the minutes of the meeting of the Guildhall Committee held on 6th March 2013 (previously circulated) be received. |
| 180/12 | MINUTES OF LAST FINANCE & GENERAL PURPOSES MEETING RESOLVED: that the minutes of the meeting of the Finance & General Purposes Committee held on 12th March 2013 (previously circulated) be received. FURTHER RESOLVED: To approve the following grant funding applications: St Nicholas Church Tower Bell Ringers – £1360 The Harwich Festival of the Arts – £4050 (to be paid in the next financial year) Harwich Children’s Carnival C/O Grand Theatre of Lemmings – £1000 |
| 181/12 | MINUTES OF LAST ALLOTMENTS MEETING RESOLVED: that the minutes of the meeting of the Allotments Committee held on 21st March 2013 (previously circulated) be received. |
| 182/12 | MINUTES OF LAST ENVIRONMENT & HIGHWAYS MEETING RESOLVED: that the minutes of the meeting of the Environment & Highways Committee held on 20th March 2013 (previously circulated) be received. |
| 183/12 | ACCOUNTS Payments and receipts, current balances, financial activity against budgets and earmarked funds were noted. RESOLVED: to authorise payments as listed in Appendix A |
| 184/12 | BRIEF REPORT BY MEMBERS Cllr J Henderson confirmed her attendance at the last Teen Talk meeting and urged HTC to support and promote. As agreed at the last meeting of HTC, the Big Society grant application for the skate park was submitted and Cllr Henderson was very disappointed to learn that the application has been turned down. Cllr C Callender confirmed that the panel undertaking the review was of cross party members who felt there was not enough evidence to support the application. Cllr Brown confirmed his attendance at the Harwich International Liaison Committee and urged the Town to take full advantage of the increased visitors to the area when the planned cruise ships are due to visit Harwich. Cllr Todd confirmed his attendance at the Merchant Navy Welfare Board, The Sea Farers at Harwich International Port are in the process of producing a leaflet which he is hoping will feature Harwich. Cllr Todd raised the issue of EU regulations on sulphur emissions for vessels entering UK water and dependant on the outcome, Harwich International Port could be seriously affected by the possible loss of vessels trading in and out of the port. The Clerk agreed, in consultation with Cllr Todd to write to Mike Penning MP. All members expressed their thanks to Michelle and Kate for the additional hours worked to undertake the current increased workload. |
| 185/12 | CORRESPONDENCE RECEIVED IN THE POST Letter of thanks from the Harwich Society – Annual Tourism & Leisure Show – noted |
| 186/12 | DATE OF NEXT MEETING The next meeting of Harwich Town Council will be held on Wednesday 8th May 2013 at The 1912 Centre, Cow Lane, Harwich, at 7.00pm, or at the rise of the Town Planning Committee, whichever is the later. |
The Chairman closed the meeting at 8.46pm.