BUDLEIGH SALTERTON TOWN COUNCIL MINUTES of the Meeting of the Town Council held in the Council Chamber on Monday 27 July 2015, on the rising of the Planning Committee. Meeting commenced at 7.30pm. PRESENT Cllr C Richards (Town Mayor) Cllr C A Kitson (Deputy Town Mayor) Cllr A J Dent Cllr Mrs L D Evans Cllr A N Gooding Cllr S V Hall Cllr M C Hilliar Cllr A L Jones Cllr Mrs M L Kenneally-Stone Cllr Mrs C A Sismore-Hunt Cllr T D Wright Clerk: Mrs J E Vanstone Others Present: County Cllr Mrs C Channon, two members of the public and one representative of the press 15.136 Public Speaking Time No members of the public wished to speak. 15.137 Apologies for Absence Apologies were received from Cllr D J Harrison (family commitments). 15.138 Declarations of Interests in Items on the Agenda Cllr Mrs M L Kenneally-Stone declared a personal interest in Min 15.147 – she is a member of the Friends of Budleigh Library Committee. 15.139 Minutes The Minutes of the Meeting of the Town Council held on 22 June 2015 had been circulated prior to the Meeting. It was unanimously agreed they be signed as a true record. 15.140 Reports of Committees (i) The Minutes of the Meeting of the Foreshore & Footpaths Committee held on 13 July 2015 were noted. (ii) The Minutes of the Meeting of the Community Gardens Committee held on 13 July 2015 were also noted. 15.141 Report of Neighbourhood Beat Manager No report had been received. 15.142 Chairman’s Comments The Town Mayor, Cllr C Richards reported: 1. One of the posts at the War Memorial had been knocked over and he had asked the Clerk to arrange for a contractor to repair it. 2. He said a lot of the Public Hall maintenance budget had already been used, although some of this expenditure had been budgeted for 2014/15. He said he had suggested that a full list of projects be drawn up, together with costs, and once this was to hand, the Budget could be discussed and possibly revised. 45 3. 4. He said he had signed a cheque for Performing Rights and wondered whether the Hiring Charges needed to be revised to take into account the increased cost. He and the Clerk had had a presentation from FAB – the France Alderney Britain project. He explained that the project involved the laying of an undersea cable from Britain to France via Alderney. The preferred landfall site was Budleigh Salterton but he reassured those present that there would be very little disruption to the town. He explained that there would be some exploratory drilling, possibly in late September, in the Lime Kiln Car Park and if all the permissions were received the project would go forward in 2018. There would be no disturbance of the beach and part of the Lime Kiln Car Park would be sectioned off. Once finished, all that would be visible would be an inspection cover. He then explained that the project would be using renewable tidal energy off Alderney. He said he had asked whether the cable could be run up the River Exe but because the seabed changes all the time, the cable could become exposed in the future and therefore this was not an option. 15.143 Clerk’s Report Mrs J E Vanstone reported that she had received notification of a Licensing application for the Spar shop in Fore Street. She would forward the information to all Councillors, as comments were required by East Devon District Council (EDDC) before the next Town Council meeting. 15.144 Reports of Council Representatives on Other Bodies Neighbourhood Plan The Deputy Town Mayor, Cllr C A Kitson reported the steering group had had two meetings. The first part was to submit a map designating the Neighbourhood Plan area and this would be sent to EDDC this week. He said as time went on there would be a need for various sub-committees to help out. The Town Mayor, Cllr C Richards added that this was a good opportunity to shape the future of the town and he said he expected all Members of the Town Council to get involved. Exmouth Local Action Group Cllr T D Wright said there was a real problem with graffiti in Exmouth and he was pleased that Budleigh Salterton was not suffering from such trouble. He added that he was unable to attend the meeting on Wednesday and Cllr S V Hall had agreed to deputise. 15.145 Reports of County and District Councillors County Councillor County Cllr Mrs C Channon began her report by thanking the Town Council for paying for the additional grass cutting. She thought the town looked very nice and it was good to have got on and got the work done early. 1. She was pleased to read the comments on the railings on Coastguard Hill, made by the Foreshore & Footpaths Committee. She thought the railings looked great and she was happy with the way the contractors had gone about their work. 2. Work at the Hospital had been delayed. She explained that half of the money for the alterations was coming from the League of Friends and half from Northern Devon Health Trust by selling Gardener’s Cottage. A buyer had been found but because of the delay it was unlikely that the project would be completed before Christmas. 46 3. Friends of Budleigh Library. She thanked Cllrs Mrs C A Sismore-Hunt and A J Dent for their work on the steering group. She said there were over 200 Friends and 25 people had volunteered to become part of the Committee. Ten people had been elected to the Committee and she asked Cllr Mrs M L Kenneally-Stone who the Chairman and Secretary were. She said it was good to have some new faces coming forward. 4. Devon County Council (DCC) had won a national award for the Exe Estuary Cycle Track. She said that quite a few cycle paths in the area were linking up. She was also pleased to see the new cycle path across The Green had been completed. She wondered how long it would be before walkers were complaining about cycles! She was also concerned about cyclists using the path between the library and the health centre and would be asking for “No Cycling” roundels to be painted on the path. 5. She had received reports of a lorry parking by the traffic lights and causing problems for other motorists. There were already loading lines in that area and she was not sure what else could be done. She would speak to the shop owner to see if they could help. 6. She and Cllr A J Dent had attended a meeting with the Knowle Village Traffic Group. Various aspects had been discussed. She had since discussed these points with Highways Officers and their response is below: Extending the 30mph limit from Knowle Roundabout down to Pretty Corner. Officers had discussed this with colleagues but current policy meant it could not be extended. Enhanced Rumble Strips at Pretty Corner. This product is no longer available. Road reconfiguration at Pretty Corner. For the amount of probable/possible development in the area it was unlikely that S106 contributions could successfully cover the costs of a review for this junction. Resurfacing delayed in favour of junction reconfiguration/removal of Central White Lines. The planned resurfacing was scheduled for 2016/17 with pre surface dressing patching during 2015/16. The central white lines could be removed when the resurfacing is carried out. Move the Vehicle Activated Sign (VAS) from Exmouth Road to Pretty Corner. This could not be moved because VAS have to be more than 100m from the start of a speed restriction. In this instance the start of the 30mph area is less than 100m from the junction. 20mph limit through Knowle Village. This is not justifiable as there is insufficient accident data. DCC no longer has the facility of being able to undertake cable speed checks. An alternative would be a radar survey but currently the data team is fully committed. Purchase of a permanent VAS at Knowle Village Hall. No reason why the equipment could not be purchased by the group. “Slow” markings have worn away. These will be replaced when the road is resurfaced. Bedlands Lane Junction. The lengthsman will be asked to strim the footpath and see if the kerbing goes right around the junction. Cllr A L Jones asked Cllr Channon if something could be done about cars outside Staddons waiting for oncoming cars. He said, on numerous occasions, he had seen cars overtaking the waiting vehicles and thought it was an accident waiting to happen. The Town Mayor, Cllr C Richards said Cllr Jones’ comments were noted but was not sure what could be done to help. Cllr Channon said she wished she knew the answer! All sorts of ideas had been looked at but none were viable. Cllr S V Hall suggested this topic be discussed at the next meeting of the Budleigh Salterton Traffic Group. 47 District Councillors District Cllr T D Wright reported: 1. Pegasus Homes had now signed contracts to buy the Council Offices at Knowle, subject to planning permission, and EDDC was now engaged in selecting a design and build team to build new offices at Honiton and refurbish the offices in Exmouth for occupation by EDDC staff. He was on the relocation project team and would be attending an all day meeting during the week to discuss and plan the way forward. The group would be embarking on a consultation process to ascertain what services residents wanted and where, and how EDDC would be better able to service residents’ needs at other sites away from Honiton and Exmouth. It was hoped that the relocation would be completed by September 2017 and then significant savings on running costs could be made. 2. He then reported EDDC needed to make £2.6m in additional savings due to the reduction in the government grant. This had caused EDDC to examine how it managed all its assets and the process had started with beach huts. Cllr Hall would update members on progress of the beach hut consultation during his report. Cllr Wright went on to say EDDC was now examining how it managed its sports grounds. Over the years, across the district, sports grounds had been managed and priced in a widely variable manner. EDDC was now seeking to establish what was a market rent for such facilities as a base on which to set charges. Sports clubs would be assessed to establish what is the community benefit of the facilities they run and rent reductions will be available based on that community benefit. Some clubs, such as Budleigh Salterton Football Club, were very much community assets providing training for young people, etc and offering other facilities for the community to enjoy, such as the memory café. The consultation on the project was about to start and he had spoken to the Chairman of BSFC in order to prepare the club for the process. The social benefit of some clubs was not so clear and there may well be a change in the charges to those clubs. 3. The government was proposing that all social housing rents be reduced by 1%. EDDC financial planning model had anticipated modest increases in rents and that cash was earmarked for the building/buying of additional council housing stock and the refurbishment of older housing stock. The proposed changes put those ambitions in danger and EDDC would be meeting with ministers early in August to put forward its case. Concerns had already been expressed to local MPs. All local authorities and housing associations have similar concerns. He said that the average EDDC rent was just over £82 per week. In Budleigh there were 176 EDDC-owned properties that were rented, with a total of 4243 properties in the whole district. The turnover was roughly £18m so 1% was a significant reduction. He added that EDDC collected 99.59% of rents due. 4. The Boundary Commission was about to embark on a review of East Devon’s council ward boundaries. All parishes would be asked to contribute to the process. There had been a tendency to just consider numbers of voters but local community cohesion must also be taken into account. He concluded by saying the squeeze on public finances was continuing and it was clear that local solutions may have to be found to support local issues. District Cllr A J Dent reported: 1. At the last Development Management Meeting approval had been given to the redevelopment of Courtlands Hotel in Lympstone. He said this would be a major asset to the local economy. 2. He was now the vice chairman of the Scrutiny Committee and he explained how joining forces with Teignbridge District Council and Exeter City Council would be helping to make savings of approximately £2m in the future. 48 3. 4. He was on the board of East Devon CAB, as EDDC representative. He explained that EDDC provided one third of the Bureau’s income but its members were doing a great job and were always looking for ways to raise money for themselves. He said they had set up a deal with Amazon which would be beneficial. The Scrutiny Committee was undertaking a review of the election procedures at the last election and were hoping to come up with ways of how best to run elections in the future. District Cllr S V Hall reported: 1. The consultation process on beach hut management had ended and the results of that consultation would be considered by September. The cabinet member leading the project (Cllr Pook) had attended a recent meeting of Budleigh beach hut tenants. He had given assurances that no decision had been made and he knew the idea for sealed bids was not popular. A lot of ideas had been received and none of them would be ruled out. Cllr Hall explained that one idea was to hand the beach huts to town councils to control. He said BSTC did not have the resources to manage the town’s huts and he had discussed the idea with the Town Mayor, Cllr C Richards. One option may be to take on the huts but ask the Tourist Information Centre to undertake the administration and keep any commission. The Town Mayor added that all options would be fully discussed by the Town Council before any decisions were made. 15.146 Cheques for Signature/Finance Inspection (i) Payment of cheques for the month of July 2015, in accordance with Appendix A, was approved. (ii) It was noted that the Chairman of the Finance Committee had carried out the monthly internal finance inspection. 15.147 Friends of Budleigh Library A request for financial assistance, from the newly-formed Committee, was received and considered. It was Resolved: A grant of £250 will be made once the Clerk has received confirmation that the Group’s bank account is up and running. 15.148 Correspondence Received Budleigh Salterton & District Chamber of Commerce: Letter of congratulations to Town Mayor and Councillors Budleigh Salterton Literary Festival: Letter concerning refusal of grant aid plus the Clerk’s response Local Government Boundary Commission: Thank you for submission Devon County Council: Outcome of the Public Consultation on Proposed Supported Bus Service Reductions plus revised proposals Mr K Coyne and Ms A Greenfield: Letter concerning EDDC Beach Hut consultation Otter Valley Association: July 2015 The Clerk: July 2015 Clerks & Councils Direct: July 2015 Everyone’s Tomorrow: Summer 2015 Healthwatch Voices: Summer 2015 49 15.149 Any Other Business at the Chairman’s Discretion 1. Cllr S V Hall said he had spoken to the Town Mayor regarding the possibility of hosting meetings between the Chamber of Commerce and Budleigh in Business. He said the Town Mayor was happy in principle but wanted to limit BSTC involvement. Cllr Hall said there would be no more than four meetings per year and the Clerk’s time would be purely producing notes of the meetings. He asked if this could be discussed at a future Town Council meeting. The Town Mayor said he was happy to include this on the agenda if this was the only way to take this forward. 2. The Deputy Town Mayor, Cllr C A Kitson said he had met with the Britain in Bloom judges at the Community Gardens. They were happy how the gardens had progressed and the Budleigh in Bloom team were keeping their fingers crossed when the awards were announced later in the year. 15.150 Dates of Next Meetings Planning Committee: Town Council: Planning Committee: Planning Committee: Town Council: 17 August 2015 at 7.00pm 17 August 2015 on the rising of the Planning Committee 7 September 2015 at 7.00pm 28 September 2015 at 7.00pm 28 September 2015 on the rising of the Planning Committee There being no further business, the Meeting closed at 8.23pm. ……………………………………………… Chairman ……………………………………………… Date 50