MINUTES OF THE QUARTERLY MEETING HELD AT ST MARY’S CHURCH HALL 24TH JANUARY 2018

 

Public Quarterly Meeting Held at St Mary’s Church Hall, The Fairway, On Wednesday 24th January 2018 8pm.

AGENDA

  1. Opening Remarks.
  2. Apologies for Absence.
  3. Minutes of Meeting.
  4. Matters Arising.
  5. Reports: Chairman, Treasurer, CRS, Secretary.
  6. Reports from Ward Councillors.
  7. Any other Business

NEXT QUARTERLY MEETING ON 24th April 2018 AT ST MARY’s CHURCH HALL THE FAIRWAY 8 PM

  1. Opening Remarks

Vice Chairman Sid Jackson chaired and opened the meeting at 8pm in the Vice Chair’s absence. Sid welcomed everyone to the meeting.

In attendance were 60 residents and 8 committee members. Councillors present Cllrs Barnes, Kauffman and Lavery.

Sid said he had received a letter from St Mary’s stating someone ‘representing the SRRA’ had been at a St Mary’s supported meeting and had made prejudiced offensive remarks.  Sid stated categorically that the SRRA was welcoming to all and any remarks contrary to this could not be and would not be tolerated.  Any such comments are the responsibility of the individual and do not reflect the views of the SRRA committee, officers or members.

  1. Apologies for absence

Apologies were received from: Kate Fennel, Colin & Hazel Hook, Frances Jones, Geoff Quantock, Jagjit Sohal, Cllr Kelly and Duducu, Margaret and Alec Wallis.

  1. Minutes

No comments on the minutes

  1. Police

PC Solanki spoke at the meeting and initially listed crimes in the area, in the last three months.

Assault with injury 8, common assault 1, shoplifting 33, theft of motor 13 damage to others 9 and other crimes 21.

He warned home owners to keep UPVC doors double locked without keys in them.  Keep vigilant for burglary and take sensible precautions.

Pc Solanki discussed the tri-borough initiative.  This involves the Hillingdon Borough merging with Hounslow & Ealing.  Ward officers may be shifted depending on operational requirements.

In response to a question PC Solanki confirmed shop lifting is not being investigated on the ward where below a minimal value.  Such cases are passed to a high volume department.  The reason for this is the low return on the time spent for the police.

Discussed people turning right into West Mead up Victoria Road toward Ruislip.  A concern.  A review is planned of the signs and the rest of the junction.

Drop in surgery information to be confirmed, but will take place regularly at the South Ruislip Library and have a Cuppa with a Copper at The Rumbling Tum.

Secondly Ward Panel is made up of members of the community and in addition the police are setting up a virtual ward panel to reach a wider section of the community.  They are seeking the names and addresses etc of people willing to join.  Three or four time a year e-volunteers will be sent an email questionnaire on policing priorities locally.  To join write to SouthRuislip.snt@met.police.uk email address.  They will also to add you to the newsletter distribution.

Doing weapon sweeps in parks locally.  Happy for the SRRA to join.

  1. Lidl Henry Neal

Henry Neal thanked residents for their patience and support.  The store opens tomorrow 8am.  Employed 45 people, clear majority locally.  Re Landscaping – they are still planning on planting trees and hedgerows.  Not done yet, utilities in the area need to be moved and then the landscaping will be completed.

Still some highway works to come about.  Highway entrance off Victoria Road.  All need to work on that together (council, utilities and Lidl) and placement of the island on Stonefield Road.

Apologies for disturbance of the lights locally.  These had been left on by contractors and they will go off when the shop is shut at night.

A contractor blocked the entrance causing traffic problems. Apologies.

The store is designed with energy efficiency in mind.  Opens from 8am to 10pm.  Concern expressed re exiting the road onto Victoria Road.

  1. Chief Road Steward

After Road Stewards to deliver newsletters and collect subs for Palace Road and Diamond Road.  Hardy Avenue (28 properties) and Glebe and Weldon Av.

  1. Treasurers Report

£1064.41 and in the deposit account  £12,367.46.

  1. Cllr Teji Barnes – Cavendish Ward

Field End School.  Part of the ward budget to be spent on the clock at the school being redeveloped.  Going to restore it back to original feature. School pleased.  Redevelop their library, to make reading attractive to pupils.  The school applied for Chrysalis fund money and they were offered this.

Whitby Road has a mobile CCTV camera. Looking to prosecute fly tippers.

Resurfacing work.  Hunters Hill, Oxford Drive, St Andrews, Essex Close, Queens Walk and Mount Pleasant.

  1. HS2

Don’t condone protests at Harefield as concern to safety.

Breakspear Road South will do enabling work.  Will be one way traffic. Feb and March 2018.

Work in South Ruislip likely 2019.

Are Carillion the constructors?  Yes, but there are many sub-contractors who simply be gone directly to.

  1. Traffic Congestion on Victoria Road

Council aware there is a problem.  But the fix is not simple.  Only two options.  One is to make the road wider or a resident only parking scheme. David Seaman wanted a copy of the letter we wrote to the Council. Sid was happy to provide this and the reply. Frustration expressed by participants with the delay.   Was expecting a briefing from Cllr Burrows who was expected to attend (but unfortunately he couldn’t attend the meeting for personal reasons).

  1. Cllr Allan Kauffman – South Ruislip Ward – Improvements to South Ruislip

Where works done, the area looks far better with the new pavements and the road improvements.  We have seen Improvements with the Christmas lights this last festive period.

Where pavements have been changed, have seen trucks driving on and vans on pavements. Mostly with Windmill Plumbing.  Cllr Kauffman expressed disappointments that facilities like cigarette towers are not being used adding to litter. Bollards, bins, and trees are going to be added which will reduce on pavement parking.

Looking at making improvements at the Bridge at South Ruislip.  This will take time though as work involves three railway companies.  Work planned includes cladding and more art being used.

  1. Teabreak
  2. Presentation from SKLP

Proposals from SKLP.  Martin Evans Architect. Tina Patel. Kanji Harrari and Ian Roberts transport and highway consultant for the SKLP project.

Tina Patel gave an overview of the site and its place in the SKLP and the wider community as well as SKLP’s aspirations for the site.

Their history was based on a commonwealth community who moved from India to W African and then to UK.  Settled in UK and set up a community centre.  Mostly made up of people 24 villages in India.   The site is currently used by community for sports.  The SKLP team want to open to wider community.  The aim since 1972 has been to unite people and they are a registered charity.  Work includes support for the elderly and a nursery, including language and community lessons.  Sports clubs with local success.  They are keen for local residents to participate.

They are looking to consult on planning for a proposed redevelopment of the site demolishing the existing building and replacing with a modern purpose built air conditioned unit, which will house more people and reduce noise for local neighbours.

Change in the balance in sports and community. The brief for the development is sports based. With back up facility that a sports facility will use. It will incorporate sports events.  12 badminton courts for example.

Occasionally used for weddings in 5 hour slots.  They have 1 big event a year, the Mela.  Attract 7-8000 people per year.  Then dancing 10 days.

Most of the time the venue is a sports facility.  The aim is to add a second cricket field, football, badminton, make the Gym more commercial. They intend on spending eight to ten months looking at demand.  Carrying out work and assessments on Highways, parking, trees and landscaping. Mostly with Ealing council.

Acoustics? Site is green belt so limited in action to be taken but the development will help.  Will help contain noise.

Extend awning out for an event.

Will submit to planning and will go to committee stages.

Sid said that we will oppose the expansion of the site.  The facilities will attract more people.  Road around suffers very badly at times of peak use and the residents locally especially in Harvey Road have suffered a blight of anti-social and nuisance behaviour from the site.  Many of the complaints include parking in Harvey Road, blocking vehicle access and potentially impeding emergency vehicles.  There has been parking on A40 slip road which is dangerous.

Sid continued, the noise has been terrible disturbing residents for twenty years with a fundamental lack of engagement from SKLP and willingness to address residents of Harvey Road’s concerns.  Although matters were much better in the last season the distrust is such that Sid said there was concern that this was just to help with the planning application this year.  Although events cease at 11pm noise carries on far longer for residents when people leave.

SKLP representative said that they are working to improve traffic management and they use parking at a local farm to mitigate the impact.  The new building would dampen sound and has been designed to do this.  Sid was concerned that this would have little impact when the doors are opened in the heat and the event is opened out to marques etc outside.

New flood lights planned

One day Mela event.  Once a year 6000-7000 a year attending.  A couple of marquees go up now. 10am to 6pm.   On a Sunday.  The ten to twelve day event takes 1500 to 2000 people. Has to stop at 11pm.

The building will accommodate the dance festival.   Has a full surround of hay bales at the moment and these changes will have a positive impact.  The dances take place. 8pm to 11am.  Will take place inside the building.

The marquees will cease to exist.

People will be 500 to 1500 during the dance events.

Need a traffic management plan.  More discussion on the noise levels.

  1. Meeting close 9:58

Next SRRA Meeting Wednesday 8pm 24th April 2018 at St Mary’s Church Hall, The Fairway,  On Wednesday