Agenda and minutes

There were no apologies for absence.

 

The Chair advised that in terms of Standing Order 14, the following Notice of Motion by Councillor Ellen Morton, seconded by Councillor David Kinniburgh had been received for consideration as a matter of urgency at the meeting.

 

CHORD Official opening and Launch

 

The official opening and launch of CHORD in Helensburgh will take place on Saturday 20 June 2015 and to maximise the prominence of that official launch, the Summer Festival are supporting the event with a programme of events on the day. These will include the roller-skate rink, climbing wall, bouncy castle, sand painting, mini tennis, theatre performers, Victorian seaside fair, musical groups etc.  The Chamber of Commerce who are organising the event have requested a contribution from the council to support the costs.

 

In support of the CHORD launch and marketing of the Town following the completion of CHORD more generally, the Council itself is placing editorials in The Herald – Scotland and the Scottish Daily Mail and Waveparticle are organising an Artwork Trail Quiz.

  

Motion

 

That the Helensburgh and Lomond Members:

 

a)    Approve the funding request of £5000 from the Helensburgh CHORD Budget to the Helensburgh & Lomond Chamber of Commerce to the support the official launch of CHORD.

 

b)    Thank the Chamber, their organisers and volunteers for their support and work in respect of the event.

 

The Chair ruled that the motion be considered as a matter of urgency by reason of the need to initiate arrangements for the CHORD Opening Launch without any further delay.

 

The Helensburgh and Lomond Area Committee agreed to consider the motion and this is dealt with at Item 12 of these Minutes.

 

Councillor Vivien Dance declared a non-financial interest in relation to the Request for financial assistance for Helensburgh – Thouars Twinning Committee, she left the room and took no part in the discussion of this application which is dealt with at Item 5 of this Minute.  

The Chair invited questions from the public in attendance at the meeting.

 

Mr David Patterson from Luss commented that, in his perception, the Traffic Management and Parking Review had been rushed and had not given due consideration to local opinion and views. He commented that only 30 local residents had been consulted with and drew attention to the lack of notice received by the local community advising on the informal public consultation in March 2015. 

The Chair highlighted the various workshops and open sessions which had been undertaken to gauge local responses and reiterated that the process had not been hurried. He continued that the statutory consultation would ensure a full and extensive engagement with the community.

 

There were no further questions from the public in attendance at the meeting. 

 

 

Having previously declared an interest in the request received in respect of the Helensburgh Twinning Committee for the Thouars visit, Councillor Vivien Dance left the room and took no part in the discussion of this issue.

 

The Committee considered a report which provided information on a request from the Helensburgh Twinning Committee for assistance towards the costs of a visit to Thouars in July 2015. It was noted that it was normal practice for a letter to be received following he visit from the Association providing details of the visit.   

 

Decision

 

Members agreed to grant the sum of £833 from the Twinning Budget for 2015/16 towards the costs of this initiative.

 

(Reference: Report by Executive Director – Customer Services, dated 18 May 2015, submitted).

 

Councillor Vivien Dance returned to the meeting.

The Committee considered a report which presented the Area Scorecard, with exceptional performance for financial quarter 4 of 2014-15 (January – March 2015).

 

Discussion followed and Members highlighted various issues in which they required more clarity. 

 

These included:

 

Street lighting and how to faults which were out with the control of Argyll and Bute Council to repair were shown in the figures;

Road defects and a clearer explanation on how to determine the percentage of defects repaired timeously;   

The need for the use of “Plain English”;

Dog Fouling with further explanation in regards to the current position of being 66% down on the number of Enforcement Wardens;

Delayed discharges – a detailed explanation on the significant rise of delayed discharges and clarification of any impact by Self-Directed Support;

The targets for car parking income in the Helensburgh and Lomond area. 

 

Decision

 

Members agreed:

 

1. To note the report; and

2. That Members would receive an update on the issues highlighted with information on the reasons for the increase in delayed discharges to be provided as a matter of urgency.

 

(Reference: Report by Executive Director – Customer Services, dated 9 June 2015, submitted)

 

The Committee considered a report which provided an update for the Helensburgh and Lomond Area Committee on the preparation of the Helensburgh and Lomond Economic Development Action Plan (EDAP), 2015/16.

Discussion followed and Members highlighted their concerns  that no date had been determined for the re-circulation of the report and with the onset of recess this may limit the consultation period that Members had to review the report.

The Head of Economic Development and Strategic Transportation agreed to clarify the consultation dates with Members and advised that officers would endeavour to make sure that Members had sufficient time to review the revised EDAP.

 

Decision

 

Members agreed:-

 

1. To note the report; and

2. To the revised timescale for the preparation of the Helensburgh and Lomond Economic Development Action Plan, 2015/16; and

3.  That the Helensburgh and Lomond Economic Development Action, 2015/16 (as an ongoing working document) is discussed by the Area Committee at the meeting in August 2015

 

(Reference: Report by Economic Development Manager,  dated 9 June 2015, submitted)

 

The Committee considered a report which presented the profiles for Teaching and Learning 3-12 in Helensburgh and Lomond Primary Schools for 2014/15.

 

Discussion followed and Members commended the content and style of the report. The issue of school rolls was raised and Members highlighted the need to have this information to hand to enable formative plans and decisions to be made.

The Education Officer affirmed that she would need to check individual school profiles and would update Members accordingly. She pointed out that work was on-going in regards projecting figures for successive year school intakes.

Members highlighted the need for parents to receive verification of children’s competency skills in numeracy and literacy. The Education Officer confirmed that work is ongoing by the Education Service and nationally to look at ways in which attainment can be measured for primary children.

 

Decision

 

Members agreed to note the report.

 

(Reference: Report by Executive Director – Community Services, dated 9 June 2015, submitted)

 

 

The Committee considered a report which provided an update on the progress of

two projects provisionally awarded Third Sector Grant funding at the April

Area Committee.

 

The Community Development Officer advised that the Tower Digital Arts

Centre Committee had received charitable status and had secured further funding of

£10,000 from the Heritage Lottery Fund. She confirmed that the

Helensburgh and Lomond Highland Games had been cancelled and that a report

would be submitted to the August Area Committee which would provide information

on the funds available for distribution.

 

Decision

 

Members agreed:-

 

1.         That the £3,000 awarded to Soulwind in round 1 is added to the funding available for the second round of Third Sector Grant funding allocated at the August Area Committee;

2.         That the conditional £4,000 award agreed at the April Area Committee to the Tower Digital Arts Centre stands; and

3.         To note that the funds remaining for round 2 of the Third Sector Grants is £9,683.

 

(Reference: Report by Executive Director – Customer Services, dated 14 May 2015, submitted)

 

The Committee considered a report which provided an update on the current

development phase of Hermitage Park, Helensburgh.

 

Discussion followed and Members enquired if accessible play equipment would be in place at Hermitage Park and asked about the existing bowling green. The Senior Development Officer advised that special needs had been taken into account and additional play equipment would be in place. She continued that as part of the public consultation, the bowling green had not been a high priority in the responses and was therefore not taken forward.

Members raised the issue of the surplus Indian granite and pointed out that, as yet, the CHORD programme had not been finalised and no agreement had been determined by the Area Committee on the usage for the granite.

Further issues raised by Members included the suitability of the park for future events; adequate toilet facilities for attendees of events and confirmation that the management and maintenance of the park would adhere to Green Flag standards.

The Senior Development Officer confirmed the suitability of the park for future events, with adequate toilet facilities and she advised that she had requested costings for power supplies.   

 

Motion

 

1.    To note the content of the report.

2.    To approve in principle the final draft masterplan.

3.    To approve the additional car parking provision as described in option one, and approve the associated budget which would require to come from the remaining Section 75 monies as it is out with the scope of the HLF funding bid.

 

Moved by Councillor Gary Mulvaney, seconded by Councillor Aileen Morton.

 

Amendment:

 

1.    To note the content of the report.

2.    To approve in principle the final draft masterplan.

3.     To approve the additional car parking provision as described in option two, and approve the associated budget which would require to come from the remaining Section 75 monies as it is out with the scope of the HLF funding bid, with the remaining money to be identified via the capital programme.

 

Moved by Councillor Richard Trail, seconded by Councillor James Robb

 

Decision

 

Following a show of hands vote the Motion was carried by 7 votes to 3 and the Committee resolved accordingly.

 

(Reference: Report by Executive Director – Development and Infrastructure Services, dated 9 June 2015, submitted).

 

Report by Executive Director – Development and Infrastructure Services

Councillor James Robb raised a point of order and requested that the Helensburgh and Luss in the Traffic Management and Parking Review update be given consideration by the Area Committee separately.

 

The Chair ruled that this was not competent and advised that the Area Committee would deal with Helensburgh and Lomond as a whole.

 

The Committee considered a report which provided a summary of the parking review process to date and the issues raised through the Member workshop and informal public consultation. The report also provided an overall programme for the implementation of any changes to the current arrangements and the associated statutory consultation process.

 

Discussion took place, and the following issues were highlighted:-

 

·         The responses made to the consultation and that these had been captured in summary within the report;

·         The level of public engagement and the timescale for the process to be completed;

·         The time limits for blue badge holders;

·         The parking studs which delineate the parking bays;

 

Motion

 

What I am proposing has been developed through the totality of the consultation process previously agreed by the Area Committee, and reflects the views of local communities, the Chamber of Commerce and members of the public which have been ascertained over a period of months as a result of that process.

 

In light of this I move that the Area Committee notes the contents of the report and all the representations that have been made on the parking proposals for Helensburgh & Luss and agrees the following proposals be taken to Environment Development and Infrastructure Committee for approval:

 

Helensburgh

a.    Maintain one hour free on-street parking in the restricted parking zone bays (status quo).

b.    Note that car parks at the new Council offices on Clyde Street will be available for public parking out with office hours and will be free of charge.

c.    Maintain the free car spaces in the Pier Area car park (status quo).

d.    Change the unlimited parking structure in John Street and James Street to be consistent within the restricted parking zone (1 hour in bay free parking).

e.    Not to proceed with the introduction of an "outer zone" zone.

f.      Change the charging structure in the Sinclair Street car park to the first 2 hours free with charges thereafter.

g.    That  further minor elements of detail  in the parking arrangements are delegated to the Executive Director of Development &  Infrastructure in consultation with the Chair and Vice-Chair, to consider, inter alia:

i)              The clearer delineation of the parking bays within the Restricted Parking Zone. 

ii)             Improved information/signage in respect of loading bays.

iii)            No parking/waiting restrictions on West Montrose Street within 10m of Sinclair Street junction.

 

Luss

a.    To introduce parking by permit only in the core village area, supported by a Restricted Parking Zone and a Residents Parking Permit Scheme.

b.    To introduce year round off street charges to the Council run car park.

c.    To introduce Pay and Display parking on the south side of Pier Road between Old Luss Road and Church Road between 8.00am and 8.00pm with parking restricted to 1 hour. 

d.    That officers consider the options for introducing a drop off and pick up point for parents on Old Luss Road adjacent to Luss Primary School.

e.    To consult with Police Scotland with a view to introducing a 20MPH zone within Luss village and further parking arrangements therein.

f.      That further details relating to the Luss Scheme be delegated to officers in consultation with the Chair and Vice-Chair of the Area Committee.

 

Furthermore the Area Committee agrees to a review of the new parking arrangements by the end of 2017 to measure the effectiveness of the parking management in Helensburgh and Luss.

 

Moved by Councillor Ellen Morton, seconded by Councillor George Freeman

 

Amendment:

 

The Committee agrees and recommends, as appropriate, the following to the Environment Development and Infrastructure Committee, the Policy and Resources Committee and the Council for approval:

 

Helensburgh

 

1.    To retain the existing Restricted Parking Zone (RPZ) and attendant conditions but with the following boundary amendments - relocate the existing boundary on West Clyde Street at Campbell Street to William Street (east side) and relocate the existing boundary on James Street at West King Street to West Princes Street (north side).

2.    To create parking bays in John Street, West Princes Street and James Street within the RPZ as road width allows with detailed design delegated to the Executive Director of Development and Infrastructure:

3.    To have the first two hours parking free (with charges thereafter) in all car parks currently charging.

4.    To retain a no charging policy in all car parks that are currently without charges

5.    That parking restrictions will apply from 8.00am to 6.00 pm every day.

6.    To note that car parks at the new Council offices on Clyde Street will be available for public parking out with office hours and no charges will apply at those times.

7.    To remove parking restrictions on the following streets with the requirement for localised parking restrictions for safety or access delegated to the Executive Director of Development and Infrastructure:

East King Street

West King Street

John Street (West Princes Street to King Street)

James Street (West Princes Street to King Street)

West Clyde Street (William Street to Glasgow Street) (north side)

Campbell Street (West Clyde Street to Princes Street)

East Princes Street (east of bus stop on south side)

East Clyde Street (Charlotte St to Lomond St)

 

8.    To increase the time restriction for existing on street parking in Maitland Street from 30 minutes to 60 minutes with the design and regulatory requirements delegated to the Executive Director of Development and Infrastructure.

 

9.    To introduce the following parking restrictions with delegations as 9 above:

 

No parking /waiting for 10m each side of W. Montrose St/ Sinclair Street junction

No parking/waiting on access road to Co-Op car park (on the bend)

A suitable vehicle length restriction on existing end-on parking on John Street and James Street

Reinstate and extend the existing restrictions on West  ...  view the full minutes text for item 11.

In terms of Standing Order 14 the following Notice of Motion had been received for consideration as a matter of urgency at this meeting.

 

CHORD Official opening and Launch

 

The official opening and launch of CHORD in Helensburgh will take place on Saturday 20 June 2015 and to maximise the prominence of that official launch, the Summer Festival are supporting the event with a programme of events on the day. These will include the roller-skate rink, climbing wall, bouncy castle, sand painting, mini tennis, theatre performers, Victorian seaside fair, musical groups etc.  The Chamber of Commerce who are organising the event have requested a contribution from the council to support the costs.

 

In support of the CHORD launch and marketing of the Town following the completion of CHORD more generally, the Council itself is placing editorials in The Herald – Scotland and the Scottish Daily Mail and Waveparticle are organising an Artwork Trail Quiz.

  

Motion

 

That the Helensburgh and Lomond Members:

 

a)    Approve the funding request of £5000 from the Helensburgh CHORD Budget to the Helensburgh & Lomond Chamber of Commerce to the support the official launch of CHORD.

 

b)    Thank the Chamber, their organisers and volunteers for their support and work in respect of the event.

 

Moved by Councillor Ellen Morton, seconded by Councillor David Kinniburgh.

 

During discussion, the Councillor Ellen Morton with the consent of her seconder Councillor Kinniburgh agreed that the words “Summer Festival be added at (a) to read “Approve the funding request of £5,000 from the Helensburgh CHORD budget to the Helensburgh & Lomond Chamber of Commerce to support the official launch of CHORD and the Summer Festival.

 

Decision

 

The Committee agreed:

 

1.    To approve the funding request from the Helensburgh CHORD Budget to the Helensburgh & Lomond Chamber of Commerce to support the official launch of CHORD and the Summer Festival.

2.    To thank the Chamber of Commerce, their organisers and volunteers for their support and work in respect of the event.