February 19th, 2003

The meeting opened at 7:30, with Cllr. Cox in the chair and all councillors present. The minutes were approved, with one matter arising: DDDC Cllr. Mrs. Crowther queried whether the property name on a planning application approved last month was correct. Apparently, it isn’t, but the incorrect name had been on the paperwork from the PPPB.

There were two planning applications to consider: the first was for a new barn at Whitehouse Farm, Wardlow. This triggered a lot of debate about whether the site was in fact in the parish and whether the Parish Council should be passing judgement on the application, when it may fall under the area dealt with by Wardlow Parish Meeting. However, as the PPPB had asked for a decision, one had to be made. Eventually it was resolved to refuse the application mainly on the grounds that it should be Wardlow’s decision but also that in the PC’s opinion the building was not acceptable. The second - equally contentious - application was for the development of a car park at The Paddock, Station Road. Apparently, this is the first part of a plan to open a specialist plant nursery on the site. Two letters from parishioners opposed the application, mainly on the grounds of the increased traffic congestion it would bring and that it may be ‘the thin end of the wedge’. The PC also had severe reservations about this scheme; as well as the increased traffic, the PC felt that the entrance to the car park would be unsafe and that vehicles would be parked on Station Road itself, making the existing situation even worse. The Council were unanimously opposed to the application. Finally, it was noted that the planning application for a change of use at The Post Office, Great Longstone, has been withdrawn. This initiated a discussion about the future of the Post Office. Cllr. Finney declared an interest and pointed out that the fundamental problem was a lack of local support. No business can be expected to keep going if it has insufficient customers. However, he welcomed the Council’s efforts to try to keep some sort of Post Office active in the village. It was proposed to hold an extra Parish Council meeting to discuss the matter, but it was decided that it was too early to start planning for alternatives. The existing premises may yet be sold as a going concern.

Three planning application approvals were noted: an extension at 3, Edge View Drive and the revisions of the plans for Iona, Longreave Lane to sanction the current situation and to add rooflights.

The bank balances were noted as Ł1,000 in the current account and only Ł205.02 in the deposit account, though Ł2,700 of grants have recently been received from DDDC and Ł1,900 in reclaimed VAT. The results of the PC’s annual audit have been received and the auditors are happy with the accounts. So the accounts can now be made public and copies are available from the Clerk To The Parish Council at The Print Room (Ł5 each) or they can be inspected upon request (free).

It was reported that the commemorative plaque had been inserted into the wall of West Green, and so an official opening ceremony would be organised, probably in April. An offer to mark out the allotment plot boundaries properly had been received, and this was accepted. On the tennis court, no progress has been made as two of the contractors have still not provided quotes. However, it was felt best not to actively pursue this issue until the Sports Action Group’s plans became clearer. In the short term, professional advice regarding the safety of the court will be sought. Cllr. Fawcett reported that the Sports Action Group had met on Monday and matters were progressing slowly. The Chairman read out a letter from a resident adjacent to the recreation ground that expressed opposition to having the proposed new playing area so close to several houses.

The dispute over payment for filling the salt bin on Grisedale Road continues... DCC are emphatic that the Parish Council should pay Ł45 and the PC are equally emphatic that they have never paid before, and why should they start now? As (hopefully) winter is now nearly over it was resolved to remove the PC-owned bin and ask DCC to supply a replacement bin. Thus, DCC would be responsible for keeping it filled in future.

Cllr. Finney expressed his disgust that despite another visit by the engineers, the new streetlight on Station Road was still not working. It wasn’t clear whether PC have already paid for this light, as the project was initiated before the present Clerk took office! This would be checked for the next meeting. Cllr. Finney suggested that after the light was finally working, payment should be delayed for as long as it had taken to get it working.

Cllr. Hirst reported that the Christmas tree lights, being 20+ years old, had come to the end of their life and there had been difficulties getting them to work at all last Christmas. It was resolved to obtain a replacement set for this Christmas, and some quotes would be sought. On a related subject, the police were not happy about the number of people attending the Christmas Eve carol service around the tree. An officer attending felt the event would require road closures in future, on safety grounds. This would make the event infeasible, as the costs of a road closure would be considerable.

Correspondence: 26 items, only a few were discussed in detail. It was noted that the parish and district elections take place on 1st May this year. The Derbyshire Village of the Year competition has been cancelled due to the sponsors - Derbyshire Building Society - pulling out. A letter from a parishioner proposed an ‘Adopt a Road’ scheme (very popular in the US, apparently) which involves people taking responsibility for keeping a stretch of road clear of litter. The PC thought this was a good idea and Cllr. Mrs. Gregory volunteered to co-ordinate this. Following the report last month of the PC’s response to a questionnaire about potential public transport improvements, two letters of objection to the number 4 bus being rerouted via Longreave and Beggarway Lanes have been received. The PDNPA have informed the PC that repointing work will be carried out on the skew railway bridge in a few weeks. This will involve traffic lights and single lane traffic for a couple of weeks.

The next meeting is 19th March, at 7:30 in the Village Hall.

Chris Raynor