North Kelvin Community Council Minutes
Wednesday 17 November 2010 at 6:30pm
St. Charles School

Present: Dave Beavan (DB) (Chair); Janet Andrews (JA); Ken Andrew (KA) (Vice-Chair); Peter Blackshaw (PB) (Secretary); Councillor Jim MacKechnie (JMacK); Jane Morgan (JM) (Planning Officer); Kate Wooding (KW) (Treasurer); Kirsty Davidson (KD) (Minute Secretary)

In attendance: PC Fiona Brown (FB); PC Ross Whyte (RW)

Apologies: Gordon Barnes (GB) (Website); Kevin Edgar (KE); Liz Edgar (LE); Susie Hallas (SH); Douglas Peacock (DP)

1.     Minutes of previous meeting and matters arising

DB welcomed everyone to the last meeting of the year.

PB noted a minor correction on page one of the previous minutes. It was a burnt out motorbike in the River Kelvin near Belmont Street, rather than a car. The minutes of the October meeting were approved by PB and seconded by JM.

2.     Police Report

PC Ross Whyte (RW) reported that at the end of October changes were made to the Community Policing Team (CPT). The CPT is now larger, so response times will be quicker and there are more vehicles available. They cover a bigger area, but more officers are based at Maryhill Street, so are closer to the areas they work in.

RW provided the crime figures for last month. There were – 21 thefts (1 detection), 8 house break-ins (no detections), 3 assaults (1 detection – domestic assault), 3 breach of the peace (all detected), 2 cases of street drinking (both detected), 3 drug offences (all detected) and 10 cases of vandalism (1 detection).

PB reported an increase in car vandalism on Oban Drive and suspected students. RW said he would see if PC Fraser Reid (FR) could go and speak to the students again.

Action: RW to see whether the students can be given another talk on behaving in the local community.

PB also reported that the burnt out motorbike was still in the River Kelvin. RW said he would investigate.

Action: RW to investigate removing the burnt out motorbike.

3.     Councillor’s Report

JMacK said he had noticed an improvement in recent months of Police attendance at Community Council meetings. RW said there had been an agreement that officers patrolling in an area will attend the relevant meeting.

JMacK noted there had been a planning request for an ATM and illuminated sign for the site at the bottom of Oban Drive, where Tesco is going to have two of the three shop units.

JMacK reported that the barrier at the top of Firhill Road had been demolished and there was currently a temporary structure in place. A new permanent barrier will be installed in due course.

JMacK reported that work had started on the junction between Queen Margaret Drive and Maryhill Road. JMacK said he thought they were doing a reasonable job and that it was subsidence, not just potholes.

JMacK said no work has been going on at the excavation of the canal basin for a long time and it was not clear who had been working on the site. JMacK said he had asked for an investigation to be carried out.

JMacK reported that graffiti had been removed twice from the 60 Steps, which is disturbing, as it is listed. JMacK said the 60 Steps Preservation Trust are planning to put a notice board up at the top of the steps to keep the local community updated on developments.

JMacK said a building warrant was in place for demolishing the property at 5 Kelvinside East. However, rebuilding was not part of the original consent, but the builder has challenged the need for consent, as it is not a material variation. The builder has been told to submit plans and cease work, though he has been allowed to install drainage. The agent has requested planning application papers and they have 28 days to get these in. JMacK said there might be an issue over height and materials and said there needs to be at least three objections for the decision not to be made solely by officers.

JA mentioned the Hilltop Group, which has recently been established and has both a knitting group and a reading group. It was agreed they should be invited to a Community Council meeting.

Action: JA to find contact details for the group, so PB can invite them to a meeting.

KW suggested starting a list of local community groups for help with clean-ups etc and said she was happy to make a start on this. KD suggested using Google Docs, so that everyone can contribute.

Action: KW to start compiling a list of local community groups.

4.     NKCC Membership

DB informed everyone that Karen Chung (KC) has resigned as a member of the Community Council. DB said this means there are three places available on the Community Council.  DB said he would make contact with Moira Christie (MC) and Martin Venherm (MV) to see if they were still interested.

Action: DB to contact MC and MV about the vacancies.

JM said KC was the Community Council representative on the Canal Area Committee and while she is the substitute, she can only go occasionally. JMacK confirmed the next meeting is on 17 January 2011, JM said she might be able to make that date. Unfortunately meetings during the week do not suit anyone else’s availability, DB said the problem cannot be solved immediately. JM said she would notify the Canal Area Committee to remove KC as the Community Council contact.

Action: JM to notify the Canal Area Committee to remove KC as the contact.

5.     Planning Officer’s Report

JM said there was nothing of note on the planning lists, just the two requests by Tesco, as mentioned earlier by JMacK.

JM reported there was still no pre-application paper for the meadow development. JM said she had become aware of a Scottish Government mediation pilot and thought this might be useful. It was felt some sort of facilitation at the ideas gathering public event would be useful, to get the best outcome from the process. It was agreed that JM should make an exploratory approach on what the pilot would involve.

Action: JM to find out more details about the mediation pilot.

6.     Information – website

DB said there was no website update as GB was unable to attend, but he would ask GB to circulate the link to the new website before Christmas.

Action: DB to ask GB to circulate the link to the new website.

DB said he would speak to GB and see if he was still able to continue working on the new website, as the old website is now very out of date. KW suggested paying someone to help update the website.

Action: DB to find out if GB still wants to continue working on the new website.

7.     Treasurer’s Report

KW reported the account balance is now £1,327.17.

DB said the website domain name was still under his name, as it is cumbersome to change and the bill will come out in November/December.

It was agreed that PB should write a letter to the Community Council Resource Centre to request a formal change to the name of the Community Council.

Action: PB to request a formal change to the name of the Community Council.

8.     Correspondence

PB reported the Annual National Conference of the Association of Scottish Community Councils (ASCC) was taking place on 20 November, KW agreed to attend.

PB said there was a request for a new alcohol licence on Maryhill Road. It was felt there were not many shops selling in the area.

PB noted that HMO renewals are coming too late for us to respond. JA suggested putting them on the website to inform the local community and for us as a Community Council to make comments/objections in time.

PB said the West End Festival want Community Councils to take out membership or take a place on the board and a meeting is being held in the Grosvenor Hilton, DB agreed to attend.

9.     AOCB

There was no other competent business.

Next meeting: 19 January 2011 @ 6.30pm, St. Charles School

North Kelvin Community Council Minutes
Wednesday 20 October 2010 at 6:30pm
St. Charles School

Present: Dave Beavan (DB) (Chair); Janet Andrews (JA); Ken Andrew (KA) (Vice-Chair); Gordon Barnes (GB) (Website); Peter Blackshaw (PB) (Secretary); Councillor Jim MacKechnie (JMacK); Jane Morgan (JM) (Planning Officer); Douglas Peacock (DP); Kate Wooding (KW) (Treasurer); Kirsty Davidson (KD) (Minute Secretary)

In attendance: Jamie Beaumont (JBea); PC James Burns (JB); John Lawson (JL) (Chair, Wyndford and District Community Council); PC Nicola Thom (NT); Nick Wright (NW) (Representing New City Vision); Liam Young (LY)

Apologies: PC Alana Beattie (AB); Kevin Edgar (KE); Liz Edgar (LE); Susie Hallas (SH); PC Fraser Reid (FR); PC Ross Whyte (RW)

1.     Minutes of previous meeting and matters arising

DB welcomed everyone and thanked Jamie Beaumont (JBea), John Lawson (JS) and Liam Young (LY) for attending.

The minutes of the September meeting were approved by KW and seconded by JM.

DB suggested swapping items 4 and 5 on the agenda for continuity, this was agreed.

2.     Police Report

PC Nicola Thom (NT) provided the crime figures for last month. There were – 37 thefts (3 detections), 9 cases of vandalism (1 detection), 9 road traffic offences (all detected), 2 serious assaults (both detected), 1 attempted murder (detected) and 1 drug offence (detected).

JA requested that cases of domestic assault be included in future. NT said she would pass this information on to PC Ross Whyte (RW).

Action: NT to inform RW of the request for domestic assault figures in future.

DP reported that the clothes-recycling bin on Kelbourne Street had recently been set on fire. NT reported that there was an extra anti-social bus on duty in the area to try and tackle this problem.

PB said cars on Oban Drive had been getting vandalised and he suspected students. NT said her colleague, PC Fraser Reid (FR) had given a number of talks to students at Murano Street. NT said she would pass this information on to FR.

Action: NT to inform FR that students are suspected of vandalising cars on Oban Drive.

NT was informed of a burnt out motorbike located at Belmont Street/River Kelvin. NT said she would contact the Council to arrange for this to be removed.

Action: NT to arrange for removal of burnt out motorbike.

3.     Presentation of Clouston Street Development

DB welcomed Nick Wright (NW) to the meeting, who is representing the developers, New City Vision.

NW explained that the pre-application process has not started yet, so he would like to come back to a meeting in a few months with the proposal.

NW said the plans are unlikely to stay the same, e.g. the mix of housing and green space could change. The number of housing units could drop to 90 and the amount of green space could increase by 20%. NW explained that the developers want to redraft the proposal with input from the local community, which is why they will be consulting with local groups e.g. consulting Scout groups and school children for views on how the green space could best be used.

NW reported that the developers have set-up a website (www.cloustonstreet.co.uk), where there is information about the proposed development including the design that won the competition and a comments page.

NW said the developers plan to hold a public event for ideas gathering before Christmas, if possible. NW explained there would be no proposals presented at this event, as it is an opportunity for the local community to shape the design of the development. JMacK and others raised concerns about this approach. JMacK said the developers had won the competition based on the design they submitted and there is limited scope for change. JMacK said New City Vision must display its design at the public event and clearly explain the limitations of the development, so the public are aware of what it is and is not possible to influence at this stage.

NW said they would hold a second public event to present the revised proposal. It was agreed that NW would attend the January Community Council meeting to present a draft form of this, shortly before the second public event. The Community Council agreed to form its views shortly after this and submit a report to the developers.

4.     North Kelvin Meadow Campaign

KW, on behalf of the North Kelvin Meadow Campaign, invited all Community Council members to visit the site at 1pm on 24 October for a guided tour. As not all members were present, DB asked KW to send the invite via email.

Action: KW to email Community Council members to invite them to visit the North Kelvin Meadow.

5.     Councillor’s Report

JMacK said he had been informed that the property on Kelvinside Gardens East has the correct planning consent for remodelling. JM reported that she was also looking into the situation, to see whether there is planning consent for a new building, as the existing property has been completely knocked down.

JMacK said the height of the building at the bottom of Oban Drive is not in breach of planning consent. The height of the new building has to be in line with the height of 97 Oban Drive not properties on Queen Margaret Drive.

JMacK reported that he was currently dealing with a multiple occupancy property on Wilton Street. The property has no planning consent, no licence and there is also a problem with anti-social behaviour.

JMacK said there would be a £900m cut to the Scottish grant, but it is still not known how this will impact local councils. JMacK said the Council was currently constructing a draft budget and was looking at a spending gap of £45m.

DB reported that he had attended a presentation on the financial future of the Council on 2 October. The main information from this event was the preservation of key services, despite cuts of £180m over three years.

JMacK said voluntary redundancies would be spread out over three years and that internal structures were currently being remodelled to streamline processes.

PB raised the issue of potholes and specifically the dangerous one at Queen Margaret Drive/Maryhill Road. JMacK confirmed this pothole was on the schedule for repair.

KA raised the issue of lamp standards on both Sanda Street and Clouston Street. KA reported they were rusted and unsafe, with one recently falling off completely, JMacK agreed to investigate.

Action: JMacK to arrange for inspection of lamp standards on Sanda Street and Clouston Street.

6.     Planning Officer’s Report

JM said there was nothing of note on the planning lists, just residential alterations.

JM reported that a multiple occupancy notice for a property on Clouston Street had been refused.

7.     Information – website

GB reported that he had made a lot of progress on the development of the new website and said he would email around the web address for the development site.

Action: GB to email Community Council members with the web address for the development site of the new website.

GB again made a request for images for the new website and asked those who have not completed the contact details form to do so.

Action: Community Council members to notify GB how they want their contact details displayed on the new website.

GB said he had contacted the Community Council Resource Centre about the missing minutes. JMacK said he would probably have the missing minutes and asked GB to give him the details.

Action: GB to give JMacK a definitive list of the missing dates.

GB said he would organise another meeting of the subgroup to discuss further developments.

Action: GB to organise a meeting of the website subgroup.

8.     Correspondence

PB said there had been two requests for licence changes, but no request for a liquor licence from Tesco as yet, we cannot submit a response until this is received.

PB said the Community Council had received an invite to attend an event on Tuesday 26 October from 5.30-7.30pm regarding the Glasgow and Clyde Valley Strategic Development Plan Main Issues Report. As this was predominantly regarding the Clyde Valley, it was agreed no one would attend.

9.     Treasurer’s Report

KW reported the account balance is now £1,327.08 and that the direct debit has now been set-up for the room hire.

KW apologised for not sending around the proposed budget, but said she would.

Action: KW to email proposed budget to the Community Council.

KW reported that she had obtained costings for t-shirts and said it would be possible to get hi-vis jackets as well. Vista was coming in at £7 for a t-shirt and Printing.com at £17 for polo shirts and £19 for sweatshirts.

10.  AOCB

JM asked if there had been any further developments regarding the ‘Clean-Up’. DB said he has to get in touch with George Mitchell (GM) to see if he wants to go ahead or wait until the spring.

Action: DB to contact GM to find out about the proposed ‘Clean-Up’.

JA reported that Grant and Wilson factor her close and that she had recently received a letter from them about a bargain price for installing Sky and that if you did not reply within 14 days they would proceed with installing Sky. JMacK suggested forwarding the letter on to Patricia Ferguson MSP, as she is currently trying to put a Bill through Parliament that this would be useful evidence for.

Next meeting: 17 November 2010 @ 6.30pm, St. Charles School

North Kelvin Community Council Minutes
Wednesday 15 September 2010 at 6:30pm
St. Charles School

Present: Dave Beavan (DB) (Chair); Kevin Edgar (KE); Councillor Jim MacKechnie (JMacK); Jane Morgan (JM) (Planning Officer); Kate Wooding (KW) (Treasurer); Kirsty Davidson (KD) (Minute Secretary)

In attendance: PC Alana Beattie (AB); Sue Hamelman (SHam); PC Ross Whyte (RW)

Apologies: Gordon Barnes (GB) (Website); Liz Edgar (LE); Susie Hallas (SH); Douglas Peacock (DP)

1.     Minutes of previous meeting and matters arising

DB welcomed everyone and thanked Sue Hamelman (SHam) for attending.

JM and JMacK asked for the paragraph under item 6, regarding the conservation area and Firhill development to be reworded. The minutes of the August meeting were approved by JM and seconded by KW.

KW reported that she had priced postcards with two companies, Vistaprint.co.uk and Printing.com. KW felt Vistaprint.co.uk were the better option, as they offered small quantities and template designs. KW agreed to circulate prices and sample templates.

Action: KW to email the Community Council with information.

KW and JM both said they had not looked into costs for hi vis waistcoats/t-shirts and insurance, but would do so.

Action: KW to obtain quotes for hi vis waistcoats and t-shirts. JM to look into insurance options for loaning out electrical tools.

KW said she had produced a spreadsheet detailing the budget, which she would circulate. KW said the Community Councils annual income is approximately £500, with £25 for the website, £75 for room booking and £15 for membership of Friends of Glasgow North. KW proposed putting 20% of the remainder towards promotional material, leaving £285 for community activity per year.

Action: KW to email budget to the Community Council.

2.     Police Report

PC Ross Whyte (RW) provided the crime figures for last month. There were – 10 drinkers, 8 break-ins or attempted break-ins to motor vehicles (no detection), 8 bike thefts (no detection), 5 house break-ins or attempted break-ins (2 detections), 6 assaults (1 detection), 1 robbery and 2 breach of the peace (detected). RW noted there was nothing of serious note in the crime reports for the area.

JMacK said local Community Councils have been complaining about not having designated Police officers. JMacK reported that the Community Planning Partnership had provided money for the deployment of additional officers. RW said that as of 25 October there would be big changes within Community Policing Teams, with a lot more officers covering each area.

3.     Councillor’s Report

JMacK reported that a local resident had complained about the vegetation around Clouston Street and Sanda Street. This had been cutback within the last two days.

With regards the Clouston Street site, JMacK said he would be meeting the Managing Director of New City Vision on Monday, where he hoped to find out about their planned timeline. JMacK said he understands that New City Vision will be setting up a website in relation to the development, which will enable people to add comments before the formal public meeting.

JMacK said he had arranged for the vegetation to be cleared up at the 60 Steps, as they are featuring in Doors Open Day. JMacK reported that there would be a talk at 7.30pm on Friday in Belmont Street Church about the 60 Steps.

JMacK raised the issue of electoral registration and the ongoing work to increase returns. JMacK said the reason it was so important, is that there is currently new legislation going through Westminster regarding boundary changes and that MPs might be lost if not all voters are registered on the electoral roll.

4.     Planning Officer’s Report

JM said there was nothing of note on the planning lists, just residential alterations.

DB asked whether there had been any planning application regarding the house that is being knocked down on Kelvinside Gardens East. JM said she did not recall seeing anything and was not sure if a planning application was required before something was knocked down. JMacK agreed to investigate the situation.

Action: JMacK to look into the planning situation for the house on Kelvinside Gardens East.

KE raised the issue of the height of the new building at the bottom of Oban Drive. JMacK said he had noticed that it appeared too high and agreed to ask Planning to check out the situation.

Action: JMacK to get the height of the building at the bottom of Oban Drive investigated.

KE said the bin men are still not closing close doors. KW said this was an ongoing problem and suggested coming up with creative ideas to solve the problem, as there has not been much success with the past course of action.

5.     Treasurer’s Report

KW reported the account balance is now £1,413.98.

KW said the direct debit for the room booking had been resubmitted and she would check to see if this has been processed.

Action: KW to check on the situation regarding the direct debit.

6.     AOCB

KW said there would be a presentation on the financial future of the Council on 2 October at 1.30pm in the Burgh Hall. DB asked KW to circulate the information to see if anyone wanted to attend.

Action: KW to email the Community Council with information about the 2 October event.

Next meeting: 20 October 2010 @ 6.30pm, St. Charles School