Minutes 17th January 2011

PRESENT

Chairman: Cllr Mr A Manship
Councillors: Mr M Cryer, Mr M Pallant & Mr G Tull

IN ATTENDANCE

PC: Clive Barham (arrived at the completion of Public Questions)
Clerk: Mrs E Manship

01/11 APOLOGIES

Parish Councillors: Mr J Chapman, Mr R Page, Mrs P Sharpe
County Councillor: Mr P Mason
District Councillors: Mr R Humby, Mr L Ruffell
PCSO: Sarah McCulloch

02/11 DISCLOSURE OF INTERESTS FOR AGENDA ITEMS

None

03/10 CONFIRMATION OF THE MINUTES

The minutes of the meeting held on 13th December 2010 had been circulated. The Chairman signed the minutes.

04/10 POLICE CONSTABLE REPORT

a) Occurrence Summary for Owslebury Parish – Monday 13th December 2010 – Monday 17th January 2010
This summary gives a simple snapshot of those incidents occurring within the parish, which are most liable to affect local residents. It is not intended to be a complete list of all occurrences recorded; identities are omitted.

 

For detailed statistics by post code, please see the Hampshire Constabulary website: http://www.hampshire.police.uk scroll down to the bottom left of the page, and in the CADDIE space enter the post code of the area of interest.

 

· Suspicious males
Fawley Lane, Morestead - 12:45 Sunday 12/12/2010 - 2 x middle-aged males called at isolated cottage using small white, horse-box type vehicle, registration taken as RX07 NUF, asking for details of local farmer as they wished to use metal detectors on surrounding fields. 44100522383. Linked with similar incident:

· Suspicious males
Wintershill, Durley - Sunday 12/12/2010 - 2 x males called at farm asking if for permission to go metal detecting. When permission refused, one male became 'stroppy', before leaving. Vehicle described as a white Iveco box-van, registration taken as RX07 NUF. (Worth bearing in mind…) 44100521850.

 

· Going equipped for theft
Preshaw Estate - 19:00 – 20:45 Monday 13/12/2010 - Game keepers found unattended vehicle in ditch on private estate – vehicle had empty plastic barrels in back which smelt of diesel. Male returned to vehicle & arrested on suspicion of going equipped to steal. (Ongoing enquiries…) 44100523642.

 

· Suspicious males
Hensting Lane - 01:50 – 02:10 Thursday 16/12/2010 - Occupant of premises in rural lane disturbed 2 x males trying to get into horse paddock – they made off when realised they'd been spotted. The males (possibly interested in baled hay in yard) left in 2 vehicles, one a P-reg Ford Escort van & the other a Peugeot 205. Nothing stolen, no damage caused & no entry gained to land. 44100526962.

 

· Inconsiderate use of shotguns
Owslebury Bottom - 12:30 – 13:30 Friday 31/12/2010 - Report of shotgun pellets falling on private premises, believed from shooting taking place in nearby fields. Persons responsible located – had been clay-pigeon shooting; stated they were unaware the pellets were travelling so far, apologised & undertook not to shoot again. 44110000135.

 

· Theft of handbasin
Main Road - 09:30 – 10:00 Thursday 06/01/2011 - A used bathroom handbasin, complete with mixer tap & fittings, taken from back garden. Male seen walking to a blue Transit-type panel van parked nearby, carrying the basin along with other unknown items. 44110012659.

 

· Suspicious male
Whites Hill - 12:30 – 13:30 Thursday 06/01/2011 - Male drove into private yard asking for scrap metal. Was using silver Land Rover Discovery, registration taken as W 885 SKE. (Worth bearing in mind…) 44110008843.

 

· Criminal damage to car tyre
Beech Grove - 16:00 Wednesday 12/01/2011 – 09:30 Friday 14/01/2011 - Rear offside tyre of green Rover hatchback car punctured through outer sidewall by unknown person using unknown implement over a 2-day period. Part of an on-going series of similar incidents in area. 44110019317.

 

· Suspicious vehicle
Cricket pitch car park - 09:00 – 17:00 Saturday 15/01/2011 - Dark blue Ford Focus left parked-up at cricket ground all day. 44110020835.

 

Anyone with information that might assist police enquiries into these or other crime incidents is requested to make contact by phoning 0845 045 45 45. Alternatively, information can be given to Crime Stoppers (anonymous & free) on 0800 555 111.

 

b) Police Cover at Parish Council Meetings
PC Barham confirmed PCs within his team had been reduced from 3 to 2, though owing to a vacancy he is currently the only PC in the team. The team is running with a full compliment of PCSOs. Therefore, PCSO Sarah McCulloch will attend the Parish Council meeting on a regular basis and he will attend when Sarah is unable to do so.

 

c) Tyre Punctures
PC Barham reported that another car tyre in Beech Grove had been punctured. At least 22 reports have been received of tyres being punctured in a similar fashion, a sharp point in the tyre wall, since 2007. He is asking for additional patrols and would like to arrange a community engagement event with Beech Grove / Main Road residents. There are currently no suspects and no known motivation. The Police request support from the community to solve this crime. Not only is it costly to replace the tyre, it is potentially extremely dangerous for the driver.

 

d) Tyres Dumped
Cllr Cryer reported 50 – 60 tyres dumped in Thompsons Lane

 

e) Litter
Cllr Cryer reported that cider and larger cans continue to be thrown into the hedgerows in Baybridge Lane and Lower Baybridge Lane. Not only is it unsightly and environmentally unfriendly, he is concerned that potentially these cans are being thrown from vehicles by drink drivers.

 

f) Barn Owl
Cllr Cryer reported that in collecting litter he had discovered a Barn Owl dumped in a Sainsburys plastic bag. This is extremely concerning as Barn Owls are protected. It has been reported and it will be investigated.

 

PC178 Clive Barham (Beat Officer). PCSO Sarah McCulloch & PS Dorian Chapman. Meon Valley Safer Neighbourhoods Team, Meon Valley Police Station, Hoe Road, Bishops Waltham. S032 1DS.
Tel: 0845-045-45-45. Ext. 643-234. Fax: 023-8074-5307
Email: clive.barham@hampshire.pnn.police.uk
Mobile: 079-0110-2498
Email: dorian.chapman@hampshire.pnn.police.uk
Mobile: 079-0110-2292
Email: sarah.mcculloch@hampshire.pnn.police.uk
Mobile: 079-0110-2509

PC24208 Jon Radcliffe, Countryside & Wildlife Crime Officer
Email: winchester.countryside@hampshire.pnn.police.uk
Tel: 0845-045-45-45. Ext. 643-126.

05/11 TO HEAR PUBLIC QUESTIONS AND COMMENTS

a) Planning Applications – Statement of Intent from Owner or Agent and Public Comments

i) Planning Application 10/03051/FUL – Brown Lodge, Baybridge Lane, Owslebury
Mr Emmans, a neighbour: -
o Showed the Council an arial photograph illustrating the location of Brown Lodge to the neighbouring properties.
o Talked through past planning applications and work that had been carried out to the property over recent years, including the removal of trees that had exposed Brown Lodge to the garden behind.
o Showed the Council an outline plan of his land as illustrated by his deeds and confirmed that some of the land identified as belonging to Brown Lodge around the front of the gateway is in fact his own.
o Explained that in order for the entrance to be used for vehicles, it would need to be widened and the site lines improved. He knew this because of work he had undertaken to his own entrance.
o Raised his concern at the number of vehicle movements for which permission had been requested
o Confirmed that all the neighbours had objected owing to the potential noise from the workshop
o Explained that any employment the workshop enabled would be brought in from outside the area, illustrated by other units in the lane. That in his opinion and that of his neighbours, this is not the place to create employment.
o Explained his concern that noise from a workshop on this site would spoil the enjoyment of his own property and that of the owners of the properties surrounding the barn, owing to its close proximity

06/11 MATTERS ARISING FROM THE MINUTES

a)Speeding – To ascertain what can be done to reduce speeding (195/10e)
Cllr Barham confirmed that the principle difficulty is the lack of resource for enforcement. If a member of the public reports an incident it is one person's word against another so without additional evidence it won't get to court. Whilst he and Safer Neighbourhood Officers were trained in laser gun use last year they are currently without a laser gun for reasons unknown. They do have access to a flashing 'slow down 30/40mph sign', which PCSO Mcculloch will use to raise driver awareness. With the registration of a regularly offending vehicle, PC Barham will make a house call to discuss alleged incidents with vehicle owners.

b) Whaddon Lane – Cost of Whaddon Lane Lay-by to be investigated (Cllr Mason)
The Clark reported Cllr Mason had confirmed his request for information from Hampshire Highways and is awaiting a response.

c) Bridleway 46 – Alleged restriction of Access – To follow up (GT)
Cllr Tull confirmed that he had not looked at the site himself but knew people were complaining they were receiving glaring looks and were being asked to go another way.

07/11 HIGHWAYS

a) Snow Shovels
The Clerk reported that Hampshire Highways is providing 4 Snow Shovels for every parish. Cllr Manship is collecting the shovels for Owslebury tomorrow. The Clerk suggested they at one is offered to the Parish Hall and one to St Andrew's Church on permanent loan. This was agreed. Suggestions for locations for the other two shovels for community use to the Clerk.

b) Longwood Crossroads
The Clerk reported that the report promised to the Council by 13th December 2010 by Steve Woodward (minutes 215/10a) had not been received. She will follow this up.

c) Request for 30mph for Longwood Road and Hurst Lane
The Clerk reported that Mandy Ware had not responded to her e-mail of 3rd December (minutes 215/10b) requesting the above. She will follow this up. PC Barham offered to raise the request with the Road Policing Unit for their consideration / support.

d) Grit Bin
The Clerk reported that she had requested replenishment of the grit bin in Baybridge Lane on 29th December. Cllr Manship reported that the lid of the bin had been damaged which was disturbing.

e) Morestead Pond
As with the Whaddon Lane lay-by, Cllr Tull raised his concern regarding the use of man-hours and machinery when clearing the Morestead Pond. Feeling that in these times of rationalisation more consideration needs to be given to the most appropriate time of the year and appropriate equipment required to undertake highways tasks such as this.

f) Tarmac in Beech Grove
Cllr Tull reported that a large area of tarmac had gone soft as a result of the snow in Beech Grove

g) Flooding
Cllr Tull reported flooding in Hensting Lane by the drain and in Whaddon Lane by Marwell Wildlife where the ditch is full of mud

h) Hedge Cutting
Cllr Cryer reported his concern regarding the method of hedge cutting recently undertaken in Lower Baybridge Lane. The Council agreed for him to discuss this with the landowner

08/11 RIGHTS OF WAY

No new matters

09/11 GLASS RECYCLING BINS

Cllr Manship reminded the Council that at the site meeting before Christmas with David Boardman and Martin Taylor from WCC and Cllrs Laurence Ruffell and Gerry Tull, it was agreed that David Boardman would speak with Fiona Churcher in the Housing department regarding joint funding the removal of the wooden posts and the widening of the access to enable Martin Taylor's crew easy access to the bottle bins. Cllr Tull had offered to undertake the work free of charge if someone paid for the hoggin and arranged final finishing with tarmacadem.

 

Cllr Manship reported that on 10th January 2011 the following e-mail had been received from David Boardman, Head of Environment, WCC.

 

"I refer to the ongoing problem of collecting glass from the bottle banks at Beech Grove and our meeting on site in December. I am sorry that we have not got back to you sooner regarding this matter but this was somewhat curtailed by the adverse weather before Christmas.

 

Following the meeting I have discussed the matter with Fiona Churcher and Chris Pope. We all have concerns that if the verge at the entrance to the garage block is removed residents will park in the vacated space again obstructing access to the bottle banks and preventing them from being emptied.

 

Whilst appreciating the offer of the Parish Council to send out letters to residents encouraging them not to do this it is unlikely that this request will be compiled with. There is also little or no benefit in painting yellow lines in this area or putting up no parking notices unless we have powers to enforce these restrictions which would not be the case.

 

The reason for installing dragon's teeth on the verge in the first place was due to residents parking on the verge. Removing the verge from the entrance to Beech Close in the hope that the solution might work is not an acceptable way forward. As such the City Council is not prepared to incur significant expenditure undertaking works to remove the verge as this is unlikely to resolve the problem.

 

I understand alternative and more suitable sites have been put forward for consideration i.e. relocating these banks to the Parish Hall but these are not acceptable. Should the Parish Council have any alternative suggestions or wish to reconsider its views on making any other sites available in the future then please let me know as we would be pleased to look at these proposals.

 

I will for the time being arrange for the banks at Beech Grove garages to continue to be emptied as part of the scheduled programme. However should the situation arise whereby the Council cannot gain access to empty the banks then further consideration will be given to their removal particularly if overflowing banks cause a potential risk to users of the garages or nuisance from bottles being smashed.

 

Unfortunately there are occasions when we are unable to meet all expectations as it is in this particular case. We would be pleased to continue to work with the Parish Council to find a way forward to resolve this problem."

 

The Parish Council is concerned that although difficulties accessing the bottle banks by the collecting lorry were originally raised in March 2010, concerns are still not resolved. Whilst decisions as to the way forward have been agreed at site meetings, minds have been changed after these meetings within the city offices.

 

The Parish Council felt that the removal of the dragons teeth and grass verge, thus widening the entrance could only help the situation and voted that they would like to take up Cllr Tull's kind offer to undertake the work free of charge. Cllr Tull confirmed that he holds the required insurance's to work on the public highway, is able and prepared to undertake the whole job. The only cost to the Parish Council would be recycled tarmac at £150. The Council agreed to meet this cost if WCC agreed to Cllr Tull undertaking the work.

 

PC Barham confirmed that if he were notified of the vehicle registration numbers of vehicles that continued to park in the entrance, he would arrange to talk with the vehicle owners.

10/11 FINGER POST – CORNER OF WHADDON LANE AND LOWER BAYBRIDGE LANE

Cllr Manship thanked Cllr Cryer for his work in bringing this project to fruition. The current directional sign is considered by local residents to be ugly and inappropriate for the area. In addition, it only directs traffic to Baybridge and doesn't direct traffic to Owslebury.

 

Quotes were received from Mr Beaumont to replace the sign with a traditional finger post, with arms to both Owslebury and Baybridge. Mr Lush has agreed the sign can be placed on his land.

 

Hampshire Highways has agreed a grant of £150 and agreed to remove the old sign free of charge when the finger post is in situ.

 

The South Downs Joint Committee has agreed a grant of £488.00. Local residents have donated £100. The outstanding amount of £300.82 is requested from the Parish Council. All agreed.

11/11 PLANNING

a) To discuss planning applications

OPC Comment: Owslebury Parish Council strongly support this application. It is what we have been waiting for further to our discussions. We would also request that at the same time the hedge around the SE corner is removed please, again to improve the siteline. If this is not possible within this application, please can it have a significant cut to improve vision whilst the contractors are on site. Thank you.

OPC Comment: That building materials and vehicles are kept on the land belonging to the property owner, to ensure no inconvenience to the neighbouring property owners, neighbouring landowner, business or walkers of the footpath.
The property is sited on a footpath, which has vehicular access to the property. Vehicles must be small enough to preserve the banks, in consideration that vehicles may need to pass. Any damage caused must be repaired please.

OPC Comment: Owslebury Parish Council objects to this application and if the decision of the Planning Department is otherwise, requests that it is taken to the Planning Committee.

The barn is extremely close to a residential property and the potential noise from B1/Workshop permissions would be unacceptable.
The owner states that there is vehicular access. Whilst there is an entrance wide enough for a small vehicle, the Parish Council questions as to whether this has been agreed to be a vehicular entrance. No Councillor present at the meeting could remember ever seeing a vehicle use the entrance.

 

The Council is concerned that part of the hedge would need to be removed in order to improve access and the site line. This would be unacceptable. The Council is concerned regarding the number of vehicle movements for which permission has been requested and the potential size of these vehicles parked immediately in front of the neighbouring property. Baybridge Lane is ''no access to HGV''s apart from access.

This is owing to the size of the road. It is inappropriate to agree permission for B1/Workshop that could potentially increase large vehicle movements. There is no proven demonstrable need. The site is too small for B1/Workshop. Any expansion at a later date would be out of keeping for the area. The barn is closely surrounded by trees on all sides apart from the east, where we understand they have been cleared from. Further trees and hedges would undoubtedly need to be removed to make B1/Workshop at this site practicable and viable. The Council is extremely concerned that the wildlife that currently use the site are preserved. The Council has received a number of objections from the neighbouring properties and it would be against the ethos of localism to agree this application.

 

b) To hear planning decisions

None

12/11 TO CONSIDER MATTERS ARISING FROM CORRESPONDENCE RECEIVED: FOR INFORMATION ONLY

a) Local Flood Protection Exhibition – Tuesday 25th January 2011 – 2.30 – 7pm – Chichester.
The Clerk reported that further to receiving information from the Environment Agency regarding the above exhibition, she had obtained maps indicating areas of high and low risk within the parish of flooding. Further to discussion it was agreed that posters should be placed on the parish boards and if time allows, information placed within the Owslebury Newsletter. Further events in February and March can be found on: www.exercisewatermark.co.uk

13/11 AGENDA ITEMS FOR THE NEXT MEETING

a) None, other than listed above

14/11 FINANCE

Payments were approved in accordance to the budget

15/11 DATE OF THE NEXT PARISH COUNCIL MEETING

The next Parish Council Planning meeting will be held on Monday 14th February 2011 at 7.45pm

The meeting closed at 10.00 pm