Durham Moor / Framwellgate Moor State of Area

We have submitted over a dozen issues relating to the state of the area in the last day or so.

Footpaths like Holmlands Crescent which has been falling to bits for years and the Labour-run council still refuses to repair it: Perhaps our fifth request for action will see results:

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Also on this street a water cover which quite clearly was a trip hazard last year – google doesn’t lie! and still has not been picked up by the council despite several reports that they have checked the area.

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The state of some of the driveway entrances on High Carr Road. On one side of the road after we reported it repairs have finally taken place, albeit months and months after we reported it. On the other side weeds may hide the true depth of the damage, but none can say this is not a disgrace, more temporary repairs than you can count:

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Around the corner on Finchale Road, issues which we have reported today which shouldn’t happen but which the council may not be aware of. What appears to be a utility repair which is clearly not to standard, and near it a wall which is dangerous – where I could pull the bricks out if I tried! We have also reported the path running to Newton Drive, full of litter, needing weeds, gravel and soil removed. I am confident the council will address these asap and will be checking it.

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Clearly some issues can arise at short notice like a utility repair, but I have serious concerns that trip hazards which were there last year, on pavements which the council will say have been surveyed at least once and maybe more than once, are still there.

 

 

 

Salutation Pub Update

Some residents found that the Council links to documents for this application were not working. The link to the planning application documents is:

http://publicaccess.durham.gov.uk/online-applications/applicationDetails.do?activeTab=documents&keyVal=NOPJ8HGDKVY00

Alternatively if you have comments about the proposed changes to convert the pub into flats and two retail units you can email  dmcentraleast@durham.gov.uk  quoting DM/15/01606/FPA.

Your Lib Dem councillors are strongly opposed to further takeaway units being placed in the pub. We also want to see improvements to pedestrian access to this area as there are no proper crossings to the pub site, something we have raised many times with the council.

Officers have agreed to extend the consultation period to at least 13th July, and given the interest in the application will place additional adverts on lampposts in the area following our requests for wider consultation.

 

On Wednesday I will call for protection of our human rights at Full Council – With unprecedented Labour support

My motion to full council is detailed below. I asked the Labour group if they would agree to second the motion and in an unprecedented move of support they have agreed.

If ever a response illustrated the seriousness of a matter it is this moment of unity.

The Conservative Party manifesto pledged to scrap the Human Rights Act. Tomorrow I will call for a unified response, directing the government to halt these plans. I will place my speech on here tomorrow after full council.

My motion is amended (with permission) from a motion submitted by Cllr Wendy Taylor, Lib Dem Councillor on Newcastle Council, where Labour and Lib Dem councillors also stood together in defiance against Tory proposals.

Councillor M Wilkes to Move:

The Human Rights Act enshrines a number of fundamental rights and freedoms that individuals can access.

Council believes these fundamental rights & freedoms are crucial for a fair, free & democratic society & that everyone in County Durham and across UK is entitled to have these rights respected, even when we disagree with their beliefs or actions.

Council further notes that, at a time when we are honouring those who fought in the Second World War and the purpose for which so many lost their lives defending our liberty and freedoms, we reject the Government’s proposal to repeal the Human Rights Act and withdraw from the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg.

Council therefore resolves to:-

  1. Reject the intentions of the current Government to repeal the Human Rights Act & replace it with a bill of rights.
  1. To write to the Home Secretary & the Justice Secretary to express opposition to any attempt to repeal this Act.

Attendance management Council meeting cancelled – with just 15 minutes notice – none of Labour councillors could attend!!!

I arrived at County hall with a bit of spare time this morning to reread some paperwork for a working group which is looking at Attendance Management and Sickness Absence.

15 minutes before the meeting was due to start the Labour councillor chairing the meeting found me and told me it was cancelled because none of the Labour councillors could attend because they were all in a Labour group meeting which had overrun. SO MUCH FOR ATTENDANCE MANAGEMENT!!!

Surely the Labour councillors on the working group could have excused themselves? It makes a mockery of attempts to solve the crisis of sickness absence if 90% of the councillors on the committee decide they can’t turn up.

It also surely sends a wider message that ensuring we have a proper system in place for sickness absence and attendance management means less to Labour councillors than their own internal arguing.

Durham County Council has let down its staff for years by failing to address sickness absence. When the average number of sick days days off by staff each year is running at around two and a half weeks, and has done for decades, something must be seriously wrong with how the council is treating its staff.

This is not about cuts because sickness absence was as bad fifteen years ago. This is about mismanagement of the Council by Labour, and quite frankly with Labour in charge at County Hall I can’t see anything changing..

At the last meeting of the working group I suggested that we should find out about what training other organisations carry out in relation to managing sickness absence and attendance issues.

One Labour councillor responded that doing that would be like comparing CAMEMBERT with CHEDDER – a waste of time. What planet are these people on? Clearly the outcome of this working group is a FETA compli! No doubt we will be BRIEfed that it isn’t at the next meeting!

How can comparing how other councils, public sector bodies or private sector organisations manage sickness absence be a waste of time? Totally crackers!

 

Flood risk gulleys only getting cleaned out every 24 months

Despite being on a main road, at the bottom of a dip in a location prone to flooding, the Bek Road traffic light drainage gullies are currently only down for clearing every TWO YEARS. Other drains in the COunty are cleaned out every three months.

I have now asked the Head of Technical Services to look into increasing the frequency of cleaning of these drains to make sure we do not get flooding at this location again.

I am more and more convinced that at least one of these drains hadn’t been touched for donkeys years.

It raises serious concerns about just how many of our County’s 80,000 gulleys are being cleaned out every two years, or being missed completely.

Please check the drainage guley outside your house or on your street. if it looks blocked please let us know so we can check it out and get action taken.

Any small groups needing funding?

As councillors we have a pot of money each year which we can provide to small community groups. Over the years we have contributed to for example:

Luncheon club for elderly residents, local grass roots football teams, environmental groups, disability charities, schools, community associations,youth groups, sports groups, craft groups, to name a few.

If there is a project your group is looking at or a local group you think may need some help please get in touch. We may be able to assist with grants of £50 to £250 or help find matched funding or help with fund raising if larger amounts are needed.

Dryburn House Demolition and New Accident and Emergency

At the Central and East planning committee today, the demolition of Dryburn House, which is a 19th Century Manor House in the grounds of the University Hospital was agreed.

This will allow for the expansion of the Accident and Emergency, which since the closing of Bishop Auckland A and E under Labour, has become busier and busier.

At the end of the meeting I raised with the senior representative from the NHS Trust the critical need for better parking provision at the hospital as part of any plans. There appears to be an acceptance that something needs to be done, and he suggested the possibility of a multi storey car park on the site.

The application for the expansion of the A and E may be upto a year off submission, but you can be sure that I will be pushing hard for a big expansion of parking and a proper travel plan and reconsideration of the current parking charges for staff.

Hospital staff are parking further and further away from the hospital to avoid parking charges and the lack of capacity and it continues to have an adverse affect to the wider community.

Possible change at The Salutation Inn – Planning App submitted

The site owners of the Salutation Public house in Framwellgate Moor have submitted a planning application which would see two flats upstairs and potentially the main part of the pub converted into two retail units. More details can be found at:

http://publicaccess.durham.gov.uk/online-applications/applicationDetails.do?activeTab=documents&keyVal=NOPJ8HGDKVY00

Where the various documents can be seen. Whilst it is not at present confirmed that the pub itself will close, a letter from the Agents for the applicant states that the pub has not been viable for some time, and there are indications of interest in the use of the existing building  for other retail.

Cllr Hopgood has asked that a wider area of residents are consulted on the application, and if anyone has any comments please do email us so we can get a feeling for public opinion.

It would be a real shame to see another pub close, particularly one which has been around for over 150 years (I don’t know the exact age – anyone who does please let me know).

It would however also be a real shame to see a local iconic building deteriorate and if no way to keep the pub open could be found, a sensible alternative use would be essential.

We are currently looking at the application and waiting to see what local people think.

Road safety

I am also very concerned that if the pub was to be converted to shops, that the current road safety in this area is not good, and that the Council must make sure that there are improvements, especially if such new businesses were to be frequented by the elderly or younger people from the school or the college.

There has been long running issue with the bus gate and cars illegally going through it which despite repeated attempts by County Councillors and the Parish has not seen any successful action to stop the problem by the police or county council.

Equally, trying to get across the mini roundabout to  High Carr Road is also a serious issue, so any change of use at the Salutation would require serious consideration of safe access. The council is fully aware that there is a problem at this location as I have frequently challenged officers about safety in this area.

LABOUR MP RE-ELECTED IN DURHAM

Another five years of a Labour MP failing to properly challenge our terrible council is difficult to stomach. As your local councillors we will continue to fight against the worst of the Labour run council. We will seek as much investment for the area as we can, and continue to work all year round and report back to you all year round!!

Our candidate Craig put up a strong fight in the face of a national backlash against the Lib Dems. I am certain in the future it will be shown that the Lib Dems did an excellent job in government, both in helping to turn around the shattered economy, but also in reigning in the nastiness of the Conservative Party.

To what extent the Tories will govern with compassion now there is no restraining influence remains to be seen, but it is indeed a great worry. The lack of a coherent opposition in the short term will become apparent if we do not as Liberal Democrats get back on our feet, dust ourselves down and take the fight to Labour locally and the Conservatives nationally, which is just what I and others will do.

A big thank you to everyone who supported us in Durham at the general election!

 

Councillors Meet with Arnison Centre Owners over site issues

Cllr Mamie Simmons and I met today with a manager from the company which owns/manages the Arnison Centre.

We have had a number of concerns going back to last year over various issues at the centre and were pleased that someone from London was willing to come up to discuss these issues.

Briefly, we raised issues about:

1. The state of the road and carpark surface within the site, including the dreadful bumps in the road near McDonalds, which have been reported for over 6 months.

2. The problems with access to the Mercia site near Pets at Home where almost everyone ends up driving over the edge of the kerb. Also about the lack of safe crossings from the KFC side to the Pets side.

3. Litter on the path down to the underpass and the fact it is rarely tidied, and the wider failure to keep the whole site and the tree line around it in a litter free condition. In recent weeks it has looked appalling.

4. We also raised concerns about the layout and state of the car park from Marks and Spencer right across to Sainsbury’s where landscaping is poor in places. The surface of the car park is in need of renewal, but the car park layout itself near M&S/Boots is bizarre. Many residents are not happy with the lack of a safe way through the parking area near M&S with their trollies.

5. We further raised general concerns about the capacity of the car park to cope especially given the expected new pod set to be built. New 4 hour parking has been introduced from this week which was a previous request from previous planning consents. This is aimed at cutting the number of staff using the public car park instead of their parking spaces at the back of the units  – which we have previously also pointed out are not sufficient. A private company will monitor the parking going forward throughout the site.

We are pushing forcefully for changes to make sure that the site does not grind to a halt, and that parking and the access and egress is made easier.

6. Discussion about the current planning application for a change of use on the new pods which we have concerns about in terms of the potential for additional takeaways and the resultant littering issues. We can’t justify any more A5 full takeaway licenses on this site.

7. Probably the most important immediate concern however is the lack of proper crossing points within the site. I have been asking for many many months for the crossing near the new units to be upgraded and have to say that I remain very unhappy that these units have opened without safe, working crossings.

When I raised similar concerns with Sainsbury’s before Christmas about their car park – it took a while for action, but the result has been excellent. All the crossings in the Sainsbury’s car park have now been upgraded with new posts, lights and solar panels. Well done Sainsbury’s!

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The chats with the Arnison centre official were constructive and we feel that many if not all of our concerns inside the site will now be addressed. That said, I will continue to chase up on the crossings as I feel it is absolutely critical they are improved before someone is injured and more than 6 months is far far too long to have to wait for action.

We are holding further talks in the coming weeks about the site by which time we hope there will be a timetable for all of these issues to be addressed and expect other possible proposals will be discussed.