Old Colwyn (East) Residents’ Association
Minutes of the Open Meeting Wednesday 13th January 2009
Item 1.
Those present signed the register. There were 17 persons present
Item 2.
Apologies – Councillor Carlisle, David Jones MP, Gwynfor Jones, Mrs Patricia Dickman, Marcia and Tony Beardmore, Roger Parry.
Item 3
The minutes of last meeting on Wednesday 9th December 2009 were read to the meeting, they were proposed as a true record by Monty Slocombe and seconded by Janet Gardner. All were in favour of acceptance.
Item 6
Police report brought forward. Sergeant Andy Kirkham and PCSO Martyn Lewis were present.
Sgt Kirkham introduced himself, he has been in the police for 11 years working in Colwyn Bay on and off for eight years, six years as a sergeant and is now back enjoying his work as the Community Beat Sergeant, there is a lot of good work going on behind the scenes in Old Colwyn and Colwyn Bay. There is a lot of good work going on with different people, agencies and groups and associations such as the Residents’ association. He said that he is keen to hear of any new ideas or initiatives that anyone wants to send in; he has an open door and is keen to make a difference.
Balance your Bobbies is a good tool whether on line or as the laminated one which the police can take into the Bay View shopping centre. On line is impersonal and it is nice to have the interaction where people make their selections and the police can point out that something else would suffer if they concentrated too much on a particular aspect.
Sgt Kirkham pointed out that there is a very thin blue line in the area, affected very much by the budget. There is no sign of new recruits coming this year. Old Colwyn is in good hands he said, will keep the police experience that it has but is unlikely to get any more officers. As regards Response staff, it has dwindled down and could not really get any less in his view which is not ideal.
With the Balance your Bobbies initiative, more people have taken part; Colwyn is up to over 300, it is the highest district by 100 people expressing an opinion. It may not affect things greatly but if the police do not know they cannot try and target resources at what the public want.
There is a very good small proactive team in Colwyn Bay dealing with certain problems. They have quite a list of issues to deal with already but he asked the public to feel free to speak to or send a letter or email to any member of the community team and they will see what can be done.
PCSO Martyn Lewis added that now the offending youths had been arrested for the criminal damage, it had now stopped. Surgeries are being run once a month at the Interchange building, not too close to the residents’ meetings. Shopwatch is being updated at present giving the shops new faces so that they know who is banned from the shops.
Sgt Kirkham added that the surgeries are not well attended and perhaps are not marketed that well, people tend to come to the surgeries only if they have problems. He is interested to know how more interest could be generated in the surgeries.
There have been some problems with a couple of the pubs recently. Roly Schwartz is now in charge of licensing for Conwy and Denbighshire at a very proactive level. Test purchases have been made at on and off licences before Christmas, quite a few of the pubs failed twice, if they get a third there may be serious consequences, including closure for period so that they get the message.
All the off licences passed the test. The Plough was having problems but following a licensing visit, they now have door staff working there which should help.
Councillor Squire Chair of the Licensing Committee added that the work that is being done is phenomenal in licensing matters. There is a possibility of several hearings towards the end of the month and the Committee is certainly not backward in taking necessary action.
He added that Roly Schwartz is the operational head and his evidence was very effective in deciding the case of Conwy British Legion recently; similarly with the Bistro in Rhos on sea. It is intended he said that people can go out in safety.
He added his thanks to the police for their work in catching the persons who caused the criminal damage in Old Colwyn.
He commented that he did not know what measures had been passed in the case but added that the punitive measures are never enough.
Sgt Kirkham replied that they were arrested the first time and whatever they were given did not deter them and they were arrested again. There is a pending court case.
Councillor Squire referred to the case of Kane Williams who had been referred for another ASBO and the Judge had commented, in refusing the application that he should never have had an ASBO and if possible would have cancelled the remaining three weeks of the last ASBO. That was clearly a strange case and it was commented that the people of Mochdre should perhaps have been asked what they thought. It is a difficult job for the police to gain evidence and arrest these people and deterrence is very important.
A resident asked what happens when someone asks for 40 offences to be taken into consideration. There were people present in the meeting who had been victims of some of the crimes.
Sgt Kirkham answered; It was mindless vandalism in this case, they will probably get credence for holding their hands up and admitting the offences. To the judiciary that is one time in court. They will have been charged with two or three of the offences with the rest taken into consideration and a file will be submitted with recommendation for compensation. The magistrates can apply compensation but the offenders have nothing.
The standing items on the agenda relating to policing were brought forward before the officers left the meeting.
The Chair referred to drugs issues which had been reported to the police and acted upon by them.
Sgt Kirkham commented that there was information coming from the public and it was being acted upon with some success. The police are aware of the scale of the issue and are prioritising their resources effectively to deal with it and other issues. Supply of drugs means prison and the police are actively targeting the issue.
The Chair also spoke of an incident where juveniles were caught throwing ice at windows and gave abuse to members of the public who intervened. The police have since spoken to the parents of those involved and that intervention is appreciated.
Sgt Kirkham finished by mentioning a Football Club initiative which was mentioned in our minutes as possibly linking in to the regeneration funding. Kelly Davies has been recruited by Colwyn Bay Football Club to get funding. There will be a football match on 26th January and there will be a presentation on that day about what they are doing.
Kelly wants the police to be involved and a lot of other organisations to get youngsters into playing and managing or organising football and other sports.
The idea is to get young people off the streets at night. It deserves support of the community.
The presentation is 4pm to 6pm on 26th January followed by a football match.
Item 4
Matters arising from last month’s minutes~
Reference toilets in Village. The Marine Hotel is now a public toilet having received a grant of £500. It now displays toilet signs and access is available without going through the bar. It is an excellent facility.
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A local man has been entering St John’s Garden and disrupting some of the features that have taken a long time to establish. CBM Mike Williams has reported that the man has been warned about his conduct.
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ALDI new planning application regarding refrigeration housing. This association was supportive of the ALDI store moving to Old Colwyn. It has brought advantages to the village. The association wrote a letter of objection to the proposal for a new refrigeration module in the same place against the original planning application.
Old Colwyn East Residents Association
12th December 2009
Mr P Rafferty
Head of Regulatory Services
Civic Offices
Colwyn Bay
Ll29 8AR
Dear Mr Rafferty
OBJECTION to Planning Application ~ DC/0/36487
Alteration to existing building and installation of refrigeration plant ~ ALDI
I am the secretary of Old Colwyn East Residents’ Association. At our meeting on 9th December the above mentioned application was referred to our members by a resident of Old Colwyn.
It is apparent that the original planning permission was not adhered to as regards the location of the refrigeration plant and the location of the existing refrigeration plant is causing a loss of amenity to the residents of 2, Bodelwyddan Avenue, Old Colwyn (our members) which has been the subject of an abatement order.
Members of our committee have visited the site and at levels of low background noise the vibration noise is significant in respect of the house next door. It is also apparent that the building housing the plant is touching the piles which were sunk to stabilise the wall of the perimeter. This could well be causing vibration to be transmitted into the building via its cellar.
I object to this application on behalf of the Residents’ Association in support of our members who live at 2 Bodelwyddan Avenue because it is felt that the proposed installation will cause a loss of amenity to the residents of 2 Bodelwyddan Avenue, by means of a noise nuisance which is unlikely to change if the new installation is made in a similar location next to their garden.
We feel that it is important that the matters pertinent to this application are referred to the Planning Committee for a decision.
Yours sincerely
Secretary
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Item 5
Standing items~
Policing/Local Crime / Nuisance
Incidents associated with the supply of drugs have been seen in Cliff Road area the police have been informed.
On 20th December a van was broken into in Cliff Road and a tax disc stolen
Police attended this morning and enquiries were carried out.
21st December at 4pm approx four youths approx 13yrs were seen one was showing interest in window of Jumpin Jungle in Cliff Road and the others were throwing ice at the upstairs windows. At that stage they were told to leave.
One left quietly, one of the others gave abuse. The police have since spoken to those present and their parents.
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Public Meetings about Strategic Regeneration Area funding took place two months ago. We were told that the SRA includes all the area between Mochdre and Prestatyn and Councillors Cossey and Carlisle intended to circulate the findings of those meetings around the village in an updated form.
The results of the meetings have not yet been circulated.
Councillor Cossey explained that at the beginning of the public meetings it had been mentioned that the Minister had called in the Chief Executives of Conwy and Denbighshire and shouted at them that they were letting him down because they had not allocated enough of the money that was available for regeneration, to projects for 2009/2010.
Hence there was a sudden drive to get a plan for Old Colwyn that we could put in for this year.
It transpires that an officer in the Welsh Assembly Government had not bothered to add up the value of the projects that had already been agreed for this year. In fact, the money for this year for regeneration has already been allocated under the projects that have already been agreed. The Minister has not apologised to the Chief Executives or anyone else and has now been promoted out of the office concerned.
An enormous amount of work has been done in Conwy and in Old Colwyn to try and bring projects forward.
The work that has been done has not been in vain because there is an allocation for next year and the year after to pursue.
Once the Old Colwyn plan is written and available, the Councillors have more time to go out and consult with everyone in Old Colwyn before submitting it; the draft document is almost complete.
A resident asked if any of the projects that have been agreed, affect Old Colwyn.
Councillor Cossey replied not directly but the big one is the revamping of the arena in Eirias Park which is £5 million; that is on our border, planning permission had been approved that day.
The secretary added, that when we were discussing regeneration plans, the Eirias Park complex £5 million was already known about and the fact is that the Welsh Assembly Government were seeking to be seen to be spending more money, is unacceptable.
Councillor Cossey added that the Council was seeking to purchase property in Colwyn Bay and even that had not been added in to the funding enquiry.
The secretary summed up by pointing out that the first announcement by the New First Minister of the WAG was that Wales will be giving overseas aid to Uganda. This is money that should possibly be being spent in Wales.
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The Fencing that was erected by the Council opposite the Catholic Church in Cliff Road is being damaged and is slowly being trodden down.
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Could we please have an idea what action if any is proposed by the Council, to remedy the situation that has arisen in Station Road? On Sunday 6th December, the secretary heard banging sounds from the wall at the top of the Tan y Coed bank in Station Road. By the time he had got there, several youths who had been briefed by a supervisor from COMMUNITY PAYBACK were wielding sledge hammers and had knocked a very large hole out of the wall in the location where a stile used to be.
We now do not have a wall and we do not have a stile; This apparently irresponsible behaviour by COMMUNITY PAYBACK on behalf of our councillors means that the Tan y Coed Gardens bank below which has been cared for by the Parks and Gardens will now be scarred by people passing through the area and littered as it used to be, by persons drinking.
If a stile is required (a stile is a step half way up a wall); and it is not evident that it is, then a stile should be replaced not have the wall left in such a state.
Councillor Cossey replied that after the wall had been rebuilt and fence erected, he had been contacted by a resident who lives below the wall. Her deeds include a right of access through the wall at that location onto Station Road.
The Chair asked why it is not in her own back wall.
Councillor Cossey replied that that is where it is entitled to be and came to a head when the stream was nearly overflowing its banks due to heavy rain and they had no means of escape from their house because we had blocked off their right of access onto Station Road. He had explained all about the problems which had ensued from the public gaining access but the lady had been adamant about maintaining her right of access.
The secretary said that when he attended the site and spoke to the persons knocking the wall down, the man who was in charge was not with the lads he had just let them loose and they were obliterating the wall. There is a huge gap in the wall now whereas originally there was just a small gap on the top with a step.
When the supervisor came to the secretary, he pointed to the owners boundary and indicated what he called a gate from her property.
There is no usable gate evident from the land, it is overgrown.
The land is Council land on the other side of the wall. You don’t need a big hole in the wall to get into Station Road. You can get over a wall if necessary. The workers were irresponsible about the way they did the demolition work.
The man in charge of the detail was arrogant and aggressive in his attitude in front of the youths, he accused the secretary of blanking him and said he would refuse to speak if that was the case and sought to draw the secretary away. The secretary replied that he was just stating a point of view in support of the community about what was going on, a great deal of effort had gone into securing the land and he did not wish to move but wanted to speak at the location of the hole in the wall.
Some of the youths then started using foul language directed at the secretary. There was no point in continuing the conversation and the secretary contacted the councillors later.
The rubble which was removed from the wall was left on the roadside by the Community Payback team and was there for several days.
It was appalling, all that was needed was for the fence behind to have been taken down, if persons needed to get over the wall that was easy to do. It has been taken out of all proportion. The people cannot get out of their garden anyway because the gate is overgrown, it is inaccessible.
When asked, Councillor Cossey replied that he had seen the deeds and she had a right of access through the wall onto Station Road.
A resident said that it will spoil the bank now, all the way down.
The secretary asked who decided how big the hole should be? Nobody gave them any direction.
Councillor Cossey replied As it was before, it was the width of a kerbstone.
The secretary replied, that it was the width of a part of a kerbstone.
A resident asked if it is going to be reinstated to how it was, because it is now a mess. You can just walk straight though.
Councillor Cossey replied that her husband is disabled so he would not be able to get over the wall.
The Chair said that it is beyond a joke.
Councillor Cossey replied that it is what she is entitled to have.
Councillor Cossey was asked if he thought it was acceptable and said that he had not looked at it closely. He agreed to look at it.
The Chair summed up that it is a matter of making sure that what is necessary is done without everybody being able to ride their pushbikes through and down the bank causing damage to what has been achieved by the council and others.
Soap scum in Afon Colwyn ~ The Council were informed two months ago and are looking into the source of the problem. On one occasion recently a very strong smell of washing conditioner has been detected as the water goes over the weir at the bottom of Beach Road.
Cllr Squire reports
Have been able to get some useful feedback from the Environmental Agency on the steam issue and can now update you as I am aware there is a forthcoming community meeting.
The Environmental Agency have carried out chemical tests and have found traces of
detergents but insufficient to link back to a significant source without visible
signs. This is not surprising due to the fact that this stream takes run-
I am pleased that the EA are taking things further by writing with a leaflet drop to the nearby properties with advice to occupiers to check drainage connections. This is a positive step which may assist in picking up potential cross connections.
In addition, it would be useful if anyone that you report to on this matter could feed back observations / photos that they may have which show the location of a pipe discharging detergent or similar.
Refuse wheelie bins stored on the street.
Many bins are still often wide open and untidy on the street or in the vicinity of the street, this is most unacceptable as a health issue as well as unsightly to residents.
The rules were initially said to be quite strict on the issue, if the bin is not closed, it will not be collected and no side bags of waste. Why has that changed?
This should be monitored and reported on by the Council. Is it the case that it is easier to just collect the bin and say nothing than to find the owners and take issue with them?
A Members comment
I just thought I’d bring a few matters to your attention as Secretary of the Residents Association. There was a serious problem concerning dog fouling between Christmas and New Years. The mess extended along the pavements on our side of Station Road, and continued all the way to Cefn Road. It was so bad that we had to walk on the road alongside the pavement. I bring this up because it has been a matter which has been brought up at previous meetings of the Association. A young female was pushing a pram on the pavement and the dog mess was getting on the wheels of the pram and more than likely, on her shoes. It’s never been so bad. It just looked as though dogs had had a field day. Either dog owners were not clearing up after their dogs or dogs were being allowed out on their own.
The other matter is an ongoing one relating to bins being left on pavements. At least six bins are still left on the pavements on the west side of Princess Road opposite the entrance to Plas Wylfa. One of the bins also had its lid slightly open because of contents protruding out. I have also noticed of late, that a bin is also left out on the pavement for at least a day, if not two, after collection in Plas Wylfa near the footpath next to the garage. A bin or bins are also often left on the pavement outside flats 8a and 8b Station Road.
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Our Association Website -
December unique visitors 316
January up to the 12th 117
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Cliff Road parking signs. Pending
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Item 7.
Any other business.
Update from Councillors Carlisle and Cossey
Here is a brief update for December 2009/January 2010 in Old Colwyn,
I am pleased to say that the festive season passed off relatively quietly here in the village.
I am very pleased that our reinstated Christmas tree survived the festivities, and brought cheer to so many people.
Here in Old Colwyn there have been a lot of serious problems in delays and failures in cancer treatment. We have now held a meeting with representatives of the new NHS Trust, senior management say that procedures will be tightened up in the future.
We are waiting for the final draft of the Regeneration proposals, which will then be circulated as widely as possible for consultation.
The World Record Tree day at Tan y Coed was a huge success, with Cheryl, Brian, Glyn and Bob being joined by a large number of residents. Thank Mark Earp and all his staff for their hard work.
We held a Benefit Take Up Campaign Day for older people at the Baptist Church on 7th December, many people were advised and assisted with a range of help, from Pension Credit, Cold Weather Payments, Home Insulation, home safety, and free bus travel etc.
Brian and I, and David Jones MP, were delighted to attend Tan Lan Kidz Club Christmas Party, were the young people shopped, prepared, cooked, and served a Christmas dinner for their parents, ourselves, and CBM Mike, Martin and Matthew. The young people have been taught to cook by Jenny Hughes, a volunteer, who is doing a wonderful job for the community.
This month has seen a huge surge in problems with housing and debt issues, and we have been very busy providing support to individuals and families in Colwyn.
We have been told that an enforcement notice has been served on the car wash operation at M & K Site. It has caused huge problems by blocking the roads and pavements, spray nuisance, and not having appropriate drainage systems. There has been a further problem caused by overflowing water turning to ice on the pavements and gutters in the last week.
The Aldi planning situation is ongoing at the moment, with David Jones MP assisting Mr. and Mrs Jones from Bodelwyddan Avenue. Thank you for your letters of objection, supporting the noise problems suffered by the Jones family. We will keep you informed on this matter.
The huge challenge over the last 10 days has been the extreme weather conditions, and the national shortage of salt. We have tried extremely hard to get roads gritted, and salt bins refilled, but Conwy is conserving its supplies for the further bad weather promised. We are making sure that all Home Care Staff and Meals on Wheels staff are fully supported to care for the elderly and disabled residents. Today, we have issued a list of priority roads for gritting, so that Old Colwyn Residents have access to shops, doctors surgeries, pharmacies, and fuel supplies. We would like to reassure all residents that we are trying all we can to access more gritting lorries, and more salt supplies for Old Colwyn.
Insurance for meetings ~ cheque required
Cheque required for £150 for Event Insurance Ltd ~ voucher supplied
Monty Slocombe said he wished to acknowledge the secretary’s application and tenacity in obtaining evidence for the authorities.
The secretary thanked Monty and replied that it is the duty of a member of the public to assist the authorities.
A resident reported that there is apparently no person living at 19 Princess Road which is a Housing Association house. There are three full and overflowing bins at the rear which have not been emptied since long before Christmas and there is a fear of rats which have been previously seen in the area.
Councillor Cossey said that the Housing Association would be informed to clear it.
A resident said that he was pleased to see the Christmas lights back in the village.
Item 8
The next meeting is February 10th 2010 at 7pm.
