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HALSTEAD TOWN COUNCIL |
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MINUTES OF THE TOWN COUNCIL MEETING HALSTEAD, Essex. CO9 2BY |
| Councillor Mrs S A Diver – Chairman | Present | |
| Councillor A Munday – Vice Chairman | Present | |
| Councillor Mrs J Allen | Apologies | |
| Councillor M Day | Apologies | |
| Councillor Mrs S Dingle | Present | |
| Councillor C Fox | Apologies | |
| Councillor D Gronland | Present | |
| Councillor D Hume | Present | |
| Councillor Mrs J A Pell | Present | |
| Councillor Mrs E Penn | Present | |
| Councillor M Radley | Present | |
| Councillor Mrs J Sutton | Present |
Also in attendance: Public – Mr R Richmond; Mr Martin Walker; Mr Sean Davies (Press)
Mrs S Greatorex – Town Clerk
Mrs J Smith – Minute Clerk
245.. APOLOGIES FOR ABSENCE received from Cllr Mrs Allen, Cllr Day and Cllr Fox
246. DECLARATION OF INTERESTS: Cllr Mrs J Pell Declared NPI – Agenda item 5. Planning 17/00638/FUL as member of Braintree DC and as member of Halstead Sick and Needy charity, that owns a nearby house. Cllr Pell also owns a plot near to the location in Halstead Cemetery. 1700742/FUL and 1700743/LBC as owner is known to her; 1700838/VAR as joint owner is known to her. 1700660/FUL as member of Halstead TC lives nearby and 1700579/FUL as a member of Braintree DC. Cllr D Hume declared OPI – Agenda item 5, Planning – item 17/00660/FUL as lives in close proximity to property in question. Cllr Mrs Dingle declared NPI – Agenda item 5, Planning 17/00638/FUL as a member of Halstead Sick and Needy Charity. Cllr Mrs Diver Declared NPI – Agenda item 5. Planning 17/00638/FUL as member of Halstead Sick and Needy Charity. Cllr Diver also declared NPI for all Councillors – Agenda item 5 – Planning item 1700660/FUL as member of Halstead TC lives in close proximity to property in question. NPI for all Councillors – Agenda item 5 – planning item 17/00838/VAR as joint owner is known to all members.
247. PUBLIC QUESTION TIME: Mr R Richmond queried the order of Agenda and said that he had been questioning this matter for 5 years and had seen no improvement. He asked why there was no Agenda Item at this meeting to approve minutes of 25th April.
Cllr Mrs Diver said that this was a mistake on Council’s part and that this would be rectified by inclusion of item at next meeting.
Mr Richmond asked about Agenda item 13 – Exclusion of Public and Press.
Cllr Mrs Diver replied that this was a standard agenda item that appeared each meeting.
Mr Richmond then said that if there were no items of a confidential nature to discuss then the line – ‘there are none’ should appear otherwise Council is left open to question.
Mr Richmond asked why minutes of a meeting had been approved under Exclusion item and was told by Town Clerk that confidential matters had been discussed at that meeting so the minutes were also confidential.
Mr Richmond pointed out that unless the matter was to be discussed again approval of the minutes was not confidential and should not have appeared in the Exclusion item. He said that there were laws governing Council meetings and that in his opinion these had been broken and that this Council was far too ready to discuss matters in Exclusion.
Town Clerk assured Mr Richmond that these matters will be looked at and apologised for mistakes made.
Mr Richmond asked that this Council review the policy on secrecy; he understood that certain matters relating to contracts and to staff should be discussed under Exclusion but that all other matters should be in the public domain.
Cllr Mrs Diver, Mayor, apologised to Mr Richmond and asked him to give Council the benefit of doubt on this occasion.
Mr Richmond said that this was not good enough and that he might take further action
248. MINUTES To approve the minutes of the Extraordinary Council Meeting held on 3rd April 2017 and the Council Meeting held on 10th April 2017. It was proposed by Cllr Gronland and seconded by Cllr Mrs Penn that the minutes of these two meetings be adopted. Proposal carried with one abstention.
249. PLANNING APPLICATIONS Cllr Mrs Pell -Vice Chair of Planning took the Chair for this part of the meeting.
5a) Matter regarding S106 Agreement for construction of new commercial units at Third Avenue, Bluebridge Industrial Estate. Cllr Radley noted that Council had previously voted on plans for various S106 monies and in his opinion these items were still relevant and should stand. It was agreed that so far Braintree DC had not delivered on these items, but after discussions it was proposed by Cllr Radley and seconded by Cllr Mrs Dingle that the items previously identified as recipients of S106 money should stand. Proposal was carried by unanimous vote.
5b (am) 17/0068/VAR. Priory Hall, Dame Mary Walk, Halstead, CO9 2ES – Removal of condition no. 6 of application reference number 11/01567/FUL – Removal of code for sustainable homes condition. Cllr Mrs Pell said that this application was regarding street lighting in the area for which Braintree DC has strict policies. Cllr Mrs Pell proposed that this Council has no comment on this application and defers to Braintree DC policy. This was seconded by Cllr Mrs Diver and carried with one abstention.
17/00638/FUL. Land adjacent 85 Colchester Road, Halstead, Essex – Erection of 8no. residential dwellings and associated works. Cllr Mrs Pell noted that an original application in 2012 for 5 detached dwellings had been refused and dismissed on appeal but a subsequent application in 2015 had been granted. However, there were some objections to the current proposal as the plans showed taller buildings and it was said that the bank and trees identified on plans are not in the ownership of the developer. Braintree DC Landscape Office had made some stipulations, Essex CC Highways had made no objections; Councillors were very surprised at the stance taken by Highways as ingress from the site would be difficult.
It was noted that other statutory consultees had made conditions. Cllr Mrs Pell suggested that this was overdevelopment of the site and that Council had concerns with access and also with conservation of wall and bank which were heritage items. The height of the proposed buildings was also of concern. Cllr Munday said that Halstead TC should strongly object on these grounds and Cllr Mrs Pell proposed that this Council strongly objects to application on grounds of overdevelopment, concerns with access and ingress to site and concerns at proposed height of buildings. This proposal was seconded by Cllr Munday and proposal was moved with one abstention.
Cllr D Hume left the meeting at this point.
17/00660/FUL. Land adjacent The Chase, Pretoria Road, Halstead, Essex. Erection of 1no. three bedroom dwelling with associated parking and landscaping. Cllr Mrs Pell noted that Essex CC Highways had no objections to this application despite identified parking problems through Parking Partnership. There were also objections regarding height of building which would allow sight into neighbouring properties and concerns that this was backfill development. Concerns were also expressed about the poor road surface in the area.
Cllr Mrs Diver proposed that this Council objects to application on grounds of parking problems in the area identified by Parking Partnership that would make access to the site difficult. Proposal was seconded by Cllr Sutton and carried with two abstentions.
Cllr D Hume returned to the meeting
17/00743/FUL – Land at Rear of 3 Market Hill, Halstead, Essex. Erection of 2no. residential dwellings. Cllr Mrs Pell noted that applicant had taken pre-advice on this application and that Essex CC Highways had raised no objections. Discussion took place about backfill development of this site, restricted access and archaeological merit. Cllr Mrs Diver proposed no objection to this application. There was no seconder for this proposal which then fell. Cllr Mrs Penn proposed objection to this proposal on grounds of restricted access to the site. This was seconded by Cllr Radley and vote was taken with 6 votes for the proposal and 3 abstentions.
17/00742/FUL and 17/00743/LBC – 9A Bridge Street, Halstead, CO9 1HU. Conversion of first floor accommodation from A2 use (Office/storage) to C3 use two bedroom residential dwelling with minor internal alterations. It was noted that parking is allocated at the rear of the premises. Cllr Mrs Pell moved no objections to this application and this was seconded by Cllr Radley. Motion was carried with one abstention.
17/00726/FUL & 1700727/LBC – Premier Travel Agency Ltd., 63 High Street, Halstead CO9 2JD. Change of use of upper floor from class B1 office to class 3 residential together with internal alterations to provide separate rear entrances, landscaping of rear courtyard and provision of covered bin stores and bicycle stands. Cllr Mrs Pell noted that this application was to supersede applications that had twice expired. Cllr Mrs Diver expressed concerns about parking although one parking space had been allocated to this property. Cllr Mrs Pell moved no objections to this application. This was seconded by Cllr Radley and motion was carried with 2 abstentions.
17/00729l/FUL – Land rear of 16 High Street, Halstead, Essex. Retrospective application for the erection of a terrace comprising 4no. dwellings complete with gardens, parking, infrastructure and related works (amendment to 16/01763/VAR). Cllr Pell noted that one resident had concerns about access to garage but noted that this was a legal problem that resident would have to deal with. Cllr Munday voiced concerns over this development, and Cllr Mrs Diver agreed with these concerns. Cllr Pell said that retrospective applications are not liked but proposed no objections to this application. There was no seconder for this proposal so matter falls.
Cllr Gronland said that Council’s previous objections had not been taken into consideration and Cllr Munday proposed that this Council is very disappointed in all dealings with this site where mistakes have been made by Planning Authority and regarding this application Council objects to retrospective application. This proposal was seconded by Cllr Mrs Sutton and was carried with 3 abstentions.
17/00838/VAR – Land Adjacent to 1 Sudbury Road, Halstead, Essex. Application for variation of Conditions 2 and 7 of approved application 15/01558/FUL. To allow the use of vertical sliding sash UPVC windows rather than timber windows. Cllr Mrs Pell noted that Essex Heritage Officer had no objections to this application and therefore Cllr Mrs Pell moved no objections to this application. Proposal was seconded by Cllr Hume and was carried with two abstentions.
Cllr Mrs Diver resumed Chair of the meeting
250. MAYOR’S APPOINTMENTS AND ANNOUNCEMENTS – Chairman noted a very busy month, and said that she had been pleased to attend the May Day event in Halstead Public Gardens. Report was noted.
251. FINANCE Cllr Radley – Chair of Finance took the chair for this part of the meeting
a) Accounting Statements to be considered, approved and signed by the Chairman.
All items were reviewed and some discussion took place.
Cllr Radley moved acceptance of report, this was seconded by Cllr Mrs Penn. Motion was carried unanimously.
b) List of payments to be approved.
Items were reviewed and discussed and some annual charges were noted. It was noted that fuel supply will now be from Esso garage with a fuel card giving a discount obtained.
Cllr Radley moved acceptance of this report and motion was seconded by Cllr Mrs Pell. Motion was carried by unanimous vote.
Cllr Mrs S Diver resumed Chair of the meeting.
252. COMMUNITY HALL – Report had been received at Annual Town Meeting (see minute 243).
253. YOUTH Cllr Mrs Penn reported that Youth Team manned a stall at the May Fair and that she and Cllr Munday had a short meeting with ECC Youth Leader but further discussions are required, no date for meeting set as yet. Report was noted.
254. TOWN PLAN. Cllr Mrs Pell asked to join Cllr Hume and Cllr Gronland to look at all Planning applications for Halstead and this was agreed. No date yet set for next meeting.
Cllr Gronland said that some comments from the youth section of the survey are still awaited.
Report was noted.
255. DISTRICT COUNCILLORS Report had been received at the Annual Town Meeting (see minute no. 241).
256. QUEENS HALL BUILDING PROJECT. Town Clerk reported that plans had been received printed A1 size and these will be circulated to all Councillors. Plans of existing and proposed were viewed and discussed. Some disquiet was voiced by Cllr Mrs Pell regarding the size of proposed kitchen area and also about the reduced size of the venue and she said that residents had voiced concerns on these issues. Cllr Hume asked if storage would be adequate and was assured that storage has been allocated on plans. It was said that various solutions to heating both the hall and the office areas had been put forward but no decisions had yet been made; advice will be taken on the best way forward. It was said that the Halstead History Society would be moving at the same time as the Town Council and that their displays will be housed in the existing kitchen area with some external storage for items not on display. It was noted again that this is a transitional arrangement and that a move to the proposed Halstead Hub would be effected when possible. It was hoped that existing hirers would continue with meetings at the Hall and that perhaps new hirers might be attracted to a slightly smaller venue. Cllr Munday proposed that Oswick (Agent) be given permission to lodge planning application with Braintree District Council for identified work at Queen’s Hall. Proposal was seconded by Cllr Mrs Sutton and carried with one abstention.
257. EXCLUSION OF PUBLIC AND PRESS
To give consideration to adopting the following resolution:- ‘That in view of the confidential nature of the business about to be transacted an pursuant to the provisions of section 1 (2) – of the Public Bodies (Admission to Meetings) Act 1960, as amended, the public and the press be temporarily excluded from the meeting.
There were no confidential matters to discuss.
There being no further business, Chairman closed the meeting at 09.42 p.m