State of the Area Debate 2008 – Barry

 

Date: 10 March 2008

Venue: The Chamber – Civic Offices

Start: 6:00pm

Finish: 8:00pm

Attendance: 37

 

Present:

 

Councillor Margaret Alexander

Leader

Councillor Neil Moore

Deputy Leader

Councillor Chris Williams

Cabinet Member for Planning & Transportation

Councillor Margaret Randall

Cabinet Member for Human Resources & Equalities

Councillor Nigel Gibbs

Cabinet Member for Education & Lifelong Learning

Councillor Stuart Egan

Cabinet Member for Social & Care Services

Councillor Margaret Wilkinson

Cabinet Member for Housing & Community Safety

Councillor Gwyn John

Cabinet Member for Tourism & Leisure

Councillor S. Egan

Cabinet Member for Social & Care Services

Councillor Val Hartrey

Cabinet Member for Legal and Public Protection.

 

 

Apologies for Absence –

These were received from Cllr. M. Randal, Cllr. R. Curtis & Cllr. A.C. Williams

 

The Leader welcomed all present and thanked the audience for having attended the State of the Area in Barry which as an event is in its sixth year. Also stating that we are one of only a few Local Authorities that stage this type of event.  She then invited the Deputy Leader to speak.

 

The Deputy Leader encouraged the audience to ask questions of the Cabinet on the issues that that are of most concern, and stressed that where questions could not be answered on the night a written answers could be sent out.

The Deputy Leader thanked the Leader and everyone who had attended on the night then set out the itinerary for the evening based upon the previous consultation exercise and the more recent Public Opinion Survey. The Cabinet had returned to Barry following a successful debate the previous year and wanted to feedback on previous issues. The Deputy Leader introduced the Cabinet Members and the Officers present then set out the house rules for the evening’s debate.

 

The following areas were highlighted as the main points of concern:

1.         Crime & Community Safety

The Deputy Leader made the point that the Vale of Glamorgan is still a safe place to live in but we are working in Partnership with the Police to reduce crime levels.

The Deputy Leader mentioned the PACT meetings and the prospect of introducing Youth PACTS in Dinas Powys, Llantwit and Barry to help the Youth with their problems. He also encouraged the setting up of Neighbourhood Watch Scheme for residents to help eliminate or reduce local crime. We have a neighbourhood watch officer in the council who can offer advice if anyone would like to be a co-ordinator. The schemes can vary in size from streets to whole communities.

We have invested £5000 in a youth ‘chill out’ room in Penarth and Llantwit Major which local youths helped design and provide them with a place to go. We are hoping to extend this project to Barry in the future. The Pulse team; which are a detached team of youth workers who work on the streets to help encourage sporting opportunities, education and divert youngsters away from trouble. There are early indications that the scheme has so far proved very successful. The Pulse project is currently working in Barry. T

The Deputy Leader then spoke about the new initiative called; ‘Breaking the Cycle’ which is related to under age drinking. We are trying to discourage shops to sell alcohol to young people by proxy sales where we send in young people to try and buy alcohol in the shop. We have also purchased some headcams to help us carry out surveillance in the area.

We have carried out a feasibility study in the Vale on CCTV which looks at existing cameras in the Vale. We are also looking at car crime and have introduced a scheme called ‘Clip your Wings’ where we encourage car owners not to leave anything on display in the vehicle..

 

3.         Waste & Recycling

The Welsh Assembly Government (WAG)have given the Vale targets for recycling and composting 2009 – 2010 which is 40% of municipal solid waste, of which 15% must be compostable.  To meet to these targets the Vale has set itself targets in 2007 – 2008 of 35% with 11% of this percentage for composting which is very close. The Deputy Leader stressed that we are currently on target to reach the total set by WAG but can only attain this figure with the public’s help.

He also mentioned that the Council are considering recycling kitchen waste as a separate collection in a pilot scheme in 2008 2009.

The collections of garden materials also need to be increased at the kerbside which is due to commence on the 17 March 2008 and fortnightly.

A new recycling centre will be build in the Atlantic Trading, Barry during 2008 costing roughly 1 million pounds to replace the existing facility in Hayes road, Barry which is inadequate.

 

3.         Parks & Grounds

The Deputy Leader referred to the Public Opinion Survey that shows the satisfaction levels for the maintenance open space Grounds and Parks is 2007 was 97%. In relation to Play Areas the council has 80, 9 skate board facilities and 8 Multi use games areas at 97 sites.  Victoria Park will have a multi games area by March 2008, a new roof on the bowls pavilion in the same area scheduled for completion in April 2008, a recent planning application and budgets are in place for a multi use games area in Dowlands Rd.  The Knap Gardens has a new Skate board facility funded with assistance from the Richard Taylor. Also, the old lido has been refurbished following the draining of the lake, which will be refilled when the sediment has dried and then cleared away.  The shelter A is currently being refurbished and Shelter B has an expected completion date end of May this year. Central Park has new sculpture which was unveiled last year. 

 

4.         Other Issues

The Deputy Leader spoke of the St Cyres School development within the School Investment Strategy which we are still looking at starting in the following order; Cowbridge first followed by St Cyres and then Llantwit.

 

The recent Public Opinion Survey showed that there was an overall increase in satisfaction levels throughout the Vale and increase in satisfaction levels of the services provided by the Council. However, the Deputy Leader stressed that we appreciate that there are still areas for improvement and we want to hear about them from you this evening.

There were also areas for improvement that came out of the study;

  • The perception and fear or crime;
  • The ability to influence decisions, which can be addressed at meeting like this;
  • Communicate information. A new Website has been developed and improved considerably from a very low position previously to one of the best in the country. The website is still being developed and improved upon.

 

The open mike session followed which allowed the audience to pose questions to the Cabinet.

 

 

Question

Answer

What do you think of petitions and why did the planning committee not listen to the people for Cemetary Approach?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

If feedback is most important to you surely 5869 objections should be important to you?

Cllr. Moore. Petitions are important. Planning is a Quasi Judicial Committee of the Council and it has a legal requirement to consider the legislation laid out by the planning law.  The application is dealt with on its merits based on this law.

Rob Thomas. There are a whole range of planning issues that are taken into account. There were several material factors in relation to this particular application, one of which was the weight of public opinion.  Having looked at all of the planning issues we decided on the recommendations based on the factors relating to the case.

Cllr. Williams. I have every confidence in our planning department to act in the best interests of the Vale. It was a democratic decision through a democratic process.

Cllr. Moore. Planning applications are non-political.  It is often difficult to win with a planning application because there are often two parties involved who wish for different outcomes. Planning Applications have to be dealt with within the Planning Guidance and I stress that Planning is not and will never be a political decision.

Is it true that 37% of the plastic you collect is recycled?

Miles Punter. Not all plastic is recyclable because we do not limit the type of plastic that you can put out. The actual figure is less than 5% - plastic that we don’t recycle. We are better off than other areas. It is a good point to make.

Cllr. Moore. There are some types that can’t be recycled but you would need to be an expert in the field to recognise the differences. At present things are working very well.

People are unclear on the recycling dates and which materials are being recycled.

 

 

Cllr. Moore. It is on the website or you call the call centre. We do send the leaflet out occasionally. We will take your point forward.

Can we have one of these debates in Wenvoe for the residents of Cambrian Park.

 

 

We have evidence that the area on the site on the top field has been deemed recreational area, but I have evidence that it is green wedge agricultural area. The people at Cambrian Park are having a terrible time.

Cllr. Moore. We do try to rove around the Vale with these events, we did consider Wenvoe this year and St Brides, perhaps we will visit next year.

Rob Thomas. I will arrange a discussion with you, myself and the Cabinet Member. This is complicated due to the site licensing issue as well.

Will the footbridge of the railway ever be built?

Cllr. Moore. We have gone out to tender and they are back in.  The work should start as soon as possible. We will get back to you with the accurate date.

Are the green recycling bins being discontinued? We recycle in plastic bags ant supermarkets are stopping them.

We originally ordered 50,000 recycling bins and residents could have up to 3 each. Unfortunately they were all used up fairly quickly and we have ordered more so that you will be able to have 5  for the materials that we recycle. We have changes our practices and you can recycle without the plastic bags. We are looking at a number of options at the moment

Can you open the toilets in Romilly Park

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Can an officer man the toilets

These were shut due to the lewd behaviour that occurred there. These toilets also featured on a website and we had to break the cycle and shut them. They were opened briefly last year at intervals. We will work with the police and open them for longer periods this summer. As long as this situation does not arise the toilets will be open for longer periods.

This is not something that we could provide.

Cllr. Moore. We will take your comments on board.

There is too much dog fouling in Barry

Leader. It is not just Barry but all over the Vale.

Miles Punter. This issue comes up time and time again and is completely unforgivable. We have given out 1 million bags to help. Dog owners are creatures of habit. If you as residents see dog fouling in your area report it to the council and we will enforce the matter.

Why do you allow dogs on the beach for these long periods? It is a blue flag beach.

Cllr. Williams. I couldn’t agree more. In France they are banned from the beaches.

Cllr. Moore. We will consider this.

Can we reinstate the paddling pool at Barry Island?

Cllr. Moore. We have to prioritise the spending and with the Health & Safety laws we would also have to provide a life guard. We can look into it but as I mentioned earlier we have to prioritise our spending.

Local Development Strategy makes reference to 7,500 dwellings coming our way with little to no consideration to infrastructure.

The document is very large and difficult to digest.

Cllr. C. Williams. Similar points were made at the other meetings. We have complied with the guidelines set by the Welsh Assembly Government (WAG). We have been  trying to get the Dinas bypass for 60 – 70 years. It appears however, that this project is moving up the list.

Cllr. Moore. There will be plenty of opportunity for consultation on these matters. It is a ling process and take your point.

Rob Thomas. We have looked at several options and the sites will be considered very carefully. We will also look at other key settlements away from the coast.

Dog fouling is a law without teeth how can we enforce the issue.

How many arrests have been made of firework charges.

PC Andy Rice. I can’t provide you with the details now but if you leave your details I will get back to you.

Cllr. Moore. We do find it difficult to enforce dog fouling and we need your help to let us know the persistent offenders.

There appears to be a decay in Barry Island and  Waterfront  when the area is a fabulous place.

Cllr. Moore. The point is well made and there is a problem with some of the buildings there.

We are pushing for private interest in these areas and we have pump primed the area. We have to rely on the private sector to provide these things and we will continues to negotiate with them.

The upgrading of the Colcot Sports Centre is needed and in the LDP of 1980 it was stated that the changing rooms were inadequate. Numerous sports are played there. There is a need for a public meeting.

Cllr. G. John. I am very concerned about this issue. It is in need of restoration or rebuilding. There has been a gradual take away of the funds allocated for leisure over the years. I welcome the meeting to explore as many avenues as possible. Lottery funding isn’t coming down the scale at present due to the Olympics .

Cllr. Moore. We have explored funds for facility changes and I would also be happy to met with you.

Barry Cinema closure and nothing down the Waterfront for people.

Leader. I agree with you, people of all ages use this cinema. It would be sorely missed. There is a group to keep the cinema in Barry.

Cllr. C. Williams. The lease is not being offered for renewal. We will do our best to keep it.

Cllr. Moore. We will do our best to keep the cinema although they are private developers and we cannot demand that they stay. We will negotiate with developers about the waterfront.

Litter in Cemetery Lane face the winds, and Twnewyth Hill remains littered and seems to be a problem.

Dog fouling is rife in and around the play area at Gladstone rd and the Buttrills field.

Inappropriate development at Cemetery approach. Out of keeping with the surrounding areas. 61 properties are being allowed there. The housing in the vicinity is semi detached or detached and the proposed development consists of flats and terraced housing and out of keeping.

Cllr. Moore. Dog fouling – I take you point and we will try to identify the culprits.

In relation to the litter will get our operatives to look at the areas of concern. In relation to Cemetery Approach it is a matter for the Planning committee.

Rob Thomas. In terms of the density the site is just under 1 hector in total. I will have to come back to you on the density of the surrounding area.  It is higher in density and the reason for the drop from 65 to 61 planning asked for an amendment and 61 was the amendment submitted in December of last year. It is not as simple as comparing like for like and maintained that the road would still maintain its character with appropriate tree planting along the centre of the road.

Buttrils fields have broken cans on the fields on Saturdays.

Our officers do clear up these fields but it is difficult to prevent people from dropping litter.  We do try to make the fields safe. We have to change people’s attitudes towards this issue.

Barry Island is a beautiful place and needs better marketing. It rivals any view in the World. Arriva trains has a Welsh map and no marketing for Barry or Penarth and Cardiff cover everything. Barry Island has disappeared from the map.

We have a tourism department that does market and promote the area. We try to market through a number of mechanisms, leaflets, website, trade shows, the Airport, visitor centres and many more. We do ourselves down instead of doing ourselves up.

We have a stunning beach and good transport links.

 

 

The Leader thanked everyone for coming and asked the Deputy Leader to close the evening.

 

The Deputy Leader ended the night by thanking the Leader for chairing the meeting and all the people who attended the meeting and stressed that if anybody was dissatisfied or had any problems with this administration they should contact us by email, letter or telephone.