Full Council Minutes 25th July 2006
AT A MEETING of HARWICH TOWN COUNCIL held at THE GUILDHALL, HARWICH,
ESSEX on TUESDAY 25TH JULY 2006 at 7.54pm.
PRESENT
The Mayor of Harwich Councillor J Thurlow in the Chair
The Deputy Mayor Councillor D McLeod
Councillors:
L Double
M Gardner
W Bleakley
D Rutson
P Brand
V Williams
G Calver
M Gibbins
W Rose
J Ford
H Markham-Lee
Acting Clerk to the Council Mrs E Novorol
Also present was one member of the press.
Apologies for absence were received from Councillors Payne, Henderson and Morrison
16/06 REPRESENTATIONS FROM MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC
None
17/06 DECLARATIONS OF INTEREST
Councillor Double declared a personal interest in item 12 (a) Harwich Connexions Tourist Information Centre.
18/06 MAYOR’S ANNOUNCEMENTS
The Mayor gave details of engagements undertaken since the last meeting.
19/06 MINUTES
RESOLVED: that the minutes of the meeting held on the 20th June 2006 (previously circulated) be approved by the Chairman and signed as a true record, except to amend Minute 10/06 to read Julian Luckett, grandson of Captain Fryatt.
20/06 SKATEPARK
Further to minute 06/06, a letter from Tendring District Council advising that they are developing plans to install floodlights at the Skatepark and will take responsibility for energy and maintenance costs was noted RESOLVED: to record the thanks of Harwich Town Council to Councillor Bleakley for his efforts in obtaining this through the small-schemes budget.
21/06 GRASS CUTTING DOVERCOURT SEAFRONT
Further to minute 07/06, the response from Tendring District Council was noted.
RESOLVED: to write to Tendring District Council, thanking them for their apology in accepting that a problem existed but advising them that the situation is still unacceptable. The grass has been strimmed only, with cuttings left resulting in an unsightly mess which is not to a satisfactory standard in a tourist area. A Member informed the meeting that it may be possible to obtain lottery
funding against the Peoples Parks initiative, which covers promenades, to fund work on
Dovercourt seafront and return it to a landscaped area. A proposal to Tendring District
Council offering the support of Harwich Town Council to be placed on a future agenda.
22/06 COX’S POND
A response from Tendring District Council regarding a leak in the pond and their intention to monitor the water level and arrange for repairs was noted.
23/06 FRIENDS OF THE EARTH
Further to minute 05/06, no response has been received from Friends of the Earth regarding Harwich Town Council’s request for their comments regarding upgrading the A120.
RESOLVED: to again write and demand an explanation.
24/06 TOILET FACILITES
Further to minute 94/05 and the subsequent discussion between Tendring District Councillors and Harwich Town Councillors no further information has been received regarding toilet facilities at Dovercourt seafront.
RESOLVED: to write to Tendring District Council asking for and update on the situation.
25/06 CAPTAIN FRYATT EXHIBITION
RESOLVED: to write to the Honorary Archivists and thank them for their hard work in setting up and running the exhibition.
26/06 GUILDHALL COMMITTEE
Councillor Calver presented the minutes of the meeting held on 26th June 2006.
RESOLVED: that the minutes be adopted.
27/06 BRIEF REPORT OF MEMBERS
Councillor Double reminded members of the Community Initiatives Fund which provides grants for capital projects. Cllr Double also reported that repairs to the main road and footpaths through the town were to commence later this year. Councillor McLeod reported on the meeting of the Haven
Gateway Partnership. Councillor Markham-Lee reported that he had attended the Museums in Essex Annual General Meeting.
28/06 FINANCIAL UPDATE
Noted.
29/06 LETTERS OF THANKS
Letters thanking Harwich Town Council for grant funding from Harwich Connexions Tourist Information Centre and The Harwich Royal British Legion Brass Band were noted.
30/06 NOMINATION TO BUCKINGHAM PALACE GARDEN PARTY
Councillors were asked for nominations for a draw by Essex Association of Local Councils to attend a Buckingham Palace Garden Party in July 2007.RESOLVED: nominations to be given to
the Clerk for consideration at a future meeting.
31/06 MEMBER OF PARLIAMENT FOR HARWICH AND CLACTON
A request from Douglas Carswell M.P. to attend a future meeting of Harwich Town Council was
considered.
RESOLVED: to reply that all council meetings are public and that anyone can attend and advise dates of future meetings.
32/06 NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF LOCAL COUNCILS ANNUAL CONFERENCE
Councillors were asked to consider sending a representative to the Annual Conference of
the National Association of Local Councils.
RESOLVED: to refer to the next meeting of the Finance and General Purposes Committee.
The Chairman closed the meeting at 8.40 pm.