Minutes of the meeting of UPPER POPPLETON PARISH COUNCIL held on Monday 10 April 2000 at 7.30pm in All Saints Church Hall, Upper Poppleton, York.

Cllrs. G B Davies, A J Peck, R Walker and Mrs R Watters.

Accepted and signed as a true record with one minor amendment which has been corrected for the published record. The Clerk asked the Councillors if they would report any mistakes or omissions in the minutes in the time between receiving them and the public meeting in order to give him chance to make any correction needed.

1. Bus service change of route (Min. 99.111c)

No more news on this item.

2. 7.5 tonne limit (Min. 99.130c)

No news to report on this subject.

3. Undulation in road outside garage (Min. 99.135.5iii)

The work on the road has not yet been done.

4. Turn engines off signs (Min. 00.09)

Chairman Cllr. Keith Smith reported that he will arrange to meet with Julie Hurley, the City of York Council’s Principal Engineer, Traffic, Development & Transport, to discuss this subject.

5. Reading Room gas meter conversion (Min. 00.31)

The Chairman reported that Mr Edwards had said that a new gas meter would cost £125. The chairman was asked to obtain another two quotations before a decision is made.

6. White vehicle parked in Station Road (Min. 00.33.3)

The Clerk reported having written to PC Williamson to request her assistance in the matter of the white van which is parked on the verge in Station Road at night. There has, as yet, been no reply to the request and the van is still there.

7. Community Centre sign on Green (Min 00.41ai)

It was reported that the sign has now been mended and fixed so that it points in the direction of the Community Centre.

8. Grass cutting contract (Min. 00.43bi)

Cllr. Parker reported having met Mr Downie from Farm and Land Services and was happy that Mr Downie’s company had a full appreciation of the area of grass included in the contract. The Councillors confirmed that they were happy for Farm and Land Services to be awarded the grass-cutting contract for 2000 and 2001.

9. Swimming pool progress (Min. 00.51.4a)

The Clerk reported having written to Mr P Richardson to ask about progress on the swimming pool, the Millennium project chosen by the villagers of the Poppletons. No reply had been received from Mr Richardson. The Clerk was directed to follow up his letter and report to the May meeting.

10. Blairgowrie trees (Min. 99.111i)

Cllr. Parker reported having spoken to Graham Moore about the trees in Blairgowrie. Mr Moore had asked who should look at the trees to assess their condition. Cllr. Parker had suggested David Gregory of Rylands Horticulture

11. Drop kerbs (Min. 00.18.2)

Cllr. Hopton reported that the City of York Council has a small sum of money for drop kerbs and that the Parish Council’s request for drop kerbs outside the post office in Station Road is on the list for consideration.

1. Financial Report;

The Clerk presented the Councillors with a detailed report showing the actual income and expenditure for the year ended 31 March 2000. The report showed that the bank balances at the year-end were: -

Current Account £50.00

High Interest Account £7,256.15

Two items of expenditure for 1999/2000 remain unpaid. The Parish Council has not yet received an invoice from the City of York Council for emptying the six dog bins. No invoice has yet been received from Grimston Landscapes for turfing and edging the Green. The invoices are expected to be £600 and £458 respectively.

2. Accounts to pay (net of VAT);

Clerk’s salary £571.75

Clerk’s expenses – postages/phones £8.78

Yorkshire Local Councils Associations subscription £241.00

Yorkshire Rural Community Council – Chairman’s

Attendance at the Village Halls Conference, see

Agenda item 00.59 £16.26

3. Accounts paid

None

The Clerk presented the list of plans and comments made by the members of the Planning Committee on each planning application received. The list is attached as Appendix 1 at the end.

Ref: 00/00124/FUL - Erection of two storey pitched roof side extension at Grove House, Main Street by Mr & Mrs D Spencer.

Cllr. Hopton reported that a pilot project, whereby the City of York Council’s planning officers could make delegated decisions on planning applications for extensions not objected to by Parish Councils, is to become permanent.

It was agreed that a Planning Resource Pack received from Yorkshire Planning Aid would be circulated to Councillors in the monthly pack of information.

The Clerk reported having received details of another series of planning courses for Parish Councillors to be run by Yorkshire Planning Aid. This subject will be put on the agenda for the May meeting.

1. Vandalism;

2. Lampposts.

Cllr. Parker reported that the four passing places in Newlands Lane are being regularly filled with rubbish. The Clerk was directed to write to the City of York Council to request that signs be erected to advise people that the areas are passing places and that rubbish should not be tipped.

The Councillors agreed that Cllr. Smith should represent the Parish Council at the Village Halls Conference to be held on 29 April 2000 at Helperby Village Hall. They also agreed to the payment of the fee for the conference of £16.26 plus VAT.

1. Trees;

No report.

2. Maintenance.

1. Pump fence post to repair

It was agreed to defer discussion of this item until the May meeting.

2. Chantry Green access road

It was reported that there are plans to improve the surface of the private access road in Chantry Green and that the Parish Council had been approached for a contribution towards the cost. The Clerk was directed to write to Mr Hallam at Carlyn, Main Street for an estimate of the cost of the work. The Councillors will decide at the May meeting if the Parish should make a contribution.

It was reported that All Saints Church wished to erect a Cross on the Green for Holy Week and Easter. The Councillors agreed to this.

The Councillors agreed that the sum of £1,000 should be made available to the Poppleton Junior Football Club for the development of the proposed new playing field in Millfield Lane. The Clerk was asked to write to Peter Shaw to advise him of the decision.

After a brief discussion the Councillors agreed to donate the sum of £100 to Poppleton Schools Out Club (POPSOC). The Club has been set up to provide good quality out of school care for children living in the catchment area of Upper Poppleton Infants and Junior Schools.

The Councillors agreed to the payment of £750 as the first instalment of the £1,500 provided from the 2000-2001 precept for that purpose.

Councillor Thompson gave a brief outline of the history of the construction of the building in the garden of The Croft and now known as York House, having previously circulated an information sheet giving details of,

1. The appeal to be heard on 3 May by way of a Public Inquiry at the Poppleton Community Centre.
2. The fact that a group of neighbours who are objecting to the development of York House have sought legal advice and are to be legally represented at the Public Inquiry.
3. That the Parish Council be invited to have joint legal representation with the group at the forthcoming Public Inquiry.
4. That the Parish Council be invited to consider making a contribution towards these legal costs in the region of £1,000.

Councillor Thompson retired from the meeting whilst the Councillors discussed the request.

After discussion the Clerk was directed to write to the York Local Councils Associations to ask for their advice on the probity of spending the Parish’s money on a contribution to the legal representation of a third party. The Chairman will represent the Parish Council at the Inquiry.

Cllr. Parker reported that Julie Hurley is seeking advice on the location of the village signs. It was agreed that no decision should be made about purchasing the York stone inserts until it had been agreed in principle that the signs could be erected.

The Clerk reported that the new notice board was very popular. He was having difficulty finding space to put up Parish Council notices. The Councillors agreed that a line should be painted on the notice board and one of the spaces should be marked ‘Parish Council Notices’. The Clerk was directed to ask Mr P Lunan for an estimate of the cost of the lettering and was given authority to order the lettering providing the cost be less than £50.

At the January Parish Council meeting (agenda item 00.06b) it was suggested that a new lamppost be erected in Brackenhills and the Clerk was directed to write to the City of York Council to ask for a new lamppost to be installed. The Clerk reported having received a letter in which the City of York Council said that it would erect a new lamppost at a cost to the Parish of £850. After discussion the Councillors agreed that the Clerk should write to the Council and ask that the old lamppost in the snicket be removed and the new lamppost which had been erected a foot away should be moved to the site of the old lamppost. This would enable the light to shine past the tree at 17 Brackenhills and illuminate the snicket not only towards The White Horse but back into Brackenhills.

The Clerk reported that the City of York Council had taken into consideration the comments and concerns of local people and had revised the plans for the proposed roundabout at the Millfield Lane junction. The proposal now is to use refuge islands. The Parish Councillors discussed this idea and were in favour of the revised scheme. The Clerk was directed to write to Mr Young, the Principle Engineer – Highway Department and advise him accordingly.

The North Yorkshire Structure Plan provided a long term strategic framework for land use planning in North Yorkshire and the City of York. It formed an essential link between national and emerging regional policies on one side and local plans, which provided the more detailed and site specific guidance for development, on the other. The current Structure Plan dated from 1980 when it was originally approved by the Secretary of State for the Environment and had been the subject of three separate selective alterations, the most recent of which was adopted by the County Council in 1995, providing a framework for development to 2006.

The partner authorities were committed to involving the public, groups and organisations in the review from the outset. As part of this commitment to public involvement, these authorities had published a report on possible strategies to accommodate development in the area to 2016. This was the first of a series of public consultations that would take place during the review process and the closing date for receiving comments was 28 April 2000.

In view of the magnitude of the exercise, it was decided each Member be supplied with a copy of the various questionnaires received and that, individually, they would reply by the 28 April deadline date.

1. Copy of Nether Poppleton Parish Council minutes of 20 March
2. Neighbourhood Watch Guardian Issue 9
3. Neighbourhood Watch Minutes of meeting on 13 March
4. Martin House Newsletter – Spring 2000
5. City of York Council’s Economic Bulletin No. 18 – March 2000
6. The Safer York Magazine
7. York & North Yorkshire Playing Field Association literature
8. Yorkshire Planning Aid – Planning Resource pack
9. YNET – minutes of meeting on 28 March 2000. Notice of meeting at 7.30pm on 25 April at the Guildhall
10. York Sport update
11. Minutes of the Poppleton Community Trust meeting of 13 March

Reported that a dormer extension is being built at 16 Station Road and that he had talked to Jonathan Carr, one of the City of York Council’s Planning Officers who was going to check to see if planning consent was needed/had been granted.

Asked for the subject of the school entrance and parking should be put on the agenda for the next meeting.

8 May 2000 at 7.30pm

There being no other business the Chairman closed the meeting at 10.32pm.

………………………….CHAIRMAN

………………………….DATE

uppc mins 04/00