Draft Property Minutes 29 May 2012

Also present: Malcolm Wilson Clerk

i) A committee of seven, chaired by Tim Burgess, has been established

ii) It has looked at how the field could be designed to allow for a cricket wicket and two five a side football, touch rugby and stoolball pitches. Neighbours facing the green have been approached on their views which apparently are, on the whole, supportive.

iii) The verge opposite the Hurstwood Pub is an eyesore with dangerous potholes and is the first priority for the group. It has arranged to get two quotes from local contractors for draining and landscaping the area and installing bollards to discourage parking; they would also like to lower the hedge, to give a better view of the area from the road. This might mean removing some of the more sturdy branches by hand as they are too big for a flail. Whilst the hedge is owned by the parish council as part of the Recreation Ground, the verge is owned by East Sussex County Council. It was pointed out that ESCC are most unlikely to allow bollards on the verge; they will also insist that any contractors working on their land have appropriate public liability insurance and also safety training for working alongside the road. It was suggested that John Packer, who is looking after this aspect of the work, contacts Ian Johnson at ESCC Highways before potentially wasting too much time on plans that ESCC might not support.

iv) It was reported that £12,000 has been made available from local donations.

v) Moving to the pitches, it is recognised that neighbours would have to be protected by some type of safety netting and public liability insurance would be required. It is not clear whether planning permission for the poles and demountable netting will be required. It was reported that Buxted Park Cricket Club might be interested in using the facility for junior teams

vi) At the public meeting the idea of a new pavilion had been mooted. Having engaged the services of a local architect it now seems more likely that modifications to the existing hall might be more practical.

vii) It was noted that any planning application for poles/netting or a hall extension might fall foul of the new 7km exclusion zone for development which is being enforced by Wealden District Council. Given that extra sport will increase traffic numbers (visiting teams and spectators etc) and the exclusion policy is aimed at reducing traffic movements there may well be a conflict.

viii) Planning approval for the storage container expires in the short term. It was agreed to ask Beccy Macklen to speak to contacts in Wealden Planning to see if there would be any problems with renewing the existing permission.

ix) Formal parish council policy on the Recreation Ground was reiterated and the Clerk read out the agreed policy from the minutes of the parish council meeting on14th February 2012. This stated that “It was resolved that parish council policy was for the public space to remain in the ownership and control of the parish council , as an elected public body, and that exclusive use of the Recreation Ground by a small exclusive group was not in the wider public interest.” If any of the plans restricted use of the site by residents of other parts of the parish they would not receive the support of the parish council.

x) The High Hurstwood Recreation Ground committee is due to meet again on 11^th June 2012 and will consider a further public meeting, possibly in the autumn, to discuss and receive feedback on improvement plans. It was agreed it would be helpful for representatives from the parish council to meet with the RG committee before that meeting.

The Clerk had met with Mr Weller who will deal with a number of issues – removing the pile of fly tipped soil, removing the fir tree logs on the pig syndicate track, checking the rabbit proofing of the fencing and strimming the three overgrown plots so at least they can be passed over in somewhat better condition.

An offer by Mr Hodgson to have his plot rental reduced if he did some strimming of the surrounding undergrowth from time to time was appreciated but it was rejected. It was felt better to have this done commercially if required.

The Clerk was asked to try and make contact with the appropriate Water company to see if the problems of water from the railway culvert flooding the allotments at times of heavy rain could be resolved.

Cllr Blandford asked Cllr Warner for clarification on some of the matters reported under High Hurstwood Recreation Ground above.

None this meeting.