Meeting Agenda:
Open Spaces
| Meeting Date: | Monday 25 Jul 2022 |
|---|---|
| Time: | 19:45 |
| Councillors | Jon Aldridge, Angela Baker Chairwoman, Alan Damodaran, Vic Jennings, Alan Layland, Nick Lloyd, Stuart McGregor Vice-Chairman, Angela Read, Steve Taylor, Bob Todd. |
| Committee: | Open Spaces |
| Venue: | Rickards Hall. 72a High Street Edenbridge, TN8 5AR Kent |
| Notes: | |
| Summary: |
Agenda
Minutes
Including any interests not already registered.
Members of the public, and Members with prejudicial interests on items on the Agenda, may make representations, answer, ask questions and give evidence at this meeting in respect of items on the Agenda. (This is the only opportunity for the public to make a contribution during the meeting.) Both public and Members are limited to three minutes each to speak, and the total time allocated for public questions shall not exceed 15 minutes unless directed by the Chairman o f the meeting.
The comparisons report for the end of June is attached, giving the position one quarter into the new financial year.
| 5 OS Financial Budget Comparison.pdf |
A resident bordering Stangrove Park reported a large over-extended oak tree branch from the park with a quantity of deadwood at height above an outbuilding on his property. The groundstaff are not equipped to deal with this, so the Council’s tree surgeon was asked to inspect, report, and cost any work recommended. In consultation with the committee chairman, expenditure of £275 plus VAT was approved to climb, remove deadwood, and shorten the over-long limb.
Members are asked to ratify the above decision.
The Bonfire Society has submitted a request to use the Recreation Ground for their annual firework display, which is resuming after a gap during the Pandemic. The Open Spaces Hire Agreement has been completed - are members content to allow the event, with use of the Council’s TN8 licence, at no charge for a community event?
A resident of Greenfields has raised the issue of a few branches over hanging his boundary fence from an oak on Forge Green. On investigation there appeared to be no significant branches overhanging. The resident acknowledges he has the right to cut these back to the boundary line, but states that the height requires a tree surgeon. Subject to production of appropriate health and safety documentation and current insurance, do members wish to give permission for the resident to engage his contractor to access the branches from Forge Green?
- Grass cutting all sites
- Weed killing
- Weeding and flower bed maintenance
- Maintaining planters through town, including Doggetts Bam courtyard baskets and tubs, and beds in the Cemetery
- Hedge cutting and pruning shrubs
- Pitch over marking and maintenance
- Watering of sports pitches
I have carried out the summer headstone check and any issues have been brought to the attention of the Deputy Clerk for contact with grave owners, if possible. The summer visual tree survey is now under way, and a report will be available for the next meeting. We have now pruned all the hedges and shrubs across Council’s sites.
The team spent some time installing concrete bases for the new benches to be installed onto in the new playground at the Rec. It was unfortunate one of these was vandalised whilst setting, which required additional groundstaff time to rectify.
The team has continued with the summer pitch maintenance programme, with all the goal mouths and other bare patches well on the way to being ready for the start of the new season. Due to the hot weather, we have been watering these regularly and will continue to do so to ensure said areas are well established for the coming season.
The summer bench painting/maintenance programme will continue through the coming weeks and will incorporate all the council’s furniture, and bollards etc.
Since the last meeting we have taken delivery of a new pedestrian mower to replace the one that had been deemed uneconomical to repair. This was approved by councillors at the last meeting.
The contractor carrying out the spraying for weed control on the Council’s sports pitches has made a start. Nomads has been completed but the hot weather week has meant it has not yet been possible to spray Blossoms Park and the Rec. I would expect this to be done in the coming days. He has also agreed to take the small amount of surplus chemical that we had in store but could not use, and he will provide with proof of its safe use/disposal, free of charge.
I have now have costings to replace the larger tri pod ladder that was stolen from Mowshurst Bam. I also have a price to replace our extendable 3 section ladder, from which a section was lost whilst rescuing a man from the river some time ago. Prices as follows:
- Henchman 4.8m tripod ladder, 3 adjustable legs £550 +VAT
- Titan 3-section ladder with stabilisers and rubber feet £253.75 +VAT
Do members approve these purchases?
As a refresher to previous training, I will be attending a one-day LANTRA course on basic tree survey and inspection in September.
Head Groundsman 20/07/2022
The burial report is as follows and updates the record of Cemetery activity:
June 2022
One burial
Two interments of ashes
One Grant of Right
The small schedule of works recommended from the periodic external tree inspection report, for seven of the 550-plus trees surveyed (reported last meeting), has been costed by the contractor and circulated to members, as follows:
| Marsh Green | to fell a Red Oak and a Goat Willow | £400 |
| Blossoms Park | to remove dead wood from an Oak above a seat and fell an Ash, adjacent to the practice nets, monolith at hedge height | £600 |
| Mowshurst | fell twin-stem Ash beside Four Elms Road, including budget cost for Traffic Management (subject to TM survey) | £1400 |
| Churchyard/Cemetery | two yews (see below) and a small Alder to fell | £600 |
| Total Ex-VAT | £3,000 |
One of the yews (Priority 3, action within two years) in the Churchyard in major decline was advised for felling. The Church has now asked for this tree, along with an adjacent yew also in decline, to be cut down to healthy low-level growth as alternative action, in the hope that they will regenerate.
Do members wish to proceed with the recommended works, or with amendment for the Churchyard yews?
The annual service of the Jubilee Clock in the High Street has been carried out, and the annual external playground inspection has been booked with Wicksteed. The Head Groundsman has meanwhile highlighted two playground issues - one is damage to the self-closing spring on a gate into the games area in Stangrove Park, the other is worn safety surface at the slide on Marsh Green.
Costing for the two repairs is £295, and £672 respectively, £967 in total exVAT. Funding for the gate can be taken from Vandalism budget, for the surface from Open Spaces maintenance plan.
Do members approve these playground repairs?
| Confidential Annex Omitted from Papers. |
The opening celebration event took place on the afternoon of Thursday 16th June, with fancy dress, fun and games and goody bags. The zip-wire, Twirler, and singage will be installed soon, along with the new bins.
Further to the report at the previous meeting, the two new lighting columns were installed on 1st July, and it is expected UKPN will make the connections on 18th August.
The County Councillor undertook to follow up the request for response from Highways regarding their suggestion for alternative location for the proposed shelter.
The next free Bulky Waste Collection date is on Saturday 30 July, with the collection vehicle calling at four locations, beginning with Church Street, then moving to Skeynes Road, followed by Park View Close, and finally Fircroft Way. It is again being publicised through posters, social media, and website, with emphasis that service users must stay with their items to load into the freighter.
Any items left in advance are fly-tipping which is an offence subject to fine.
Subsequent bookings are for 8th October and another one in January to be confirmed.
The Rugby Club has reviewed the pitches layout and requested some changes (see attached) to the junior pitches on the eastern side of the field. The aim is for the configuration to reflect the age groupings, which past ad hoc requested additions did not.
The head groundsman has looked at the proposed layout and estimates making the alterations will require at least two days additional work for two people, compared with just re-remarking the previous season layout which remains visible. He is also not certain that all will fit within the space available. The two white pitches and part of two of the yellow pitches are within the casual kick- about area of the Rec which is not included in the area leased to the Club.
The lease with the Rugby Club from 2011 shows a layout with six junior pitches, which over time has gradually increased:
- 2014/15 eight pitches
- 2019/20 nine pitches
- 2022/23 15 pitches proposed. There has been no significant change to the senior (western side) pitches
Do members approve the amended pitch layout for the forthcoming winter season as requested (which will remove the casual kick-about area available outside of the leased area), or request the Club to adjust its requirements to within the leased area?
Ultimate Frisbee event 13/14 August:
The Lease includes provision for charging for additional marking for other occasions: Section 28 (28.1):
(e) The Sports pitches will be marked out by the Landlord at the commencement of the playing season and the marking maintained as required subject to weather conditions. Any additional marking of the sports pitches at other times of the year must be carried out by the Landlord following a formal request by the Tenant and at a cost of the Tenant at the Landlord’s standard charge out rate, currently £15 per hour, but such charging rates to be reviewed annually by the Landlord in line with staff salaries.
Having seen an e-mail from the new pavilion manager to the head groundsman, it emerged last week that the Ultimate Frisbee tournament is returning to Edenbridge this year, and the Rugby Club is requesting 10 frisbee pitch markings for the event 13th/l 4th August.
While delighted that this event has come back to Edenbridge, a formal request should have been made to the Council/Open Spaces Committee. The grounds team is one person short due to leave in the week prior to the tournament, but is confident the work can be achieved by two people working over two days.
Do members approve the additional tournament work next month, to be charged at £58.80 per pitch, as per the Fees and Charges table agreed for this financial year?
| 9.5 Pitch Markings.pdf |
Mowshurst Bam was broken into over a weekend in May - the lock having been removed. The Buildings Manager has chased the local locksmith who was asked to inspect the doors, and recommend a more secure lock arrangement compatible with the size of the large doors, but a costing is still awaited.
Following the decision at last meeting, new signage has been obtained for the western car park, including the S59 notice from the police. The recent meeting of PACT (13th July) was advised that reports regarding behaviour at the Recreation Ground had reduced. Subsequently there have been two reports, of quad bikes and motorbikes on the Rec.
The CCTV manager at Sevenoaks District Council has been contacted regarding the possibility of installing cameras linked in to the SDC system, and what would be the practicalities of technology available/required, the protocols, and potential cost, to cover the car park and the sports pavilion. A costing for an installation to cover the area is being prepared, but Members are advised that SDC does not currently have any funds itself to increase the CCTV system. Cameras which SDC monitors for other customer organisations are charged at approximately £1,000 per year per camera, to cover controlling and managing the data, and liaising with the police and the customers.
Customers are responsible for transmission and camera equipment costs, maintenance and upkeep. It is possible a ball-park figure may be available for the meeting.
A copy of the report has been circulated to Members, showing that extensive repair work to the bridge and the abutments is required, as well as further investigations. The Principal surveyor has commented that the original design of the bridge is such that further degradation will continue despite repairs, and that a total replacement with a more durable design would be the best option. A rough bail-park figure for a timber replacement could be at least around £50,000, probably more as timber costs were rising so fast (could be £20,000 or even more above that, depending on what was found/required as detailed planning and costs went forward). A metal bridge would cost a bit less, but the retention dam structure itself is timber. There is no sum currently budgeted for major repair or replacement.
The bridge does not carry a Public Right of Way footpath, as SR612 crosses the river over to Church Street nearer to the High Street, and that “cradle bridge” is maintained by Kent County Council. The distance between them is roughly 100m along the river bank.
How do members wish to proceed?
| Confidential Annex Omitted from Papers. |
9.9 To receive an update on projects for the Queen’s Jubilee
The nursery owner who recommended a summer walk round the various Council sites identified for Jubilee Queens Canopy tree planting, had to postpone the tour due to a family issue. He has not yet recommended an alternative date. Do members wish to set a date for their own brief tour to look at replacement tree locations?
Ready-Steady-Grow competition closed on 7th July, and judging is under way. Publicity is being circulated for a guest-talk with the creator of the World Garden at Lullingstone Castle,Tom Hart Dyke, which is also part of the project aimed to encourage people post-Pandemic to enjoy the well being benefits of exercise outdoors, growing and caring for the environment. The event is at Rickards Hall on 10th August, 6.30pm for 7pm start - seats are free but must be booked in advance, first-come-first-served. The competition presentation evening is booked for 14th September, with a further special guest from the horticultural world.
Do members consider any items from this meeting should be the subject of a News Release?