Minutes of the meeting on 13 January 2020

SAPHRA

The residents’ association for Sopwell Lane, Albert Street, Pageant Road, Hart Road, The Ryder Seed Mews Estate, Saracens Head Yard, Pearce’s Walk and Keyfield Terrace

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Minutes of Meeting held on Monday 13 01 2020 at 8:00 pm
at the Clarion Collection Hotel, Holywell Hill.

 

1.    Present: Avril Allen, Bernadette Blade, Kam Cheung, Phil Fletcher, Mary Green, Anthony Hyde, Pam Johnson, Cathy Jones, Angela King, Barry Knight, Roger Morton, Mary Plackett, Angela Sewell, Cllr Chris White

2.    Apologies: Alison Burroughes, Jane Harris-Matthews, Jenny Johnson, Linda Matthewman, Bob Shadrake, Cllr Jacqui Taylor

3.    Minutes of previous meeting: The minutes of the meeting held on Monday 12 November 2019 had been circulated by email (and by hand to residents who do not use email) and a copy was made available at this meeting. The minutes were approved.

4.    Matters arising: None

5.    Finances: Anthony Hyde stated that we had received this year’s £100 grant from the Council. After deducting £20, for the printing of the SAPHRA Christmas card/New Year drink invite the bank balance is £421.28.

6.    Green oasis in Sopwell Lane:

St Albans District Council have given Affinity their permission to go ahead with the restoration of the Green Oasis. Roger will request quotes for the works from John O’Connor (SADC’s gardening contractor), Earthworks and any other recommended groups.

7.    Car charging points in our area:

Cllr Chris White reported that car charging is high on his agenda. Herts County Council and St Albans District Council are both working on the issue. SADC have had difficulty in finding a reputable, reliable supplier to quote for charging points. There is also a need for an appropriate technology to be chosen nationally. Locally it has already been agreed that lamppost charging points are not an option. Cllr Chris White is due to receive a paper from Council Officers by the end of January.

8.    Parking changes and pinch point in Sopwell Lane:

Cllr Chris White reported that the Council Officers responsible for parking are still working on this matter.

9.    Other matters affecting our area:

  • The broken parking sign in Sopwell Lane: The parking sign is still lying on the Green Oasis site, 4 months on, and the broken base, left in the ground, is still jagged and unsafe. Roger has reported it and has received an acknowledgement.
  • The broken streetlight in Sopwell Lane: The broken light is awaiting a swan neck fitting to replace the old one.
  • Cycle stands for Malthouse Court and elsewhere in our area: Cllr Jacqui Taylor has confirmed that the provision of cycle stands in Malthouse Court would be a matter for SADC Housing Department. We could apply for funds from the City Neighbourhoods Committee to provide cycle stands elsewhere. Phil will continue to pursue this project.
  • Location for our second grit bin: Phil approached the Hare and Hounds pub to discuss the possibility of placing it on their forecourt. The Hare and Hounds pub have agreed to facilitate the bin. Final arrangements still need to be agreed. Roger and Phil will action this.
  • Hedge trimming in Albert Street and Keyfield Terrace car parks: John O’Connor have trimmed the hedges in the car parks, although further work is needed. One parking bay in the larger Albert Street car park is still inaccessible - Roger will send Cllr Chris White a photo. In order to improve the security of parked vehicles in the Keyfield Terrace car park Roger will request that the hedge surrounding it be trimmed to the height of car windows so that activity in the car park would not be hidden from view.
  • Update on over-painted no entry signs in Albert Street: The grey paint on the no-entry signs at the Keyfield end of Albert Street has now been removed either by Affinity or their contractors. The lights on the No-entry signs have been repaired but unfortunately one is still not working. Roger reported it and has received acknowledgment.
  • Proposal for repairs to pavements in Hart Road: In recompense for their error in tarmacking the pavement alongside the White Hart Tap garden wall in Keyfield Terrace, Ringway have offered to resurface another similar-sized patch of pavement in our area. Roger suggested that the pavements in the portion of Hart Road that comes down to meet Pageant Road was badly in need of repair. Cllr Chris White agreed but informed the meeting that the offer from Ringway would only cover the resurfacing of the pavement on one side of the road. It was unanimously agreed that we would request that this work be carried out.
  • Broken lights in London Road and Keyfield Terrace car-park: Several SAPHRA members reported that the lights from the London Road entrance to the Beehive car-park and Keyfield Terrace car park were all out and have been for a while now making it feel unsafe to walk through. Cllr Chris White said he would investigate this.

10.  City Neighbourhoods Committee:

The CNC is an executive body of St Albans District Council. Its members are District Councillors drawn from the unparished wards in the City centre and co-opted residents’ associations from the same area. Roger represented SAPHRA at the last meeting held on 27 November 2019. Subjects for discussion included: the Christmas lights funded by BID and the SADC and the installation of ground water monitoring equipment down by the allotments. The minutes of the meeting should be available on the District Council website. The next CNC meeting is 18 March 2020. Roger will represent SAPHRA.

11.  Review of 2019 SAPHRA Christmas meal:

       Members noted that the number of people who attended was lower than the previous year, but they all agreed that it was an enjoyable event with excellent food.

12.  SAPHRA New Year get-together:

       The date of our New Year get-together will be Tuesday 21 January 2020 from 8pm at the White Lion, Sopwell Lane. We have reserved the small room at the rear of the pub.

13.  Dates of next meetings: In order to ensure that more people have an opportunity to attend our meetings we will be alternating between Mondays and Tuesdays in future. Here is a list of our revised dates: Tuesday 10 March 2020. Monday 11 May 2020, Tuesday 14 July 2020, Monday 14 September 2020.

14.  Any other business:  None

 

 

 

   Useful information

 

Our website
www.saphra.org.uk

Neighbourhood Watch
SAPHRA members are encouraged to sign up for the OWL (The Hertfordshire Police Online Watch Liaison) scheme via www.owl.co.uk. SAPHRA can also provide OWL sign-up forms to any interested party on request.  For those members who do not have email it is possible to obtain OWL Messages via a home (landline) phone.

Highways fault reporting
Potholes, street lamps not working, blocked drains etc. can be reported to Hertfordshire County Council at: www.hertsdirect.org/services/transtreets/highways/hhonlineservices/hfr/

Street cleaning issues
Litter, fly-tipping, overflowing litter bins etc. can be reported to St Albans District Council by telephone to 01727 819285 or 01727 819598 or email to a.cleanerdistrict@stalbans.gov.uk or online at: www.stalbans.gov.uk/environmentandwaste/street-care-and-cleaning/default.aspx

Agendas and minutes for District Council meetings can be found at:
http://stalbans.moderngov.co.uk/ieDocHome.aspx?bcr=1

Details of planning applications can be found at:
https://planningapplications.stalbans.gov.uk/planning

Civic Society
SAPHRA is a Residents' Association member of the St Albans Civic Society. You can view their latest newsletter at  www.stalbanscivicsociety.net

Opening times and locations of the St Albans foodbanks run by the Trussell Trust:
Tuesdays: 1 – 3 pm  Christ Church, 3 High Oaks, New Greens AL3 6 DJ
Tuesdays: 4:00– 5:30 pm Cunningham Hub, Cell Barnes Lane AL1 5PX
Wednesdays: 12:30 – 2:30 pm  Christadelphian Church Hall, 4-6 Abbotts Avenue AL1 2HX
Thursdays: 12:30 – 2:30 pm   Hilldyke Community Centre, 17 Hilldyke Road AL4 8TU
Fridays: 1:00  - 3:00 pm    Holcroft Road, Batford AL5 5BQ
More information from: www.stalbansdistrict.foodbank.org.uk. Tel.: 01727 613 019.

Noise pollution:
To make a complaint about noise:
Report online through your MyStAlbans account at http://www.stalbans.gov.uk/mystalbansdistrictaccount
or email environmental@stalbans.gov.uk
or call 01727 819406 during normal office hours.
On Friday and Saturday nights St Albans District Council operate an out-of-hours noise patrol service, which deals with noise complaints.  You can contact the duty team on 01727 811155 between 6pm and 3am.
The District Council also operates a Licensing Hotline to report complaints about Licensed Premises (pubs, clubs, restaurants etc.,) out of hours. The number is 07770 701720.

Herts Careline:
Community alarms for older and vulnerable people in Hertfordshire
https://www.care-line.co.uk