Crossgate Community Partnership: Minutes

Minutes of the meeting Tuesday 5th July 2016

1. Attendance

Present: Roger Cornwell (in the Chair), Lesley Aers, Richard Fong, Odile Fong, Brendan McKeown, David Ramsden, Carole Reeves, Jean Rogers, Simon Squires, Clare Wright
Cllr Grenville Holland
PCSO Rebecca Carey

2. Apologies for absence:

were received from Liz Brown, Ann Evans, Jackie Levitas
Cllr Richard Ormerod, Cllr Nigel Martin
PCSO Steven Bell, Acting Inspector Kay Howarth

3. PACT (Police And Communities Together) Session

a) PCSO Rebecca Carey reported on behalf of PCSO Steve Bell: there had been a half dozen cycle thefts reported, mostly where flexible chains had been cut through. Police were promoting the use of stronger D-locks. Two burglaries had been reported, although there was some uncertainty about one of these.

b) Rebecca then gave her own report. In the last month

8 Community Protection Warning Notices had been issued (of which 5 were in the "Viaduct area")
4 Community Protection Notices had been issued (of which 2 in the "Viaduct area")
Tickets handed out for urinating: 6
Alcohol seizures: over 60, not all from students.

This brought the totals for the year to:

Community Protection Warning Notices: 83 (58 were in the "Viaduct area", 19 Whinny Hill and 6 in Claypath area)
Community Protection Notices: 13 (of which 7 in the "Viaduct area" and 6 in Whinny Hill)
Tickets issued: 56 (1 drunk in highway, 19 vomiting, 2 littering, 35 urinating) and 1 failing to comply with DPPO (i.e. refusing to surrender alcohol when asked; this was a local resident)
Alcohol seizures: 332.

Unlike last year, no Community Protection Notice had been escalated to the next stage, i.e. court appearance, and this was regarded as a sign of success.

c) Police are conducting a trial exercise in issuing Community Protection Warning Notices for begging. The targets are not genuine rough sleepers, but people with homes drawn to Durham by the profitability of begging here. Also people who are not satisfied with the location of housing offered to them, who desire housing in the City.

d) Members are welcome to attend the Durham City PACT meeting, which encompasses all of the City: the next one is Wednesday 27th July at 6pm in the Elvet Riverside Building, New Elvet (opposite Durham City Police Station).

e) Priorities: motorists (including HG drivers) using mobile phones at the Neville's Cross traffic lights is not something on which PCSOs can act, but it has been referred to the Central Traffic Unit, and the meeting agreed to maintain the issue as a priority. The campaign on rough sleepers was endorsed as a priority, while student issues are in abeyance.

f) Future of PACT meetings: Kay Howarth is acting up as Inspector, and will be unable to attend meetings throughout the summer. The meeting agreed we should write to her, congratulating her on this elevation, however temporary, and saying that while we were sorry she had not, as planned, been able to attend the meeting, we quite understood why this was the case. We are, however, aware that in not discussing arrangements for future meetings, we are prolonging the current problem.

4. The minutes of the previous meeting

were agreed as a correct record.

5. Licencing hearing, Basement, 29 Neville Street

Mr Bimbi had been granted his licence, subject to conditions which had been seen by the licencing panel but not published; this was felt to be an unsatisfactory way to proceed. He had also been asked to liaise with local residents, but this was an exhortation, not a condition.

6. Planning application for night time working at the Gates

Objections have been received from a number of local residents, as well as from the City of Durham Trust; Roger Cornwell was asked to submit an objection in similar terms on behalf of the CCP.
This is not a variation of conditions but a fresh application. Cllr Grenville Holland would check with the ward councillors that it had been listed for decision by committee.

7. Nelsons Yard Public Consultations

Grenville had been contacted by the developer, who has similar properties in Newcastle. He claimed to have had 37 meetings with planning officers, as a result of which they were now satisfied with the plan. He plans to operate with a full-time concierge, and claims to have had "positive feedback" from the University. There will be a public exhibition of the proposals on Monday at the Kingslodge Hotel, and members were urged to attend.

8. Consultation on the County Durham Plan, issues and options

Roger proposed that those who are currently working on the County Durham Plan should circulate those items which are particularly relevant to the CCP, enabling us to discuss them and prepare our own submission at our next meeting (which is before the deadline, but only by a narrow margin).
On Question 35 (whether the Interim Student Policy should be embedded) he suggested we reserve the right to propose modifications once we have seen how the Interim Policy works in practice.

9. University / Community issues

a) Green Move Out: Grenville reported that council staff had been working very hard to remove refuse, but that students, and indeed landlords, had not played their part. Mike Costello confirmed that despite Council efforts, students were not making use of the Clean Green recycling option.

b) DURF Conference - Roger would be attending. An invitation had been circulated to CCP Trustees.

10. Reports from Local Councillors

a) Grenville noted that Durham City had been the only division in the County to vote 'remain' in the recent referendum.

b) He drew attention to planning application DM/16/01389/FPA to demolish the end of St Leonard's (the terrace adjacent to the church at the top of the North Road), and substitute two houses.

11. Date of next meeting

The next meeting will be on Monday 1st August 2016.