In accordance with Procedure Rules Nos.11 and 35 a period of 10 minutes is allocated for members of the public to address the meeting on any matter relevant to the work of the body in question. Individual members of the public may speak for up to 5 minutes but the Chairman or person presiding will decide how the period of time allocated for public speaking will be apportioned where there are a number of speakers. Members of the public are not required to give notice to use this facility. However, as a matter of courtesy, a period of 24 hours’ notice is encouraged.
Members of the public wishing to ask a question at the meeting should provide at least three clear working days’ notice in writing and should include the question with that notice. This will enable an informed answer to be given.
Minutes:
Councillor Carolyn Lowe, Sandbach Town Council, spoke on the closure of Arclid Household Waste Recycling Centre and asked that before a decision was made the Council assess the impact of users from other local authorities on Cheshire East facilities and look if income generation from rubble charges and trade waste could offset the costs of the Arclid Recycling Centre.
Mr Dick Macaulay, Chairman of the Sandbach Woodland and Wildlife Group, spoke in objection to the closure of Arclid Household Waste Recycling Centre. He stated that the Waste Centre was an essential resource for his Group, who regularly used it to dispose of rubbish collected during their woodland restoration work. He was concerned that the closure would lead to increased incidents of fly tipping.
Councillor Andrew Lindsay, Vice Chairman of Brereton Parish Council, addressed the meeting on the closure of Arclid Household Waste Recycling Centre. He stated that this was the nearest Centre to Brereton and its closure would mean travelling further away to the Congleton, Alsager or Middlewich sites which had their own traffic and congestion issues. The closure would lead to increased fly tipping and a reduction in recycling.
Councillor Sue Helliwell, Alsager Town Council, spoke about the Supported Bus Service Review and asked about the proposals and costs for the 78 bus service and the 315 bus service. She also asked that the consultation was advertised as widely as possible to encourage residents to respond.
Councillor D Brown responded by saying that the consultation was open to 26 July and that residents could respond on-line at www.cheshireeast.gov.uk/busreview or pick up a consultation pack at their local library. A drop in event had been held in Alsager on 26 June, with a further event being held on 13 July at Mount Pleasant Village Hall, Scholar Green. Owing to commercial reasons, he could not give out the costs of individual bus contracts but the combined costs of the 78 and 315 services was well into six figures. The consultation had been advertised through media releases, posters had been provided to bus operators and town and parish councils and consultation packs had been provided to operators to put on board buses and at libraries across Cheshire East.
Councillor Jonathan Parry, Middlewich Town Council, stated that air quality was an ever increasing problem and action was required. The Government was looking at the removal of speed humps as it had been proven that humps almost double the amount of harmful gases that vehicles pump out. He asked what the Council was planning to do about the numerous and excessive amount of speed humps around Middlewich.
Councillor D Brown responded that the humps had been installed in response to road safety concerns. The Council undertook air monitoring in residential streets in Middlewich.. The Council would be holding an air quality workshop event in September to engage the public and Town Council on the issue and consider ideas and suggestions to improve air quality. The use of chicanes also produced emissions from cars as slowing and accelerating away produced more pollution. The traffic calming measures are reviewed on an annual basis and are re-considered when resurfacing roads so that the best option is provided.
Michael Unett spoke in relation to the urgent need for investment in the infrastructure in Alsager, especially the provision of a new burial ground as the current provision was expected be full by the end of the year. Investment as needed as the increasing number of housing developments was having an effect on the infrastructure with roads and pavements crumbling and doctors and schools becoming full.
The Leader responded by saying that a response would be brought to the September meeting of Cabinet.
Paul Redstone referred to the Supported Bus Service Review and said that as the number of young people taking their driving test was reducing and the population ageing, he believed that the provision of bus services was ever more important.