Agenda and minutes

Venue: Beckenham Library, Beckenham, BR3 4PE

Contact: Stephen Wood  020 8313 4316

Items
No. Item

149.

APOLOGIES FOR ABSENCE

Minutes:

Apologies for absence were received from Gail Low, Dr John Parker, and Councillor Russell Mellor.  

 

Apologies were received from Councillor Ian Dunn, and Councillor Vanessa Allen attended as substitute.

 

Apologies were received from Helen O’Connell (FM Conway) Susan Ryall and Alan Old.

150.

MINUTES OF THE MEETING HELD ON 22nd JUNE 2017 pdf icon PDF 154 KB

Minutes:

The minutes of the meeting held on 22nd June 2017 were agreed and signed as a correct record.

151.

MATTERS ARISING REPORT pdf icon PDF 79 KB

Minutes:

CSD 17113

 

The Group noted progress on matters arising from previous meetings. The update concerning the matter of Network Rail and the bench outside of Beckenham Junction Train Station would be discussed in the Major Scheme update.

 

RESOLVED that the Matters Arising Report be noted.     

152.

MAJOR SCHEME UPDATE

Minutes:

Mr Munnelly assured that the major scheme work was making good progress and was on schedule. There had been minor delays completing works in the Beckenham Green area. There was a gap in the brickwork near the planters. This was because the contractors were waiting for delivery of the green bricks that would spell out the name, ‘Beckenham Green’. It was anticipated that this work would be completed during the next five weeks. Some of the lamp columns had been dug up and re-instated. Some electrical work was still required to be completed by UK Power Networks.

 

Mr Munnelly informed the Group that the phase 3 work at Thornton’s Corner was well advanced, and that a good space had been created for pedestrians. Orders had been placed for the phase 4 work around Village Way.

 

The contractors would be pulling off site at the end of November, and traffic would revert to two way; work would re-commence in the second week of January. Mr Munnelly felt that work was generally going well, with minimum disruption. Communication had been good, and the Beckenham Business Association had been regularly updated.

 

The Chairman asked about the re-order of the granite. It was confirmed that the new granite had arrived, and that it was pink. Mr Goy asked if it was the correct granite as he felt that the pink colouration was very hard to see. The Chairman asked if the granite was porous, and it was clarified that granite was not a porous material. It would require jet washing to be cleaned properly. Mr Munnelly assured that a budget was available for jet washing, and that enhanced cleaning would be incorporated into any future contracts. The granite areas were likely to be jet-washed quarterly. Jackie Groundsell was concerned that the cost of jet-washing may be borne by the BID. It was clarified that this was not the case and that LBB would be bearing the cost.

 

Chloe-Jane Ross remarked that a more stringent cleaning regieme may be required for outside of the Kebab Shop, and that jet washing quarterly was not sufficient. 

 

The Group discussed matters relating to bus stops. It was noted that when the work paused for the Christmas break, all of the bus routes would return to their pre-scheme operations; this included Rectory Road. The Group heard that some bus stops had been removed during the course of the major scheme work. It was anticipated that these bus stops would be re-instated over the Christmas break, but it was likely that liaison with TfL would be required for clarification.

 

Sarah Niblock stated that there were many kerbs in the front of the High Street that were chipped. Assurance was provided that any damage to the kerbs would be made good.

 

Janice Pilgrim referred to perceived issues with the tactile paving by the crossing near to Beckenham Junction Station. The Chairman asked Ms Pilgrim to make a basic plan for the engineers so that they could investigate further.

 

Post Meeting Note  ...  view the full minutes text for item 152.

153.

UPDATE ON RECTORY ROAD-PEDESTRIAN REFUGE AND NEW MINI ROUNDABOUT

An update will be provided by Gary Warner—LBB Head of Highways.

Minutes:

A design had been put forward for a new pedestrian refuge. It had to be decided if this would be a temporary or permanent solution. Mr Warner explained that the cost of a temporary or permanent solution would be the same. The Chairman felt that the refuge was required immediately. Mr Warner stated that this matter had been looked at previously. Sarah Niblock stated that there were already two refuges in Rectory Road (by the tram stop and at the traffic lights), and so there was no requirement for a third. She felt that this would cause extra problems with traffic congestion. She suggested that the Group go and have a look for themselves at the existing crossing and refuge. A possibility was that the existing refuge be removed, and an alternate be located at Stop G.

 

Mr Munnelly asked if this could be reviewed in six months.

 

Mr Warner stated that the matter of a roundabout at the junction with Blakeney Road had been looked at three or four years ago, and no evidence had been forthcoming to justify a roundabout going in. The safety engineers had looked into the matter previously. The Chairman expressed the view that the roundabout was a good idea as it would slow traffic and prevent accidents. Mr Goy said that as a cyclist he found the existing configuration with the ‘right turn pocket lane’ provided a safe place to wait out of the main traffic flow on the bending road.

 

RESOLVED that the issue of pedestrian refuges in Rectory Road be reviewed in 6 months time.  

 

154.

REPORT ON PUBLIC/ DIGITAL DISPLAY BOARDS pdf icon PDF 269 KB

Members of the Working Group are invited to comment on the report drafted by Lorraine McQuillan—Town Centre Manager.

Minutes:

Lorraine McQuillan explained that digital display boards were very expensive, and that a high end model would be required to be effective. She felt that it was not value for money to progress any further with the idea.

 

The display boards had the facility to generate income from advertising-- however the general view was that they should primarily be for community notices.

 

Mr Goy opined that what the public required was just to be able to insert a piece of paper into a board, and not to have to use USBs and cloud technology.

 

RESOLVED that

 

(1) The three existing notice boards be replaced and upgraded by cleaning, illumination and lowering as required. Kevin Munnelly confirmed that a budget was available for this.

 

(2) One of the notice boards should be disabled friendly.   

 

155.

UPDATE ON PROGRESS BEING MADE WITH THE PARKING REVIEW

An update will be provided by members of the Town Centre Team.

Minutes:

It had been resolved at the previous meeting that an independent report concerning parking in Beckenham be drafted by the Beckenham Town Team. This report was presented to the Group for consideration.

 

The report suggested eight objectives that would improve the parking provision in Beckenham. The review reported on consistency of parking, a review of the charging structure, the creation of new parking provision and that parking information should be made easier to understand. It was suggested in the report that planned CPZ changes should be re-considered.

 

The report outlined a way forward and made three recommendations:

 

·  The Working Group to endorse the objectives of the report

·  That detailed maps and revenue/usage data be provide to the Town Centre Team

·  The TCT to prepare a proposal to change parking provision--to be endorsed by the Working Group.

 

RESOLVED that:

 

(1) The Working Group endorse the objectives of the Parking Review document that had been written by the Beckenham Town Team

 

(2) The Town Centre Team prepare a proposal to change parking provision to be endorsed by the Working Group

 

(3) Once the proposal has been endorsed, it should be submitted to the Environment Portfolio Holder for consideration.

 

(4) More information on revenues and usage be provided to the Town Centre Team.

 

 

 

 

 

156.

TOWN CENTRE TEAM UPDATE

Minutes:

It was noted that no funding would be forthcoming from the London Mayor for the David Bowie memorial project. The TCT (Town Centre Team) were looking at alternate funding streams. The Group heard that the amount of funding required was £30k. Mr Munnelly asked if a temporary mural may be possible. Chloe-Jane Ross responded that the TCT did not want a graffiti image, but an image of better quality. It was possible that crowd funding could still be used. It was the general consensus that a graffiti type image was not suitable for Beckenham. 

157.

UPDATE ON THE CHRISTMAS LIGHTS

The update will be provided by Lorraine McQuillan—Town Centre Manager.  

Minutes:

The Group heard that LBB had provided the Town Centre Team (TCT) with £6.5k towards the cost of the Christmas lights. The work would be undertaken by John Packmore. The TCT were hoping for a Christmas event on the Green. The impressive artificial Christmas tree frame at Shortlands was noted. It was hoped that Beckenham could have a similar type of tree on the Green, but extra funding would be required for this. The tree (if acquired) could be located opposite Gallery 17 in the tree pit. It was possible that either the BID or Regency Cars may contribute towards the cost of ongoing storage. 

158.

UPDATE ON BECKENHAM GREEN CANOPY pdf icon PDF 183 KB

An update will be provided at the meeting by Sylvia Ramos--Regeneration Project Planner.

Minutes:

The update on the Beckenham Green canopy was provided by Sylvia Ramos (LBB Regeneration Project Planner).

 

Beckenham Green’s stone paved stage would form part of an open architectural student competition for the concept design of a canopy.  The canopy would sit over the existing stage and would enable the venue to be used for a variety of events.  Several constraints would form part of the design: conservation area status; adjacent trees; vandalism prevention; minimal maintenance; and a set budget.  The chosen design from the competition would inform a brief for the design and manufacture of the canopy. 

 

The canopy would need sides, and would need to be rain proof. The sides may need to be removable. It would also need an electricity supply. Ideally it should also blend in well with the surrounding trees and general ethos of the conservation area.

 

Chloe-Jane Ross was not in favour of removable sides; she suggested that the design should incorporate elements that would make it unattractive for use by rough sleepers. The Chairman mentioned that the matter of clearing away leaves should also be considered. He also referred to other considerations such as the use of lighting, fixings, spotlights and sap dripping off trees. 

 

An informal brief would be distributed for feedback to three members of the working party – Chloe-Jane Ross, Alan Old, and Doctor John Parker. Once an agreement on the canopy’s informal brief had been established, Ms Ramos would distribute it to London wide architectural universities. Competition judges would include the Renewal Team, and members of the working party. Members of the Working Group were invited to feed back to Ms Ramos with ideas for the brief.

 

The budget for the canopy was £35k, and there would be a £500.00 prize for the winning design. 

159.

UPDATE ON APPLICATION TO MAINTAIN PURPLE FLAG STATUS

Minutes:

It was noted that a new floodlight had been sited on the purple flag. This worked with a timer. 

 

The Group was informed that the renewal application for the Purple Flag had been submitted in June, and that a decision was due imminently.

160.

ANY OTHER BUSINESS (PREVIOUSLY NOTIFIED)

Minutes:

Mr Goy raised the matter of the safety audit report and stated that he was not satisfied with the response to his queries so far. He asked if he could be provided with a copy of the safety audit report. Garry Warner undertook to send him the safety audit which was done in different phases.

161.

DATE OF NEXT MEETING

The date of the next meeting is to be confirmed.

Minutes:

The date of the next meeting was confirmed as Thursday 16th November at 7.30pm.