MINUTES 25th February 2015 7.30pm

Present: Jenny Maclennan, Tom Thomas, Liz Sinclair, Morris Colven, Andrew Steel, Rhiannon Elder, PC Eddie Mackenzie, Cllr MacLean, Cllr MacKenzie,

Catriona Meiklejohn (CCC) Jim Atwood (CCC)

Apologies: Eilidh Green, Jamie Dunsmore, Cllr, Paterson and Cllr Mackenzie,

Cllr Mackinnon, Angus Christie.

 

BUSINESS

Previous minutes – Minutes approved and adopted by Liz and Morris

Matters arising

Potholes – Cllr MacKenzie stated that extra funding for road repairs had been allocated to the Ross & Cromarty area and added that repairs were ongoing .

Hot’ tar , as opposed to the current use of ‘cold ‘tar would be used in future to facilitate repairs of potholes, hopefully resulting in repairs being more durable.

Reports of potholes should be submitted via The Highland Council online reporting system. This will create an email response. The committee was reminded that at the last meeting, Cllr Mackinnon advised people to also circulate their email response from the council to their local Cllrs to enable them to monitor the situation.

A link to the Highland Council ‘pothole site’  has been made available on the Maryburgh website and FB page.

  • Community Payback Services – Tom reported that he had contacted Jim Stewart regarding the painting of the hall and general tidying up of communal areas. Work will commence as the weather conditions allow.

       Action Tom and Liz will monitor and progress this as required.

  • Smiley Faces Speed Signs – Cllr Maclean stated they had been acquired, however there has been a delay in installation due to back up batteries and a ‘special cable’ being required. These are now available and Fujitsu are expected to carry  out the installation ‘shortly’ although no specific date could be given. This item once again led onto discussion regarding the concerns of the Safer Routes to School. The MCC had  hoped to have Hugh Logan attend this meeting but Cllr Maclean reported that he had been off work for a while and had just returned. As the safety audit is due to take place ‘imminently’ MCC members feel that the issues concerning local residents should be heard prior to this taking place and those issues being incorporated as part of any review process.

Action Email Hugh Logan to extend the invite to the next CC meeting on 25th March 

MAC Ltd. Update

Jenny updated the group.

There is a delay with the transfer of the lease for the Amenities and football pitch .This is still with Highland Council’s legal department. When this is sorted we can transfer the charity number over to the new Company.

The Stage One lottery DRAFT application has been submitted. The current scheme is closing to Stage 1 applications in June.

Another scheme will take its place in November. Estimated date for submission of Stage 2 application is now August 2015, on the proviso that the Stage 1 application is successful.

Ongoing fundraising is still an issue to support the hall in the meantime and this is being taken forward by the amenities committee. Anyone wishing to help with fundraising please contact Nick Thornton (hall) or Eilidh Green , (Gala).

Councillor news.

Next Community Forum meeting is the 26th February in the County Buildings, Dingwall at 6pm with Police, Fire and Planning representatives.

Ben Wyvis Primary audit.

Cllr Maclean reported that the internal audit is still ongoing, but is expected to be completed in March.

The Facilities Management scheme which replaced janitors has been halted pending review within the Highland Council.

Flooding reported at the school due to silt from the nearby building site, has still not been suitably resolved. Blocked gullies which were cleared have silted up again. Investigations as to the root cause and what preventative measures need to be employed are ongoing.

 

Community Police Update

PC Eddie MacKenzie stated that ‘Operation Route’ continues to be carried out, this monitors speeding and antisocial behaviour. Police attended 45 incidents in the ‘Conon Beat’  area, of which only 7 were specific to Maryburgh. PC Mackenzie reiterated that Police could only be effective in preventing and dealing with crime if they are advised by  the public of offences or potential ‘problems’ that may arise if not dealt with prior to escalation. If in doubt, contact police anyway and they will endeavour to assess every report made to them.

 

Finance

No statement was available at the meeting as Jamie was not present.

 

Correspondence

Jenny had received notification regarding the proposed SSE upgrades to the electricity supply network to be undertaken by SSE between Beauly and Loch Buidhe. There are a total of 5 possible ‘routes’ for new pylons including the existing one running west of Maryburgh and across theA835. A public meeting in Strathpeffer Community Centre on 5th March is scheduled for public discussion regarding the proposed routes.

Catriona Meiklejohn stated that as far as she was aware, the existing route was the preferred one by SSE and this was likely to be used as it would minimise disruption to the area by upgrading it, as opposed to installing a completely new grid elsewhere in the area.

 

AOCB

HITRANS is holding a seminar in Dingwall on 2nd March 2015 regarding the quality of rail services from Inverness – Kyle – Wick. Morris will attend as the MCC representative.

 

Date of next meeting Wednesday 25th March.