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Alan Booth Secretary
Woodlea, Perth Road Dunblane
FK15 0BU
Tel: 01786824791
Ailsa Gray
Chair Old Glassingall
Dunblane FK15 0JG
Tel: 07775313038
Minutes of the Dunblane Community Council held on Wednesday, 5 October, 2022, in the Library, Dunblane, at 7 p.m. This is a "blended" meeting with some attendees joining via Zoom.
Present: Ailsa Gray (Chair), Alan Booth (Secretary), Terence O'Byrne, Graham Mowat, Karen Jenkins, Stewart Corbett, David Prescott, Andy Mitchell, Craig French, Annelise Bakri. Joining by Zoom: Sharon Mylchreest and Fiona Plumtree.
In attendance: Councillors Alasdair Tollemache, Graham Houston and Douglas Dodds, Bridget Clark, Anna Jarchow-MacDonald.
1. Apologies
Apologies have been received from James Byrne and Margaret Bragg.
2. Chair's Remarks
The Chair welcomed everyone to the meeting. There are no conflicts of interest and no Press in attendance.
3. Co-option process and welcoming an associate member
Stewart Corbett has attended three meetings and can now be voted in as a full community councillor. Anna Jarchow-MacDonald was accepted as a co-opted member, Anna can become a full community councillor following the attendance of two further meetings. There is still an opportunity for the community council to co- opt new members. The Secretary publicised the community council has an opening for co-opting to the community of Dunblane. No co-opting nominations forms have been received.
4. Approval of minutes of 7 September 2022
The minutes of previous meeting were approved, proposed by Terence O'Byrne and seconded by Karen Jenkins.
5. Matters arising: was taken as read. See attached paper.
Steps at Argyle Way: Councillor Tollemache contacted Scottish Water (SW) to discuss the reinstatement of the steps. SW stated the reinstatement was carried out to the best of their ability given the existing ground conditions. Councillor Tollemache noted the steps failed to comply with DDA standards but also the area has been left untidy. It is unlikely SW will revisit the area as they consider this work to be complete. Councillor Tollemache will visit the steps on Friday and report back. Action: Councillor Tollemache.
Waste bin review No update?
Kinbuck Road and Auchinlay Road: Councillor Tollemache confirmed he had received comments from 25 people from Kinbuck, their principal concerns were drainage, speed of vehicles, diversions off the A9, damage to the bridge. Concerns were also received regarding proposed future work associated with the electrification of the train line from Dunblane to Perth. Changes to the bridge for the electrification work could open the possibilities for the new rail crossing to incorporate a pedestrian footpath which does not exist on the present bridge. Network Rail would not add a footpath to the replacement bridge, the additional cost might come from Stirling Council. Councillor Tollemache will report back following a meeting next week. Action: Councillor Tollemache.
Scottish Water: Work is now complete, and all roads previously affected by the drainage work have now been reopened. It is understood the new drainage has been connected to the existing system and is now live. Scottish Water will be dismantling their site compound and reinstating the grassed field (opposite M&S). The 50 mph road signs off the Keir roundabout still require the bin bag covers removed.
Disabled toilets: Councillor Tollemache opened a dialogue with Stirling Council regarding the condition of the toilets. A site visit highlighted the issues. It was agreed that the current condition of the WCs was unacceptable and the work will be carried out immediately.
6. Standing items
Gullies and gritting: Terence O'Byrne is working with Stirling Council on a programme of gulley clearing. A list of priority gullies has been passed to Stirling Council addressing gullies on Claredon Place and Kinbuck Road, then focusing on Perth Road and the 7-ways roundabout. Some areas of localised flooding is caused by blocked road gullies. In some areas there needed to be a change to the gully type, with the side entry gullies being particularly prone to blockages. Terence O'Byrne stated he would continue to provide manual clearance to some gullies on the understanding Stirling Council would create a programme of action to address the problem with a long-term solution.
Terence O'Byrne will be meeting Stirling Council on Friday to discuss his report on winter maintenance and gritting in Dunblane. At present the Roads Dpt. appear willing to take onboard the report. Action: Terence O'Byrne
Cycle routes and Active Travel There may be an avenue for additional funding for active travel through available grants. Bridget Clark is presently carrying out a lot of work for the Paths Group in applying for grants. She identified a number of issues which can occur when making grant applications, including establishing land ownership and drawing a response from Stirling Council. Throughout Bridget’s experience of funding applications, she has developed a ‘good project’ formula which if pursued can mean an application meets the required criteria and might pass through the application process with little resistance. Bridget is presently looking at funding for the playground at Newton Crescent.
Councillor Tollemache said a plan had been released for the reinstatement of the cycle lanes on the Perth Road between the 7-ways roundabout and the M&S roundabout. These details will be forwarded onto Alan Booth and Bridget Clark. Action: Councillor Tollemache.
Cathedral Burial Ground: Thanks to this issue being taken up by local Councillors, MP and MSPs, a site visit has now been arranged where Historic Environment Scotland will meet with elected officials, and representatives from DCC and DDT. The meeting has been scheduled for Tuesday 15 November. Andy Mitchell was asked to relay the date of the meeting to Mr David Mercer. Action: Andy Mitchell.
Keir Roundabout Terence O'Byrne and David Prescott met with Amey to discuss the proposed road works and traffic diversion around the Keir roundabout. The work will be taking place between Friday 28th October and Monday 31st. Stirling Council and Amey to publicise the diversions well in advance of the work as traffic disruption is expected.
7. Planning updates: See attached.
Terence O'Byrne circulates the weekly planning schedule from the Council.
8. Local Place Plan
The Chair reported that a meeting between the Chair, Terence O’Byrne, Amanda Cunningham-Gray (DDT) and Stirling Council on the process for surveying local residents. Survey Monkey was seen to be a positive method where Stirling Council will provide DCC with a list of local postcodes to assist with understanding what areas of Dunblane have responded to the survey and which areas may require additional support to respond. The Chair offered to pass current information to other DCC members should they wish to assist in the LPP process. A working group will be formed to work on the survey and what questions should be included.
9. The Police Report: See attached.
Councillor Tollemache had received an email from a resident local to the Mill Row area. The email thanked the police for their extra work and patrols in the area and noted there has been a noticeable reduction in litter and disturbances.
10. Treasurer's Report : See attached.
Stewart Corbett highlighted DCC had received an admin grant from Stirling Council but this year’s grant is less than half of that received last year. The reduction in grant was justified by Stirling Council due to DCC not using all of last year’s grant. It was highlighted that while DCC might not have used their full admin grant last year, it fully expected the work associated with the creation of the Local Place Plan will require additional funding out with DCC’s annual admin grant allocation.
11. Correspondence Report: See attached.
12. Reports of external meetings
None
13. Reports from Ward councillors
Graham Houston reported Stirling Council had still not produced a satisfactory pollination strategy for Dunblane and he was currently engaging with residents of Newton on this matter. Graham also reported Stirling Council had not sent out road sweeps to Dunblane to clear fallen leaves around the town.
14. Dunblane Development Trust Report
Alan Booth reported there was still a place on the DDT board for a representative from DCC. Until this position is filled it was felt Alan Booth and Stewart Corbett’s attendance would be sufficient to maintain communications.
The Dementia Friendly Café is holding an invitational event to celebrate the good work being done.
15. High School Liaison
Anna Jarchow-MacDonald noted previous garden project was continuing well without any further DCC involvement. Terence O'Byrne, Anna Jarchow-MacDonald and Annelise Bakri to meet to walk through previous DCC/High School liaisons and work out how DofE scheme could help find good local plan involvement. This could possibly occur through Advanced higher Geography course linking into the Local Place Plan.
16. AOCB
DDC had received an email raising concern over the location of timber post and fence erected along the edge of the field behind Grant Drive. Fiona Plumbtree had visited the location and confirmed the new fence appeared to be located along the same line as the original post and wire fence although it was considerably higher than the original fence standing between 7-8 feet.
There are 25 defibrillators located throughout the town. The defibrillators require an annual service to ensure they are in a working order, there are costs associated with the service/upkeep of each defibrillator. There is currently a question over retaining the defibrillator located at Newton Primary School due to these annual costs. Steve Masson will contact Trossachs Search and Rescue who are responsible for the defibrillators and establish if they as such should have an updated register
of working defibrillators and be able to advise on maintenance costs. Action: Steve Masson.
Dunblane Community Councillor James Bryne is local to the Newton School and will contact residents to see if there is an appetite for retaining the defibrillator at the primary school and if sponsorship might be an avenue to investigate. Action: James Bryne.
There was resistance to updating the town noticeboard with the defibrillator locations as this could be difficult to keep up to date. A better option would be to have a QR code linking to a website which confirms the location of defibrillators.
Progress on High School involvement in the newsletter will be slowed over the next few week due to the school holidays beginning on the 7th October. Ailsa Gray suggested the Newsletter might benefit from Amanda Cunningham-Grey’s input.
Traffic speed along Springfield Terrace has been raised as a concern. There is a public footpath between the flats on Springfield Terrance and Glebe Place which comes out at the end of parked cars. This is a popular place for crossing the road as the path on the other side leads to the train station. Ailsa Gray proposed a traffic- controlled crossing in this location would create a safe pedestrian crossing point and would also help to address the speed of traffic in this location.
The vacancy for a Dunblane Primary School Crossing Patroller (Lollipop man/woman) on Doune Road remains unfilled. Position could be better advertised locally with details to contact Amanda, who can assist any potential application through the application process. Karen Jenkins to add the vacancy to the DCC facebook page. Action: Karen Jenkins
Stirling Council are piloting a new initiative to help local residents look after their own environment. The initiative is beginning by focusing on local snow clearing champions who can help their neighbours by clearing local footpaths. This could spread to looking after other areas such as tree pruning, path sweeping. Alan Booth highlighted a concern over the council removing funding for some activities if local residents are doing the work themselves.
17. Election of eligible co-opted members to full membership
Stewart Corbett was voted on as a full member of the community council.
18. Date, time and place of next meeting
The next meeting of the Dunblane Community Council will take place on Wednesday, 2 November, 2022, at 7 p.m. in the Library.
The meeting ended at 9.30 p.m.
This is a true representation of the meeting.
Ailsa Gray ……………………………………………………….. Date ………………………….. Chair
Alan Booth …………………………………………………… .. Date ………………………… Secretary