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ARTICLES THAT HAVE APPEARED ON WEST MERSEA TOWN COUNCIL HOME PAGE IN THE FAIRLY RECENT PAST |
| NEW POWER STATION AT BRADWELL Bradwell has been revealed as one of the most suitable places in the country for a new nuclear power station. A recent Government report about the future of nuclear power says that new power stations should be developed alongside renewable energy sources and this could be literally the case in this location. If given the go ahead the new power station could be sited just a few hundred metres from a ten turbine wind farm. A Government Consultation Document has listed Bradwell as one of the top three prime locations for a new generation of power stations. The two major schemes have attracted mixed feelings on the Dengie Peninsular - the majority being in favour of the power station but opposed to the wind farm. I would suspect that this would not be the case in Mersea - we shall see! ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| MERSEA OPEN SPACES - NEW SITE ALLOCATIONS Site designations - as currently specified under the Borough Plan - were up for discussion - at some length - at the last Council Meeting - with strong feelings being expressed! Cllr Clements presented a draft of the Village Appraisal and referring to sections of the report made the following proposal "West Mersea Town Council proposes the re designation of exactly one half of the School Field so that, if the PCT want, they can build a new surgery on that site" Cllr Clements had recently met with the Head Teacher of Mersea School to ask if the remaining half of the field would be open for public use - but she has said that the Governing Body would want a formal approach from the PCT before they could consider this. Some Councillors felt that just a small section picked out of the Village Appraisal Report at this stage - did not give the whole picture, and that until a full report was available it would be wrong to rely on statements in one section only. Cllr Wargent said that this section did not mention ages, and that a large number of residents under 50 years of age did not want the field built on - and that the report was not representative of the whole island Cllr Clements replied that over a third of the island are over 60 years and about 40% completed the Village Appraisal forms - 1940 completed the forms i.e. a third of the population - Cllr Clements stated that by any standards the appraisal represented a large proportion of the island - other Councillors did not agree The following proposal was put forward by Cllr Clements seconded by Cllr Kimberley "This Council recommends the re designation of the southern half of the school field specifically and only to allow the building of a medical centre on it and the re designation of Willoughby Car Park as Public Open Space" After a show of hands the proposed was passed - the following Councillors voting against - with recorded votes - Cllrs Urquhart, Vince and Wargent It was agreed that the recommendation should be put to Colchester Borough Council Planning Department (it should be noted that this recommendation actually goes against Borough Council PLanning Guidelines) |
| PROPOSED CHANGES TO FLOOD SIREN ALERTS There is to be a review of the use of coastal Flood Sirens. The Sirens used in Mersea today for flood warnings are the same ones that were used during World War 2 to warn of enemy action. Maintenance of these sirens is proving uneconomic and they will cease operating in July 2008. In the meantime an alternative "Flood Warning Direct System" will be put in place. We are not quite sure yet what this "alternative" system is or what it involves (perhaps a man on a bicycle blowing a bugle!). Rest assured will let you know when we find out more. |
| OLD SHEDS – NEW PLANS Lay and Wheeler have submitted new plans for the old Oyster Sheds in Coast Road. The sheds comprise two linked buildings overlooking Cobmarsh Island – Thornfleet and Mersea Fleet and lie within West Mersea Conservation area. Permission is being sought for a change of use from a private corporate venue to an A3 class use restaurant with additional car parking. The proposed new car park will be sited on the Victory Boatyard below and against the existing mature hedge. the proposals include 21 parking spaces on the Victory boatyard - an automatic entrance - exit barrier and cycle racks The proposed plans for the sheds show a 48 cover restaurant with south and west facing balconies (to maximise the view of the saltings and the sunset!) Business hours will be 6 days and 6 evenings a week – 11am to 11pm. The restaurant will be open to the public during normal hours but Wheelers Cellars will also run special functions for their clients throughout the year. Lay and Wheeler hold the leasehold interest and business of the Peldon Rose These plans have complied with certain restrictions as laid down by English Nature and the Environment Agency. The proposed Plans include a new gable end wall which will be predominantly constructed in glass to take advantage of the view – existing timber walls to be finished in cream colour washed weatherboard – and roof will be covered in tan (old sails?) coloured roofing sheets. Full details of the plans can be seen in the Council Offices in Melrose Road Latest - At the last Planning Meeting - West Mersea Council agreed to recommend these plans be passed with certain conditions imposed < ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| NO CROSSING FOR BARFIELD ROAD Public demand for a zebra crossing in Barfield Road has led to a survey of traffic and pedestrian use being carried out recently. The calculations indicated that the site only achieved a quarter of the required criterion for a crossing - therefore it was determined that the installation of a zebra crossing was not recommended. |
| LINK ROAD A recent letter from Cllr Hume, Highways and Tranportation - Essex County Council concerning the proposed Link Road stated the following:- "We are disappointed to learn that the earliest possible funding for this scheme may not be through by 2011-2016 when it will be considered against other requests from around the county". |
| SECTION 106 "PLANNING GAIN" CASH LEFT UNSPENT A local newspaper has recently revealed that Colchester Borough Council have spent just £1.2million of the £19.5million they have received as part of "Section 106 Agreements". Councils allow developers to put up housing and as part of the planning agreement they have to invest in community facilities. It appears that this money is sitting in Council coffers rather than being spent on the communities it was meant for. Colchester has said that a large proportion of the cash had been given to Essex County Council for spending on education and highways. In the past the council had lost money because it has failed to keep track of Section 106 agreements which had then lapsed but that much had been done to prevent similar occurrences. |
| PARISH CHURCHYARD MAINTENANCE At the last Finance Meeting it was agreed that the The Town Council pay the annual Churchyard maintenance payment of £950 to the Parish Church |
| WIND FARM AT BRADWELL Energy giant Npower have won their appeal to place 10 wind turbines on farmland at Bradwell. The Planning Inspector stated that this would mean a major change to the appearance of the Dengie Peninsular but he was satisfied that the essential character of the area would not be lost. The wind farm will power on average between 8,000 and 10,000 local homes. The turbines will stand at 121 metres tall on farmland to the south of St Peter's Chapel and will be clearly seen from Mersea. |
| PLANNING MATTERS OLD OYSTER SHEDS The Town Council have received a renewal of the existing approval to take down the existing oyster sheds, refurbish and renovate timber frame walls and roof, re erect walls and extend shed for use as a private oyster tasting and luncheon/dining suite. This application did not include parking but did include "bussing" clients from the Peldon Rose. Several letters have been received expressing concerns about this plan mainly on grounds of highway problems. The Town Council recommended refusal of this original plan on the same grounds as the original refusal. |
| PROPOSED CHANGES TO AIRSPACE IN THIS AREA Airspace over south east England is used by aircraft heading to or from airports in this region (i.e.Stanstead) . Direct flight paths burn less fuel and create fewer emissions and continuous descent approaches reduce noise and improve fuel efficiency by keeping aircraft higher for longer Changes in aircraft routes with some of the aircraft now stacking over the Sudbury area would be relocated potentially increasing the concentration of aircraft over Mersea and the Blackwater area. They would like your views on these proposals. Website - www.nats.co.uk/TCNconsultation |
| COLCHESTER BOROUGH COUNCIL ELECTIONS MAJOR POWER SHIFT TO LIB DEMS Colchester bucked the national trend in May's Borough elections by losing seats and some senior councillors. The Conservatives declined to power share and as a result the Cabinet will now comprise five Liberal Democrat councillors, two Labour representatives and one Independent. Proposed Make Up of New Cabinet Anne Turrell - LIB - Leader of the Council Martin Hunt - LIB - Deputy Leader and portfolio holder for customers and communities Paul Smith - LIB - Resources and Business Portfolio holder Linda Barton - LIB - Regeneration and Planning portfolio holder Theresa Higgins - LIB - Culture tourism and diversity portfolio holder Tim Young - LAB - Street and Waste services portfolio holder Tina Dopson - LAB - Performance, partnership and waste policy portfolio holder Beverley Oxford - IND - Neighbourhoods portfolio holder Colchester Animal Control Service - Tel 01206 282582 |
| LEVELLING THE PLAYING FIELDS The following article appeared in the January edition of Private Eye |
| VILLAGE GREEN The Town Council are pleased to announce that after a seven year battle to secure the future of the Youth Field our application for "Village Green Status" on this field has been WON! It should be noted that though the Village Green designation has now been signed and delivered - there is still no proper access to it - the grassy side entrance next to the Legion belongs to the school who have control OVER IT. Access through the School Gardens is subject to the gate being locked (abiding by the terms of the Lease) at certain times - the only proper access open at all times is through the path at Oyster Close BACKGROUND TO VILLAGE GREEN APPLICATION ON SCHOOL FIELD The School or Youth field was one of the few remaining green spaces in the town and many locals and the Council feared that the land would become a car park or a housing development. A campaign to secure village green status was launched by the Council seven years ago. Following a public enquiry in April the Inspector ruled that the land could now be registered as a village green -to be enjoyed by all the people of Mersea. The Council opes to turn the whole area into a public park for future generations. The Council (and more particularly previous ex Mayors and Councillors who no longer serve on our Council - who both instigated and dealt with this matter over a long period) had to make some tough decisions along this journey, especially in terms of finance - and we would like to thank them publically. We would also like to emphasise that this victory would not have been possible but for the witnesses who gave evidence at the inquiry to make a statement to the effect that they had used this field "as of right" since childhood and it is thanks to the following that the field was saved:- Nicholas Mussett - Stephen D'Wit - Sylvia Wargent - Karen Capon - Donald Proctor - Susan Wargent - Ruth Woodley - Robert Lee - Nicholas Hines - David Tucker - David Bragg - Stephen Vince - Sylvia Vince - Len Harvey - Trevor Vince - Moyia Clark |
The following sets out WMTC’s understanding of the current position. a. It is clear that a planning application for a new surgery on the Legion Field site will NOT now be put forward. b. Colchester Planning Department has indicated in writing that they would not support the Legion Field for the new surgery, as it is neither viable nor justifiable. Apparently, the LIFT Committee had not ticked all the correct boxes on this location. c. Mersea people have asked why the surgery could not go on the clinic site in Barfield Road, which is owned by the PCT. They were told that the site was not big enough. They have also said that they needed to sell it to pay towards the new surgery. In addition they would not get the required building grants if they build on their own land. d. Councillors at West Mersea have put forward alternative sites to LIFT – none of which were seen as being suitable. e. Loss of the Legion Field results in a loss of designate Open Space for West Mersea – planning rules stipulate that any Open Space used for development is replaced elsewhere within the village boundary - West Mersea Town Council are not aware of any replacement open space provision. f. A splayed entrance to the proposed surgery is a requirement of planning- which means taking a section of the Legion entrance - the RBL have voted against this – but there are other negative factors involved. A similar splay would be needed on the opposite side - part of the school gardens - which is leased to the Town Council - we have not so far been consulted on this g. Access - the Highways Department have already stated that they would not allow two entrances (the Legion car park and the surgery access) next to each other onto a fast moving road. h. A number of parents have expressed concerns to Councillors about a possible entrance to a surgery on a road frequently used by schoolchildren - Barfield Road. This is a narrow, busy road with a blind bend - opposite a school - children would be running across the new access on their way to and from school. k. The Underwood’s showroom and workshops have been offered as a site for the surgery. The owner wishes to build a new surgery to LIFT specifications, but Realise Health have turned this down because they want to own the land and not lease it. Realise Health have also stated that the site is not big enough for their proposals. (The PCT have recently implied that they do not need as big a site as they first thought). However, Bernard Jenkins MP has now intervened and said that Realise Health should re-consider this scheme as the PCT have surgeries on other leasehold sites - including the present surgery. i. At the present time other alternative sites are being discussed - two on central locations. m. LIFT were asked to complete an analysis of their planning requirements to the Planning Department but have not yet done so to our knowledge. j. Selling off a Playing Field needs the permission of the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister. As far as we know this permission has yet to be sought. k. In answer to those who ask why the piece of land cannot be compulsorily purchased. The process of compulsory purchasing - even if agreed - is long and complicated and could take up to four years to complete LIFT Project Director of North East Essex - Primary Care Trust (received on 17th August) |
| LAND SOLD FOR NEW NUCLEAR BUILD Land on the Dengie Peninsular adjacent to the old Bradwell Power Station has recently been auctioned off (along with other nuclear land sites in North Wales and Gloucestershire). It has been reported that EDF Energy paid £160million for the land at Bradwell. The Nuclear Decommissioning authority has now raised almost £400 million to help clean up former nuclear sites - more than was expected |