Full Council approves executive restructuring that cuts the two posts of deputy chief executive effective April 1, 2010 and takes the post of finance director off the management team. This is the outcome of a succession planning programme agreed in July 2007. It will save some £300K per annum from 2012.
Given the problems the authority will face over the next two or three years I have some reservations about axing both deputies at the same time in view of the length of their experience and soundness of judgment and about the downgrading of the position of chief financial officer. However since the decision has now been taken we must all get behind it and make it work.
Chichester District Council adds its voice to others objecting to the application to make processing at the the Walnut Tree Farm composting site permanent. It states:
'The Local Planning Authority is not satisfied that adequate measures are in place to ensure the consistent and proper management of the composting to prevent odour from the site being detrimental to the amenity of residents in the locality.'
It is likely that the application will now go to committee on September 29, 2009.
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Marsh Lane Watch
Odour on July 6. Reported to EA and assessed as 5 on a scale of 1 to 10 in terms of intensity. Suggestions of odour at other times especially afternoon of July 10. Not much from gas guns this week.
More interesting, on July 9, at 07:20 received report of stray horses near the church. Made two calls, one to community warden who advised the police who said if horses not on road no business of theirs; the other to Langmead Farms in case they belonged to the tenant grazing horses nearby. Went to check myself, found they were in the churchyard. It turned out they were not part of the other group of horses. What had happened, a passerby seeing the two on road had taken them into the churchyard for their own safety. Good move but you need to know about horses to do that. Later in the morning the actual owner from whose property in Runcton Lane they had escaped called the police in great anxiety who advised her of their whereabouts. Her gratitude to the unknown passerby was unqualified. The RSPCA had also been informed. If need they would have collected them but it's their practice, a wise one as it turned out, to wait for 24 hours to give time for the owner to show up. Great excitement in Marsh Lane however. Helpful response by everyone involved.
Meeting with environmental health officer at CDC to discuss the Walnut Tree Farm application. The officer had visited the site and walked along Marsh Lane.
Called County planning to ask why the website had not been updated since July 3 since when they had received representations from my wife and myself. It turned out that they had also received an Environment Agency statement on June 30 but that hadn't been published either. This is extremely dilatory on County's part. The officer was going to look into it but by the end of the day nothing had been done. The public needs to see these representations. That's what the web is for.
Meeting of Oving Parish Council planning committee to review the Walnut Tree Farm application. Members of the committee had visited the site and gained a good understanding of the process. The committee gave the matter careful consideration and I was asked to present my position as a resident. I got a very fair hearing and my position was supported.
Earlier the same evening I attended the start of the Mundham, Hunston, Sidlesham Neighbourhood Management Panel meeting. Six or so present, mostly neighbourhood watch coordinators. It looked as if it was going to be a well run meeting. I was sorry no one was prepared to take on chairmanship. It was left to Sergeant Krys Ottery to do so but it is better if a non police person takes on the role so as to help embed the panel into the community. I hope someone will come forward at a subsequent meeting.
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Visited the Pallant House Gallery in the afternoon to learn about the gallery's work with disabled people with an interest in art, in particular the Partners in Art and Introduction to Pallant House programmes. Impressive. The visit was in connexion with the service level agreement being negotiated by the Council to underpin the Gallery's work with the community.
Community Action Project meeting at Oving. 17 present, just two from Oving. A good meeting. Chairman Jayne Stansby stands down at the October 7 AGM after three years during which she has got the group well established with a constitution, a committee and a number of worthwhile projects off the ground. She will be much missed.
Interesting to compare with Hunston the following day the operation within the CAP of the Oving and Tangmere NMP. In fact it went well as there was useful input from community members. The three priorities for the next period are car parking, parking overnight of artics near the entrance to the nursery in Tangmere and patrolling of 'hot spots' during the school holidays. PC Andrea Beard, after two years, moves on to Bognor and is replaced by Jason Stanley. She too will be missed.
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Letter of objection submitted to WSCC objecting to the application for the permanent processing of green waste at the Walnut Tree Farm green waste composting facility. Reference WSCC/024/09/NM
North Mundham Parish Council. Planning issues besides the Walnut Tree Farm composting site included a post mortem of the Wiseman's Cottage application that was approved by Development Control (South) Committee on July 1, 2009 by seven to five. Concern expressed by a neighbour that she did not know about the meeting taking place. It turns out that since October 2007 objectors are not informed as they used to be about the date of the meeting of the committee nor of their rights to speak. Had someone been present to speak either a resident or a Parish Councillor it might have made all the difference. I believe it was the wrong decision.
The Parish Council supported my position on the Walnut Tree Farm composting site application namely that until the site operators can demonstrate an odour free operation for an extended period, permission for permanent composting should be withheld.
James Langmead, in a letter of July 3 posted on the website, also opposes permanent permission. Tenants of his have complained of the smell and noise and he says that some have left because of it.
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At the Executive Board, on car parking strategy, there was support for the PDC's position that more work should be done on park and ride, and a report was asked for in the fall, this in the teeth of the portfolio holder's scepticism.
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