Agenda for Cabinet on Tuesday 2nd April 2019, 7.30 pm

Agenda, decisions and minutes

Venue: Council Chamber, Council Offices, The Campus, Welwyn Garden City, Herts, AL8 6AE

Contact: Graham Seal 

Items
No. Item

126.

APOLOGY

Minutes:

An apology for absence was received from Councillor T.Mitchinson (Executive Member, Leisure, Culture and Communications).

127.

MINUTES

To confirm as a correct record the Minutes of the meeting held on 5 March 2019 (previously circulated).

Minutes:

The Minutes of the meeting held on 5 March 2019 were approved as a correct record and signed by the Chairman.

128.

ACTIONS STATUS REPORT pdf icon PDF 46 KB

Report of the Corporate Director (Public Protection, Planning and Governance) on the status of actions agreed at the last Cabinet meeting.

Minutes:

The status of actions agreed at the Cabinet meeting on 5 March 2019 in the report of the Corporate Director (Public Protection, Planning and Governance) was noted.

129.

RECOMMENDATIONS FROM CABINET PANEL

To consider recommendations from the meeting of the Cabinet Planning and Parking Panel on 7 March 2019:-

 

Minutes:

The following recommendations from the meeting of the Cabinet Planning and Parking Panel on 7 March 2019 were considered:-

129a

Introduction of Waiting Restrictions in Various Roads, Cuffley pdf icon PDF 44 KB

Additional documents:

Decision:

Having considered the objection received and in particular the issues raised around equalities and diversity and all the detailed issues, including any proposed mitigating actions, the Cabinet agreed with the Planning and Parking Panel’s recommendation to proceed with the creation of the Traffic Regulation Order.

Minutes:

The Panel had considered the introduction of waiting restrictions in various roads, Cuffley noting that residents and businesses in parts of Cuffley were consulted on street parking restriction proposals in 2018.  When concluding the works programme for Cuffley, all requests made before October 2018 were also looked at, including a request for double yellow lines on sections of roads where obstructive parking was causing traffic flow issues.  These included requests from Colesdale and Brookside Crescent. 

 

The result of the informal consultation, the statutory consultation and the recommended course of action was noted and a total of 232 residents and businesses had been consulted with one objection being received; relating to Brookside Crescent mainly to the proposal for double yellow lines.  The proposals had been brought forward due to several requests from residents who lived directly by the section of highway where lines had been proposed and a short section of yellow lines on the bend of the road where the turning range was limited for larger vehicles, particularly refuse trucks.

 

RESOLVED:

 

That having considered the objection received and in particular the issues raised around equalities and diversity and all the detailed issues in the report, including any proposed mitigating actions, the Cabinet agrees to proceed with the creation of the Traffic Regulation Order as unanimously recommended by the Cabinet Panel.

129b

Introduction of Waiting Restrictions, Resident Permit Parking Scheme and Verge Protection Order in Various Roads, Roe Green, Central and East Wards, Hatfield pdf icon PDF 50 KB

Additional documents:

Decision:

Having considered the objections received and in addition the issues raised around equalities and diversity and all the detailed issues, including any proposed mitigating actions, the Cabinet agreed with the Cabinet Planning and Parking Panel’s recommendation to proceed with the creation of both the Verge Protection Order and the Residents Parking Permit Scheme.

Minutes:

The Panel had considered the introduction of waiting restrictions, a resident permit parking scheme and verge protection order in various roads, Roe Green, Central Ward, Hatfield.

 

It was noted that in recent years a large number of complaints had been received from residents in the Roe Green area of Hatfield about people parking in the residential roads when visiting the Galleria rather than paying for parking in the Galleria car park.  The Council in October 2016 started the parking consultation in the Roe Green area of Hatfield and the scheme was split into two, with Area One including the roads to the west of Lemsford Road being engaged in the first round. As a result of the consultation a resident permit parking scheme, together with additional waiting restrictions was introduced in various roads in Roe Green operating on Monday to Saturday from 8.00am to 6.00pm. Following the successful implementation of the scheme, a number of complaints continued to be received from residents concerning vehicles either parked on the footway or grass verge and a further letter was sent to residents informing them that they would be consulted on a verge protection order during the second round of consultation.

 

The Council received more and more requests all over the Borough to address vehicles parking on the verge and pavements and until recently, enforcement of parking on the pavement was within the remit of the Police, as this could be classed as an obstruction; however this was now regarded as a low priority for the Police due to other work pressures. Without an order in place, vehicles parked on the verge and green areas were reported through to the Council and the Street Warden team monitored and placed notices on vehicles parking in such areas, requesting that they refrain from doing so. The introduction of an order would provide the Civil Enforcement Officers with the means to effectively and robustly enforce vehicle parking in these areas by issuing a Parking Ticket.

 

In January 2018 the Council started the parking consultation in Area Two with the remaining roads predominantly to the east of Lemsford Road, Hatfield.

 

The results of the informal consultation, the statutory consultation and the recommended course of action were noted. Approximately 1800 properties and businesses had been consulted.

 

Twelve objections had been received relating to the proposed resident parking scheme and one relating to the proposed verge protection order.

 

The proposed operational days and times were based on the majority response from residents and would be monitored for six months, as with all changes to parking restrictions because there were different groups parking in these roads throughout the day. Residents had been supportive of the proposed parking proposals.

 

RESOLVED:

 

That having considered the objections received and in addition the issues raised around equalities and diversity and all the detailed issues, including any proposed mitigating actions, the Cabinet agrees to proceed with the creation of both the Verge Protection Order and the Residents’ Parking Permit Scheme as unanimously recommended by  ...  view the full minutes text for item 129b

130.

RISK MANAGEMENT pdf icon PDF 77 KB

Report of the Corporate Director (Public Protection, Planning and Governance) bringing to Members’ attention the current strategic and top operational risks facing the Council.

Additional documents:

Decision:

The current Strategic Risk Register and top operational risks and particularly the comments in respect of each risk where shown were noted.

Minutes:

Report of the Corporate Director (Public Protection, Planning and Governance) on the current strategic and top operational risks facing the Council which had been reviewed at the performance clinic in February 2019 and reflected the assessments in place for quarter four of 2018/19.

 

Having regard to the operational risk of failure of mature Lombardy Poplar trees, the Cabinet noted that the current situation was that the last mature Lombardy Poplars on Council street land were felled in the December 2018 schedule and the first batch of GLL mature Lombardy Poplars at Stanborough Lakes, North side, including the car park trees, were felled in January 2019.

 

Work would continue to fell the remaining 220 mature Lombardy Poplars across other GLL sites from April 2019 onwards, at a rate of about 30 trees per month, which meant that, weather and access permitting, they would all be felled by October 2019.

 

RESOLVED:

 

That the current Strategic Risk Register and top operational risks and particularly the comments in respect of each risk where shown be noted.

131.

EXCLUSION OF PRESS AND PUBLIC

The Cabinet is asked to resolve:

 

That under Section 100(A)(2) and (4) of the Local Government Act 1972, the press and public be now excluded from the meeting for Items 11 and 12 (if any) on the grounds that they involve the likely disclosure of confidential or exempt information as defined in Section 100(A)(3) and Paragraph 3 (private financial or business information) of Part 1 of Schedule 12A of the said Act (as amended).

 

In resolving to exclude the public in respect of the exempt information, it is considered that the public interest in maintaining the exemption outweighs the public interest in disclosing the information.

Minutes:

RESOLVED:

 

That under Section 100(A)(2) and (4) of the Local Government Act 1972, the press and public be now excluded from the meeting for Agenda item 11 (Minute 132 refers) on the grounds that it involved the likely disclosure of confidential or exempt information as defined in Section 100A(3) and paragraph 3 (private financial or business information) of Part 1 of Schedule 12A of the said Act (as amended).

 

In resolving to exclude the public in respect of the exempt information, it was considered that the public interest in maintaining the exemption outweighed the public interest in disclosing the information.

132.

ITEM OF AN EXEMPT NATURE REQUIRING KEY DECISION

To consider the following item of an exempt nature:-

 

Minutes:

The following item of an exempt nature for decision in the current Forward Plan was considered:-

132a

Award of Contract for Concrete Repairs and Deck Membrane Repairs at Hunters Bridge Multi Storey Car Park - Welwyn Garden City (Forward Plan Reference FP911)

Exempt report of the Corporate Director (Resources, Environment and Cultural Services) on the award of contract for repairs to the car park.

Decision:

The contract to undertake concrete and deck mebrane repairs at Hunters Bridge multi-storey car park, Welwyn Garden City was awarded to Cemplas Waterproofing and Concrete Repairs Ltd.

Minutes:

Exempt report of the Corporate Director (Resources, Environment and Cultural Services) on the procurement process to appoint a contractor for repairs to Hunters Bridge multi-storey car park, Welwyn Garden City.

 

Following discussion by officers with Homes England last week, the Cabinet was pleased to note that Homes England would be funding the cost of this project as part of the £6.1M Accelerated Construction funding already allocated to the Council for Welwyn Garden City development. This was extremely positive news as all of the Accelerated Construction funding must be spent by March 2021.

 

(1)        The Decision Taken

 

RESOLVED:

 

That the contract to undertake concrete and deck membrane repairs at Hunters Bridge multi-storey car park, Welwyn Garden City be awarded to Cemplas Waterproofing and Concrete Repairs Ltd.

 

(2)        Reasons for the Decision

 

A specialist Contractor experienced in the fields of concrete repair, renewal and overcoating of applied deck membranes and cathodic protection was required to undertake concrete and deck membrane repairs at Hunters Bridge car park.

 

The work was due to start in June and expected to be completed by the end of August 2019. The car park would remain operational during the period but some sections of the car park may be taken out of use for the duration of the repair work.