Swiss Cottage Courier – monthly news from your ward councillors
November 2012
Councillors Don Williams, Roger Freeman, Andrew Marshall (Conservative)
See www.swisscottagecourier.blogspot.com for updates, or follow us on Twitter at @AndrewIMarshall and @DonSwissCottage
This e-newsletter has been sent out since 2008 and now goes to over 1,500 homes in the area.
IN THIS ISSUE
· New Adelaide Rd crossing
· More 20 mph zones coming
· Recycling and Wheelie Bins – Make your views known!
· Swiss Cottage Library Book Group
· Parking Zones and Hours Review
· Planning and licensing matters: latest position on planning enforcement
· Other issues: flytipping, autumn leaves etc
· Councillor advice surgeries
New Adelaide Rd crossing
The Council is consulting on a new signalised pelican crossing on Adelaide Rd between Avenue Rd and Winchester Rd, given the new academy. This will be in two stages, with a refuge island in the centre. It will involve removing 3 existing Pay & Display bays and 2 existing Car Club bays on the north side of Adelaide Rd beside the leisure centre. The footway on the south side will be widened. If the proposals are agreed, works will be carried out by Summer 2013. We ensured that the consultation area was widened. Please respond by 23rd November.
https://consultations.wearecamden.org/culture-environment/adelaide-road-proposed-signalised-pedestrianMore 20 mph zones coming
Many residents have contacted us about speeding in the 20 mph Gardens zone, where a minority of drivers greatly exceeding the limit. Canfield Gardens has become a rat-run and it and the other one-way roads are particularly problematic – where any driver keeping to 20mph can get an aggressive driver behind them. Sadly we know of too many cats killed in these roads.
We continue to press better enforcement from the Council and the police of the 20mph limit, but resources are limited. We are interested to hear from residents with views on what measures might improve things – we know for example some residents would favour a camera on one or two of the routes.
At 20 mph there is a 2.5% chance of being fatally injured, compared to a 20% chance at 30 mph. Road casualties in Camden roughly halved from 1998-2008, but they are now on the increase again, especially for pedestrians and cyclists. Vehicle movements in Camden in 2011 fell to 200,000, compared with 265,000 a decade ago, with cycling having quadrupled in the same period. Interestingly casualty data for the Gardens 20mph zone showed a 71% reduction in casualties following the implementation of the zone.
The Council has recently consulted on an additional 20mph zone for Primrose Hill, and plans to consult on 20mph zones for the Elsworthy area and the Fairfax/Belsize Rd area by early 2014. We view this broadly favourably but believe resident consultation is vital. Beyond that, there is clearly discussion now about a Camden borough-wide 20mph limit for non red-routes (eg Finchley Rd), which Islington and Hackney already have in place.
Recycling and Wheelie Bins – Make your views known!
Please respond to the current Camden consultation on recycling and wheelie bins and make your views known to the council and to us. We recognise there are strong views on this. The fact is that Camden’s recycling rates have not been increasing as they need to in order to keep down costs of residual waste disposal, but this borough remains a very complex place in which to encourage recycling. The proposals result in at least a £330,000 per year saving and should improve recycling rates. A bid has been lodged for an available government grant for capital costs.
The wheelie bins will replace the multitude of boxes and bags that are currently put out for dry recycling, reducing spillages. The feedback from the questionnaire and community groups will be used to clarify exactly which properties are to receive wheelie bins when the new recycling service starts. There will be flexibility and that is why the council is asking residents what size of wheelie bin they feel is right for their property and what their preferred colour is.
There are two sizes of wheelie bins being offered (140 and 240 litre) so that people can have a smaller, shorter bin if preferable. It is necessary for any receptacle to reach a minimum height to be compatible with the lifting equipment used in collection so it is not feasible to add a third shorter option. The Council has made provision for residents to opt-out from receiving the bins should they choose to do so. If a resident does not have an alternate use for their current recycling box then it will be removed by the council and used to supply those households that still need them.
You can see details here:
https://consultations.wearecamden.org/communications-strategy-improvement/recyclingchanges
and any comments about the changes can be sent to [email protected]. and copy us in!
Swiss Cottage Library Book Group
This friendly and informal group meets on the last Thursday of the month, from 6pm to 7pm. Come along to our next meeting or leave your details at the science enquiry desk.
29th November 2012
Kate Atkinson ‘Case Studies’
31st January 2013
Erich Remarque ‘All Quiet on the Western Front’
28th February 2013
Ernest Hemingway ‘From Whom the Bell Tolls’
All books are provided by the library and members choose the books from the library’s list.
Parking Zone and Hours Review
Around 600 people and 15 residents groups responded to the council’s consultation on this – let us know if you want to find all the detail on the website.
In CA-J, there was some support for additional weekend controls, and so the Council will investigate and consult in more detail next year.
In CA-R, where parking pressure is intense, most respondents said the size of the zone and sub-zones (ie east and west of Fairhazel) was “about right”, and that the hours were “about right”. So there is no proposed change here in the detailed consultation programme.
In CA-Q, around half the respondents felt the zone was too small. However given the views of neighbouring zones like CA-R, the council does not consider that it is practical to extend this zone. We will be asking for more research into what can be done here.
Planning and licensing matters
We are monitoring closely a number of sensitive applications, such as 50 Canfield and 1 Norfolk. There is no news on the 100 Avenue Rd (Ham and High) big redevelopment.
Camden Local List – The Council is inviting nominations for buildings to put onto our new local list – we look forward to working with residents and groups on this. Councils are encouraged by the Government and English Heritage to maintain a local list of so-called non-designated heritage assets. Details here:
Planning Enforcement
We recognise the concerns about planning enforcement. While the Council’s resources in this area are not large, in fact the number of enforcement notices (which lead to legal action if ignored) served in 2011/12 (112) was almost three times the level of the previous year, and currently continues at this higher level.
One success story has been 152 Goldhurst. The unauthorised double dormer was very poorly designed. An Enforcement Notice was served in June 2011, the subsequent appeal was dismissed in March 2012. The owners were then given six months to comply by taking down the double dormer, which they have now done.
We continue to press on a number of enforcement matters, including 51 Fairfax, 80 Canfield and others.
Other issues:
Fairfax Rd flytipping – we have taken up the flytipping outside 41 Fairfax by the trees with officers. Camden is serving the business with a duty of care notice, the only problem with this is that the business has just been sold and the paperwork from business rates may not be current. Anyway, Downtown Interiors has been visited and informed that they must not put their waste out for collection until they sign a contract either with Camden or another waste carrier and that they must produce a waste contract or a waste transfer notice.
Finchley Rd Flower Stall – this long running issue is no better and we continue to battle on this. Update hopefully next month.
Treacherous pavements with autumn leaves – this has been raised by several people. This is the first autumn since the somewhat reduced road sweeping arrangements came in – we are asking what flexibility there is to tackle this danger.
Councillor advice surgeries:
Monday December 3rd 7-8pm - Crossfield Centre, Fairhazel Gardens
Saturday December 15th 10-11am - at the Swiss Cottage Community Centre
In addition we’re always happy to come around and arrange to meet residents at other times.
Cllr Roger Freeman (Conservative)
[email protected]
0208 348 7626
Cllr Don Williams (Conservative)
[email protected]
07775 658091
Cllr Andrew Marshall (Conservative)
[email protected]
07808 579563