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Your Town Council |
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PICKERING TOWN COUNCIL’S NEWSLETTER The Town Council - A Quality Council Smiddy Hill Just to update everyone on the proposals for the open space at Smiddy Hill. (See Winter Issue of the Beacon for the proposals.) Two commitments have been made. The first is to not to remove the Wilson Memorial to the cemetery: the case for keeping it on Smiddy Hill on heritage grounds is strong as is the case for refurbishment. The second commitment is that there will be no quick decision about improvements to the grounds. There are some misconceptions about the future of the seats: there was never any thought of removing the seats in front of the Liberal Club either to the lower shrub bed or, indeed, from the open space. All that was being considered was the removal of the seats in front of the lower shrub bed and repositioning them on the east side of the open space. Vacancy Due to the resignation of Councillor Natalie Warriner MBE a vacancy exists in the office of town councillor for the West Ward of Pickering. (That’s Pickering to the west of the beck.) No by- election has been called so the Council can co-opt a councillor. Should you be interested you have to be eighteen or over, be a British or commonwealth citizen or a Euro national and, in addition, be a local government elector for Pickering or have resided in Pickering for the past year or have occupied as owner or tenant any land or premises in Pickering or have had your principal or only place of work in the past year in Pickering. For an information pack, please contact the Town Clerk. The Ropery Toilets The Council is working closely with the local infant, junior and secondary schools in Pickering as part of the Pride in Pickering campaign. At the recent meeting of the Pickering Community Junior School’s school council, the youngsters singled out the toilets in The Ropery as a “grot spot” and asked what could be done about them. The Council agrees with the children that these toilets could do with a visual makeover and there are repairs that should be undertaken as soon as possible. The Council has also asked the District Council (which is responsible for the toilets) to come up with ways and means to make the baby changing facilities easier to access. Although the main toilets are functional, the Council does not think that they reflect the standard that is expected by Pickering people, young as well as old, of toilets at the centre of an attractive and popular tourist resort. Zebra Crossing and potholes The County Council has been thinking about installing a zebra crossing in the Market Place. The Town Council has discussed the issue with the Highways Area Manager. The balance of opinion amongst members was against the proposal partly because it was not thought that the accident statistics supported the crossing and, therefore, the cost was not justified; however, all members recognised the importance of traffic calming in the Market Place. The Area Manager thinks the best way forward would be to introduce a 20 mph zone. On being questioned about the large number of potholes, the Area Manager said “We are currently filling them as fast as we can. We have started on the A roads (speeds / volume of traffic dictating priorities) and are working our way through the hierarchy...” Dog dirt These past two weeks have seen a lot of people ringing or calling in to complain about the amount of dog dirt on the footpaths. Perhaps it is the dark mornings and evenings that make some owners less bothered about clearing up the mess? There are fourteen dog litter bins but many people use one of the eighty three litter bins that are positioned round the town so it’s not as if there aren’t receptacles. We know that people are reluctant to report irresponsible dog owners to the Dog Warden; however, if you know of an owner who is being irresponsible, you might, tactfully, suggest that they carry a bag with them when they take their pet for a walk. Is your name on the Register of Electors? The government could call an election at any time and, at the latest, must hold one by 3 June. If you are aged eighteen or over your name must be on the Electoral Register if you want to vote. The Register for our area is kept by Ryedale District Council and if you want to register or check that your name is on the Register you need to ring 01653 600666 or visit www.ryedale.gov.uk . You can vote by post and you can appoint someone to vote on your behalf but you need to make the necessary arrangements as soon as possible. Town Council Office Kitching Room, Memorial
Hall, Potter Hill, YO18 8AA, 9am-1pm, Monday to Friday. Tel: 01751 476503.
e-mail:
pickeringtowncouncil@pcxinternet.com The Town Clerk is Andrew Husband. The Council meets in the Memorial Hall on the third Monday of each month at 7pm. The next three meetings are on 15 March, 19 April and 17 May. Members of the public have the right to attend the meetings and may address the Council on matters relating to the parish. The agenda is available on the Tuesday preceding the meeting from the Council office and its website. |