Minutes of Last Meeting and Matters Arising

RV had been unable to attend the Soham and Ely Dial a Ride AGM. He reported that he had asked the police whether a speed gun could be borrowed for use in Stuntney, but the gun is currently being trialled and we are not in the priority area. We have been put on an interested party list. He also informed the meeting that a walnut tree has been planted in a position recommended by the ECDC tree officer. Village Council members agreed to ensure it is watered regularly.
The long handled litter picker, bought for us by the City of Ely Council, has now been collected.
PW had attended a City of Ely Council meeting and given a report on the Village. It was agreed she write a letter of thanks for funding received and to request the same amount for this year. PW
NB reported that the listed Elm tree in the hedgerow adjoining the Anglian Water access road is not in leaf. He will inform the ECDC tree officer.
The minutes of the last meeting were agreed as accurate and signed by the Chair.

Correspondence

WF had received a lot of ‘Green’ correspondence. It was agreed that DB would vet any green correspondence in future so that only relevant items need be brought to the attention of the meeting.
WF had received a letter from the Energy Saving Trust Village Green 2008 which is looking for a community in Cambridgeshire to help become energy saving. If we agree and are accepted, the Trust offer to check properties and offer energy saving advice and identify sources of funding, such as grants for insulation. They will also support other energy saving activities and will hold meetings to explain the aims of the project. It seems to be expected that this will involve media coverage.
NB thought that a small village like Stuntney could offer a ‘quick hit’ for the energy trust and people might appreciate the advice. RV noted that energy saving in the form of e.g. energy saving light bulbs, can be expensive initially. NB thought that perhaps the trust may provide free samples. It was agreed that WF would reply to the Trust. WF
WF had also received correspondence from Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Biological Records Centre asking for pond surveys to be carried out so that they can be mapped and a list of species collected. She will ask for more survey forms to distribute around the village. WF
WF had also received correspondence about Post Office closures. NB advised that there is no list available as yet of which POs will be closed.
DB had received notice of a planning application by Anglian Water for the construction of MCC and Transformer Kiosk and a reduction in the radius of the access road adjoining the highway. CW will look at the plans to ascertain what planting was agreed in the original plans as the reservoir and surrounding area are currently very unsightly. CW

Footpaths
RV noted that while other villages are criss-crossed with footpaths, Stuntney has only one or two permissive paths. Stuntney is different today than in the past when most residents worked on the land. Today, people want recreational walks and there is no where to go. He appreciated that landowners had rights and had to consider health and safety, damage, game preservation etc. but he hoped a compromise could be reached.
After a discussion about the current permissive access routes, Anthony Morbey detailed his proposals for extending the routes and making them circular so walkers need not have to return via the A142 or come to a dead end. He was worried about problems such as littering so proposed the routes be tried first before looking at possibly making them longer. There was also a worry about residents riding motorbikes along the routes. NB noted that nuisance motorbike riding along footpaths is a police priority at the moment and that any incidents should be reported to Inspector Savill. Response times should be quick while this nuisance is a priority. Mr Morbey stated he would consider gates to prevent motorbike access but funding would have to be found. He would also make sure that the routes now agreed with the village council were feasible and then look into the process of adding them to the CCC list of permissive routes. Once this was formalised he agreed to accompany the members of Village Council on a walk to familiarise them with the new walks. MF agreed to take copies of the map showing the current permissive pathways. MF
Mr Morbey also noted that in the long term, a cycle path could possibly be provided. He was willing to provide the land but we would need to find the funding. NB noted that if this linked up with the Sustrans route then cyclists could gain access to e.g. Soham and Cambridge. He thought it would be a good idea to contact ECDC and CCC as this discussion about access routes was sparked off by a letter received from the County Council. There are large sums of money to implement the Ely Transport Strategy which includes improving cycleways and footpaths so there is the potential for funds to be found there. NB is on the steering group and will make them aware of this possibility. NB

Ely Masterplan RV stressed the need for us to respond. The plan seems to be treating Ely in isolation from its surroundings and all the proposed developments seem to be dependent on the Southern Link Road being built; the cost of which has increased from £15m to £27m. He wondered whether any survey had been done to determine where all the heavy traffic on the A142 came from and where it was going. The suspicion is that it originates at Felixstowe and that it detours along the A142 solely to avoid the A14. The Southern Link Road will inevitably attract more of this traffic making it difficult to leave the village. There are also problems with the A142, such as slow moving tractors, which argue against encouraging more lorries to divert this way.
AM agreed that we must comment on how the Southern Link Road will affect Stuntney as, with increased traffic, no bike route away from the A142 and no lighting on the cycle path/footpath we are effectively cut off from Ely. She suggested that the road had been planned with an obsession with costs and that a reroute should be proposed. The new link road would also involve a roundabout on the A142 then, a few yards later, another roundabout to Angel Drove thus causing traffic flow problems.
It was agreed that Stuntney Village Council should respond to the Masterplan proposals by objecting to the Southern Link Road and that individual responses should also be sent. WF agreed to write the letter and circulate it for approval. WF

Any other Business WF will mention the Ely Master Plan Questionnaire in the next village newsletter and urge villagers to respond.

Decision List Letter to be sent to City of Ely Council thanking them for funding and requesting the same sum for this year – PW
Contact to be made with the Green Energy Trust Village Green 2008 to accept their proposal to consider Stuntney for an energy saving project. - WF
Request pond questionnaires to distribute round the village - WF
Make Ely Transport Strategy Steering group aware of the potential for a new cycle path - NB
Copies to be made of permissive access route map – MF
Draft response letter to Ely Master Plan - WF

Date of Next Meeting 8th July 2008

Council Members (from 13th November 2007)

Chair of Council - Wendy Fox
Secretary - Debbie Byrne (661448)
Treasurer - Penni Webb
Committee Members: Nigel Bell (661448); Mike Fox; Rod Vincent (664990); Alison Morbey; Elaine Adams (664006); Reg Manning (664006); Christine Windsor

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