Burniston Road grass verges

John Fareham and John Abbott have sorted delays with the cutting of Burniston Road grass verges. We received complaints from local residents to the effect that the verges were getting overgrown and that they had not been cut for some time. For all that we had been given to understand that the corporate centre had set up regular schedules for grass cutting, we nevertheless referred the matter to the officers with a request that they resolve the problem. This was just before lunchtime; within a matter of hours we received confirmation from local residents that the verges had now been cut. It goes without saying that we take all matters like this seriously and, in previous years, have cited the level of dandelion growth as evidence that something needed to be done. Equally, if we receive any further complaints about the state of grass verges here, we will take such steps as are necessary to rectify the position.

Briarfield Road TRO again

John Fareham and John Abbott report that the consultation exercise on the traffic proposals for Briarfield Road will be advertised in the Press this week and notices put up to go with that. Papers for the May meeting of Wyke Area Committee stated that the consultation exercise would take place in the month of June, but the officers subsequently told us that the notice would appear in the Hull Daily Mail on Wednesday May 25th and notices would be posted in the street for the duration ofd the consultation period. We would wish to stress that if local residents decide not to approve the proposals prepared on our behalf by the officers, this does not preclude the preparation of an alternative scheme at some time thereafter. Others sought, during the recent local elections, to wilfully misrepresent both the proposals on offer elsewhere and the process by which those proposals had been arrived at. The proposals on which Briarfield Road residents will be asked to pass comment are precisely those which we arrived at with the officers on the basis of comments passed at that stage by local residents.

Hutton Close dog mess

John Fareham and John Abbott continue to work to resolve problems with the disposal of dog mess in and around Hutton Close. We continue to receive reports that the bins in this vicinity are overflowing and that, contrary perhaps to our understanding of best practice, council employees are refusing to remove bags containing dog faeces. We have therefore referred our concerns about this being the case to the officers with some degree of incredulity and we will continue to pursue this matter as long as is necessary to achieve a solution. To our way of thinking, adding additional bins or increasing the capacity of the ones we have simply postpones the inevitable; arranging for the corporate centre to ensure that the bins are emptied regularly and correctly seems to us to be the way forward.

Loveridge Avenue traffic proposals

John Fareham and John Abbott wish to explain the principles behind the proposals for Loveridge Avenue traffic schemes. Council policy requires any resident wanting to acquire a dropped kerb to have a gap of at least 14ft. between the front of their house and the boundary of their property. This policy was set by the ruling Labour group; since no gardens on the north side of Loveridge Avenue are that long, we are trying to get round Labour policy so you can park on your property. . As John Fareham made clear at Area Committee, supported on matters of fact by the Council officers, neither we nor any officer of the council have said the proposals mean that those on the south side cannot apply, through the usual channels, for dropped kerbs at their own individual homes if their gardens are the right length. It is of course lamentable that others, in the pursuit of their own party political objectives, have suggested otherwise in defiance of the facts.

Hotham Road potholes

John Fareham and John Abbott have secured repairs to all the potholes on Hotham Road North regarded by the officers as actionable. We visited Hotham Road North recently and had our attention drawn to the fact that, while some potholes had already been filled in, others had not. We therefore asked the officers to take a fresh look at the position and fill in any remaining potholes. They have since replied to us and told us that they have done as we suggested. If, in the view of local residents, this is still not sufficient, we will of course raise the matter again until all concerned are certain all the necessary repairs have been carried out.

Windsor Road pavement works

John Fareham and John Abbott have the latest information on the proposals for slurry sealing Windsor Road pavements. We received inquiries from local residents as to when exactly this work was to take place. This is entirely understandable since CONTACT! stated some time ago that this work was to be undertaken. We therefore made enquiries with the officers who now tell us that, if the engineers feel that the state of the pavements warrants slurry sealing, the work will be undertaken in 2016-17. If not, an assessment will be undertaken as to whether some other form of work is considered necessary. Either way, we share the concern of local residents as the condition of Windsor Road footpaths and will continue to work to ensure that they are brought up to an acceptable standard.

Cottingham Road pavements

John Fareham and John Abbott have secured the reinstatement of a section of Cottingham Road pavement. We received a complaint about this from a local resident who attended our pioneering and trailblazing mobile forum. As you might expect, we immediately made representations to the officers asking for the matter to be attended to. They got on with the matter rapidly – so much so that we first heard the work was going on from local residents, not from the corporate centre - and the work undertaken looks to be thorough for engineering reasons, not just a case of slapping some slurry-seal on and leaving it at that. It goes without saying that if any local residents feel other parts of Cottingham Road pavements are equally in need of attention, we will refer those to the appropriate officers as well.