LANEHEAD RESIDENTS ASSOCIATION
Minutes of committee meeting held at Newhouses, Monday 9 August, 7pm
MEMBERS PRESENT:
Ross Anderson, Neil Astley, Pat Cooper, Rex Cooper, Preston Hoggan, John Holland and Pamela Robertson-Pearce.
Apologies: Jenny Swaile.
1. MINUTES OF PREVIOUS MEETING
The minutes of the previous committee meeting held on 27 July were read and approved by the committee as a true record of what was discussed and agreed.
2. FARM WATCH
Discussion was held with Bellingham Police regarding the Farm Watch scheme: individual households can obtain necessary forms from PC Nigel Daley.
3. SPEED LIMITS
Further to previous discussion: the highways department cannot act on speed limits unless they receive a request from the police.
4. LHRA COMMUNITY MEETING
Village hall to be booked for a meeting to inform the community about LHRA, including discussion of concerns over Greystones development and updating residents on the planning process and LHRA's work in opposing the scheme on their behalf.
5. GREYSTONES DEVELOPMENT
Rex Cooper had received a response from John Riddle to the letter publicised in the Hexham Courant was sent to him as county councillor for Bellingham and National Park Authority chairman expressing residents' objections and concerns over the Greystones development, and he has agreed to meet him with NNPA chief executive Tony Gates. The development was discussed in detail with particular reference to the changes in access arrangements (now to use a non-existent "existing" entrance on the Donkleywood road where there is a continuous drystone wall boundary), the size of the buildings (the proposed "bothy" constructions being 6.5 metres or 21 feet in height, therefore not single-storey in elevation), drainage and the use and undesirable appearance of stone gabion supports. The position of the proposed non-existent "existing" entrance on the revised plan was also dangerously close to the historic drover's road water trough between the road and the wall. In the light of these changes and other aspects of the development, it was agreed that LHRA would submit a revised letter of objection to the planning office, with LHRA committee members to circulate the document with suggested items for inclusion before the deadline of 13 August. Planning approval for the Long House (10NP0022) was still subject to highway department approval and other conditions yet to be confirmed.
The Hexham Courant article by Brian Tilley was published on 30 July and can be read online here:
http://www.hexhamcourant.co.uk/news/news-at-a-glance/holiday-plan-opposed-1.740670?referrerPath=
It included one factual error: the deadline of 20 August mentioned related to the Parish Council and not to residents, who had until 13 August to submit their objection.
Pamela Robertson-Pearce reported on her discussion with Julian Morrison-Bell regarding his development at Charlton: in his case NNPA priorities regarding tourism and economic development had overridden concerns from local residents, and his advice was that LHRA should commission a planning expert to produce a detailed survey of the Greystones development concentrating not on the kinds of objections raised by residents but on the developments planning defects and shortcomings, relating these in specific terms to the NNPA guidelines. She would follow up his suggestion and research possible planning experts who might be able to do this work in a short term.
6. DATE OF NEXT MEETING
Date and time to be agreed by the committee members after email consultation.
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LANEHEAD RESIDENTS ASSOCIATION
Minutes of subcommittee meeting held at Newhouses, Thursday 12 August, 4pm
MEMBERS PRESENT:
Neil Astley, Pat Cooper, Rex Cooper and Preston Hoggan.
1. GREYSTONES DEVELOPMENT (continued from 9 August meeting above)
Robin Wood of RP Wood Planning Consultancy, Ponteland, was introduced, having been previously briefed and supplied with available information about the Greystones development by Pamela Robertson-Pearce and Neil Astley and given a tour around the outside of the site. After listening to his analysis and responding with further detail, the subcommittee agreed that Robin Wood should be appointed to produce a professional analysis of the Greystones development for submission to NNPA before he went on holiday on 18 August. LHRA would confirm acceptance of his terms and conditions by email.
