These are draft minutes that have not yet been approved by the council.  The minutes are subject to change and will be confirmed at the next meeting.

ET26/001 PRESENT

Councillors Johnson, Coan, Dalzell, Lowe and Watson.

A Keppel-Green (Town Clerk) and Cllrs Hartley, Gray and McCulloch.

 

ET26/002 APOLOGIES FOR ABSENCE

Apologies were received from Cllrs Banks and Mears (personal business)

 

ET26/003 DECLARATIONS OF MEMBERS’ INTERESTS

No member declared an interest in any item.

 

ET26/004 PUBLIC PARTICIPATION

A resident spoke of Knutsford Litter Pickers, requesting the council display their poster on noticeboards. The resident further spoke in relation to plastic free towns, stating they would be speaking to schools and shops. The resident further stated that a refill shop would benefit the town, and that Knutsford Methodist Church had secured a silver award and St Cross Church a bronze award under the Eco Churches scheme.

A member of the Movement and Access sub-group of the Town Centre Masterplan workstream spoke in relation to the King Edward Road active travel proposals outlining that the group saw a reduction in width to the road as detrimental to the objectives of the group in reducing traffic flows on the principal shopping streets and threatening the essence of the plan suggesting that members of the sub-group may consider their position if the proposals were taken forward; they further suggested the consideration of a gyratory system for Hollow Lane / Brook Street in favour of road widening at that junction.

A second member of the Movement and Access sub-group of the Town Centre Masterplan workstream spoke in relation to the King Edward Road active travel proposals added that the objective should be that transient traffic utilises the A50 to pass through the town and that the road was effectively a bypass of the town centre; they further highlighted the potential benefit of the ImFlow system for traffic lights to ease congestion.

 

ET26/005 COMMITTEE TERMS OF REFERENCE

The terms of reference were noted.

 

ET26/006 CONFIRMATION OF PREVIOUS MINUTES

It was RESOLVED to approve the minutes of the meeting held on 23rd March.

 

ET26/007 REVIEW OF YEAR TO DATE INCOME AND EXPENDITURE

The committee income and expenditure year-to-date was noted.

 

ET26/008 COMMITTEE WORKING GROUPS

It was RESOLVED to appoint working groups as follows:

  • Nature Action Plan – Cllrs Hartley, Johnson, Mears and Watson
  • Blue Plaques Appraisal Panel – Cllrs Coan, Hartley and McCulloch
  • Active Travel Infrastructure Plan – Cllrs Banks, Lowe and Russell

 

ET26/009 NATURE ACTION PLAN UPDATE

The update and progress to date was noted. It was noted that the pond mapping work and competition was also taking place.

Expediting the delivery of the bee trail signs for the Moor and Barncroft was requested.

 

ET26/010 TOWN CENTRE LITTER BINS

It was RESOLVED to replace the bins outside Gails, Waitrose and Chicinos with the larger lidded bins and to seek a contribution from the BID towards bin replacements.

 

ET26/011 KING EDWARD ROAD ACTIVE TRAVEL PATH PROPOSAL

The committee discussed the draft scheme prepared by Cheshire East Council as part of the Bluebell planning application; views expressed included that cycling is more occasional than driving, that the objective should be to get traffic on the road through and out, and that there was the potential for a scheme that incorporated both widening and an active travel path.

It was RESOLVED that further information be obtained from Cheshire East Council and that a more detailed report be prepared to refer the matter to Full Council as expediently as possible.

The meeting was adjourned for a short recess; Cllrs Coan and Gray left the meeting during the adjournment.

 

ET26/012 COMMUNITY BUS SERVICE

Cllr Harley reported on a meeting with the Fairmont which would be providing a shuttle bus for its staff over two shifts, it was reported that the Fairmont had offered to use the bus to facilitate a community bus service.

The item was deferred pending further engagement with the Fairmont over the potential for it to deliver a scheme.

 

ET26/013 STRATEGIC PLAN

The current year action plan was noted.

The hastened completion of the Legh Road Conservation Area guide was requested.

 

ET26/014 OUTSTANDING ACTIONS AND PROJECT UPDATES REPORT

The report was noted.

 

ET26/015 COMMITTEE WORKPLAN

The workplan was noted.

 

ET26/016 QUESTIONS TO THE CLERK

The Town Clerk responded to questions advising that he was still awaiting a response from Cheshire East Council in relation to the ImFlow traffic system and that officers would explore installing a noticeboard on the wall by Sainsbury.

 

ET26/017 DATE OF THE NEXT MEETING

It was noted that the next scheduled meeting would be held on 7th September at 7:30pm.