Dear Resident,
Welcome to this edition of Cabot eNews - your monthly local e-newsletter from Cabot councillors Alex Woodman and Mark Wright. Cabot eNews is sent to those who have expressed an interest in what is happening in Cabot ward and central Bristol.
In this edition:
1. Westmoreland House Public Meeting
2. Upcoming Neighbourhood Forum Meeting
3. UK's First Hydrogen Ferry in Bristol
4. New Cut Riverbank Clean-Up
5. Progress on the 'Bear Pit'
6. 9 King Square Avenue
7. Cheltenham Road Tesco Licence
8. Street Play Events
9. New Catering Kiosk in Castle Park
10. Story Telling at the Brunel Institute
11. Polling Station Changes
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1. Westmoreland House Public Meeting
The Council has secured funding to pursue a Compulsory Purchase Order (CPO) for Westmoreland House, which has blighted Stokes Croft for over two decades. The Lib Dem Cabinet was progressing this between 2005 and 2007, but lost control of the city in May 2007, after which the previous CPO scheme on Westmoreland House was not progressed.
Westmoreland House is actually in Ashley Ward (rather than Cabot), but obviously affects residents on both sides of Stokes Croft. A public meeting has been organised by Cllr Jon Rogers (Ashley ward) and Waliur Rahman for 6pm on Friday 18th February at the Salvation Army Citadel at 6 Ashley Road to discuss ideas for the site. All welcome!
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2. Upcoming Neighbourhood Forum Meeting
The next Cabot Neighbourhood Forum Meeting takes place on Thursday 24th February at 7pm at The Council House. Any Cabot resident is welcome to attend the meeting to discuss local issues, or raise problems in the local area. Council officers as well as local police will be attending the meeting. Of course, if you are unable to attend, or there are any issues you would like to raise in advance, please feel free to contact Alex or Mark (details at the bottom).
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3. UK's First Hydrogen Ferry in Bristol
The UK’s first hydrogen-powered ferry is set to be run in the harbour this summer. Bristol Hydrogen Boats - a consortium formed between No 7 Boat Trips, the Bristol Packet, and Auriga Energy Ltd - will showcase the hydrogen-fuelled ferry for six months from June 2011.
The ferry will carry up to 12 passengers per journey in order to demonstrate the commercial advantages of hydrogen technology to business, residents, commuters and tourists. As an alternative to petrol and diesel engines, hydrogen powered transport impacts significantly less on the environment as they produce zero direct emissions: the only waste product is water. This would mean a big reduction in air and water pollution, in addition to reduced noise, in the harbour if the technology was widely adopted in the future.
Other European cities are running or planning to introduce hydrogen-powered ferries, but here in Bristol the project is seen as an important contributor to the development of the city’s economy. As an environmental technology it is linked to one of Bristol’s five priority high growth sectors (see story 10!), which are key to the city’s ambitions to create a long term, sustainable, prosperous and productive economy.
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4. New Cut Riverbank Clean-Up
Friends of the Avon New Cut (FrANC) volunteers will be clearing litter from the accessible parts of the Cumberland Road riverbank and the Harbourside Railway line alongside the Chocolate Path. Anyone with an interest in tidying up these areas is welcome to come along from 10am to 12 noon on Saturday 26th February - meet at Goal Ferry Bridge. Volunteers should wear strong shoes, gloves and warm, waterproof clothing. FrANC will provide litter-pickers and those who help will be offered a free coffee and cake at the end of the session! (More details are available on the website www.franc.org.uk)
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5. Progress on the 'Bear Pit'
Progress is being made on plans to improve the 'Bear Pit' at St James Barton roundabout. There have been lots of good ideas put forward, with creative and unorthodox support from the Council, residents and other "interested parties". You can find more information at http://www.the-bear-pit.org.uk/
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6. 9 King Square Avenue
Alex has been pressing the Council to take planning enforcement action against the owners of 9 King Square Avenue (former Chinese takeaway), which was converted into a massage parlour at the end of last year without planning permission. A number of local residents have, quite understandably, complained about this change. The Council is now issuing a planning enforcement notice to the owners of the building.
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7. Cheltenham Road Tesco Licence
Tesco applied last year for a licence to sell alcohol from the store they plan to open on Cheltenham Road. The licence was unanimously refused by a Council sub-committee (of which Alex was a member), after the Police and local residents raised concerns about alcohol problems in the area. Tesco appealed against the decision, but in a sudden change of heart, last week they decided to abandon their appeal and offered to pay the Council's legal costs of £1700.
Alex said, "I know that alcohol-related crime and anti-social behaviour is a problem in this part of the city, and the licensing sub-committee felt that granting another alcohol licence in the area would only compound the problem. I am pleased to see that Tesco now appear to recognise these concerns, and do not plan to sell alcohol from their new branch."
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8. Street Play Events
Last year the Cabot, Clifton and Clifton East Neighbourhood Partnership awarded funding to help facilitate 'Playing Out' events in our local area. This followed the Partnership's 'participatory budgeting' trial earlier this year where local residents were asked to vote for the schemes which they wished to see receive funding.
The organisers of the 'Playing Out' events are looking for at least five streets to take part. Playing out events are short, after-school road closures to allow a residential street to be used for play. Adults are present but the children just do their own thing - usually resulting in a combination of active, creative and imaginative play. More information can be found at http//www.playingout.net.
It is planned that the events will happen in March and April, which means starting the process now to give time for getting neighbours on board and applying for road closures. If you are interested in taking part please contact Alice Ferguson as soon as possible at alice.ferguson@hotmail.com or 07896 957141.
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9. New Catering Kiosk in Castle Park
The Council's Parks Department is planning to install a new catering kiosk in Castle Park. They currently anticipate starting work on site around the end of February and, subject to weather, do not foresee the work to take any longer than 10 days to complete. There will be some disruption on the park during the construction period as you would expect.
Notices will be put up on the Park notice boards to inform the public of the pending disruption to the park, with details of the actual start date for the work. The remainder of the Park will be open as usual. However there may be some disruption on the rest of the site for a short time due to the construction taking place. This could include mud on pathways, machinery movement, deliveries to site.
It is hoped that the new kiosk & business will be fully accessible and operating by the first week of April.
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10. Story Telling at the Brunel Institute
Join professional storyteller Sarah Mooney for FREE sea-inspired storytelling, at 11:00am on the first Tuesday of each month. ‘Sea Hear’ is especially for pre-school children aged three to four (although younger and older siblings are welcome), accompanied by a parent or carer.
Held in the Brunel Institute, next to the ss Great Britain, ‘Sea Hear’ is inspired by the ship’s true stories, and original tales are intertwined with maritime myths and legends.
Expect a truly magical experience, with plenty of opportunities for children – and grown ups – to join in.
Sea Hear is managed by the ss Great Britain Trust and supported by The Lloyd’s Register Educational Trust.
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10. Polling Station Changes in Cabot
New rules from the Electoral Commission on polling stations mean that some residents in Cabot will vote in a different place in May, when local elections at the electoral reform referendum take place.
Residents in the Tyndalls Park area will now vote at the University Sports Centre on Tyndall Avenue. City centre residents will now either vote at the Central Library (for those living west of the Centre, or the Register Office on Corn Street for those living east.) Residents of Spike Island and Redcliffe are unaffected by the changes.
Details of which polling station to vote at are included on poll cards sent to all residents before the election, or you can find out where to vote by calling Electoral Services on 922 3790. Full details of all changes across the city can be found online at http://bit.ly/eksNpf
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If you know anybody who would be interested in Cabot eNews, please forward it on to them. If you have received this email from a friend and like it, email us to be added directly to the distribution list. We also welcome feedback. We are happy to help residents, local businesses and voluntary agencies where we can, to pursue issues to make Cabot a better place. Finally, if you have any items you would like to be included in a future edition of Cabot eNews, please get in touch! You can call/e-mail Alex at 0117 353 3381 / alex.woodman@bristol.gov.uk, or Mark at 0117 914 2559 / mark.wright@bristol.gov.uk. You can also read Alex's blog at www.alexwoodman.blogspot.com, or follow him on Twitter - www.twitter.com/cllralexwoodman
Best wishes,
Alex Woodman and Mark Wright
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