Uplyme Parish Council

A Personal View

Very and possibly just a bit biased

Of the Meeting Held on 8th.January 2003

A good turn out considering the artic conditions, only Mr Pratt was unable to attend. The parishioners were once again out-numbered by the council members, but did improve on their numbers present at the December meeting by one, making seven.

Before the meeting proper got underway Uplyme's special constable Andrew Turner addressed the audience. As pointed out in the April 2002 report he is a dab hand with the radar gun used on speeding vehicles, and he has been putting this expertise to good effect. On one occasion in Uplyme three offenders were caught, one being clocked at 48 mph. The main problem was of drivers coming down from Yawl. He did not volunteer the exact location of the trap, but it can be assumed that the mini-roundabout was being taken at these speeds. Is it time to say something about an accident waiting to happen? Another trapping session was undertaken at Hunters Lodge on the A35 and in one day 200 drivers were caught. Attending many accidents resulting from speeding makes him aware of how much worse a accident can be with just a 15 or 20 extra miles per hour. His message was Kill your Speed. An unoccupied house was saved from burglary when a extension ladder brought especially along for the purpose was used to access the first floor windows of a house in Uplyme. Luckily locking devices were extended to the up-stairs windows and although the levers were bent the would be thief failed to get in and left the scene complete only with his ladder. Andrew was very pleased to relate, now that we have our own policeman, how response times have increased by him being contacted by mobile phone. However on being asked what his number was he declined to give it. He just said that Beryl Denham had the number or that Axminster police station should be contacted. If my experiences with the police stations in the area are anything to go by then vital tens of minutes could be lost. Of course Mrs Denham may not always be available in cases of emergency. John Steven gave us the latest on the situation at Barnes Meadow The official meeting then got underway. Appointment of Representatives to Serve on Outside Bodies This was an early item on the agenda with the sole purpose of re-allocating, to the two new councillors, the bodies on which Esme Ralphs and David Sole had represented the parish council. Christopher Sellers having already shown interest in the Trinity Hill Nature Reserve was given this one. Whilst Bob Crabbe was given the Village Hall. Planning The planning application to development at Dell Cottage in Lime Kiln Lane was rejected by the EDDC. Whilst those that were looked on favourably were the barn conversion at Ware Farm into holiday accommodation and the development in the grounds of Lydwell House. Devon Hotel An application for change of use was considered at the meeting. This was to have the hotel split into flats. The general feeling was that this being the last hotel in Uplyme it should be retained as such. There is a recognized shortage of hotels in the area and with the recent promotion to world heritage site status of the coast line it was thought that with the expected increase in tourist numbers a good future was assured of the hotel business. Whilst a proposal was being thrashed out on which to vote new boy Christopher Sellers saw the futility of this. He claimed that the opportunity to save the hotel had already been missed. For part of the hotel had now been separated off and converted into private residences. If this original splitting had been the result of the inability of running the hotel on an economic basis then this would be even more so now. It was heard said from a member of the public that the hotels demise may have been partly due to the building site across the road at Barnes Meadow. The discussion then concentrated on the possibility of saving some of the excellent features of the building. These include the panelled dining room, the staircase and the fireplace in the entrance hall. You may not know that this building was once the vicarage. When the hotel's bar was open these features were readily open for inspection by the public, in future with this conversion they will be as accessible as a masterpiece locked away in a bank vault, a tragic loss. A letter will be sent to the EDDC suggesting that if the conversion gets the go ahead then conditions must be included to protect these futures. Also the result of John Duffin's ferreting away in the literature he pronounced that new developments, and this must be regarded as such, must have for each normally priced apartment one affordable one. This will be added to the latter. Another feature of this old building is the cellar. This is the site of a hibernation roost of the scarce Lesser Horseshoe Bat. As they and their habitat are specially protected by law consent must first be obtained from English Nature before any work can commence that would adversely affect the bats. Free Tree Scheme In addition to what was said in the December meeting report, I can add that you should collect your trees between 10 am and 4 pm on the 1st February from John Duffin's farm. Don't forget he has moved house since last year, his new address is Higher Holcombe Farm. Lighting in Church Street. A letter was received from a parishioner living in Church Street, in which he suggested that street lighting be installed. He has suffered his house being broken into. He feels that the installation of lighting would deter this activity. The parish councillors were not at all sympathetic with this view. They pointed out that they have worked extremely hard to maintain Uplyme as a dark village, even getting Barnes Meadow to abandon the prospect of street lighting against tough odds, they were not now going to illuminate Church Street. Letters on the subject of street lighting to the parish council show a majority of people wanting to keep it at a minimum. Briefly..... The precept for 2002/4 will be increased by about 7 pence per week to help fund the fencing work on the play area. It is very likely that a grant will be available for this work, in which case the precept for the following year will be reduced. Surfacing of the latest addition to the village hall overflow car park will cost £8,500. The maximum Rural Aid Grant for this work would only be £5,000 The February meeting will be held on the 12th.

Topics on this Page: Andrew Turner - Uplyme's Special Constable. Barnes Meadow. New Councillors' Allocations Planning Devon Hotel (planning) Free Tree Scheme Church Street Lighting Briefly..... Other UPC Meetings: 11th December 2002 12th February 2003 12th March 2003 9th April 2003 14th May 2003 11th June 2003 9th July 2003 13th August 2003 10th September 2003 8th October 2003 12th November 2003 10th December 2003 14th January 2004 With Links to Pre-2003 Meetings 2004 Meetings Other Relevant Pages Strawberry Field Sports Complex Barnes Meadow Development Rhode Hill Gardens Home Page Introduction Page

Disclaimer: This page cannot be guaranteed to be void of mistakes. It is sometimes, in the hall, difficult to hear some of the councillors, for a number are determined not to use the amplification system available. An example of what can happen was at the September meeting when I heard the word "included" as "include" when a letter from John Steven was being read out. This threw an entirely different meaning to the sentence. The interpretation that I came to was so important that I put the news on the website as soon as I could. It was not until I read the Lyme Regis News that I realised how wrong I was. I even more speedily removed the offending story. If you were one of those that read the original then I apologise. If you have any doubts concerning the validity of anything you read please check with the parish clerk. Can I also suggest that you contact the Parish Council and request that the minutes of the meetings are posted on an official Uplyme Parish Council website and that the subject is accordingly added to the agenda of the next meeting.