Q1

SMITHILLS AREA FORUM

MEETING, 16th July 2009

Present, 38 members of the public attended the meeting.

Councillor Hayes (Chair) - Ward Councillor Swarbrick - Smithills Ward Councillor Silvester - Smithills Ward

Also in attendance

Anne Boles - Area Co-ordinator Nicole Buhagiar - Area Working Support Officer Carol Sutton - Head of Strategic Development, Development and Regeneration John Kelly - Head of Highways and Engineering Development Services, Environmental Services Beverley Andrew - Royal Hospital John Taylor - P.C. Harry Rigby - Police P.C.S.O. Phil Gough - Greater Manchester Police P.C.S.O. John Gregory - Greater Manchester Police P.C.S.O. Bhav Makwana - Greater Manchester Police

Apologies for absence were submitted on behalf of Anne Burns, Paul Cohen, Sue Strange, Ruth Kelly M.P., David Crausby M.P. and Idris Jeewa.

Councillor Hayes in the Chair.

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Q2

7. INTRODUCTION

Councillor Hayes welcomed everyone and introduced Councillors Swarbrick and Silvester. He also introduced Anne Boles, Area Co-ordinator, and all other Council Officers present. He explained that the main theme of the meeting would be The Bolton Picture, Strategic Developments.

8. MINUTES OF THE PREVIOUS MEETING

The minutes of the meeting held on21st May 2009 were submitted and approved as a correct record.

9. THEME – THE BOLTON PICTURE – STRATEGIC DEVELOPMENTS

Carol Sutton, Head of Strategic Development, Development and Regeneration, gave a presentation on strategic developments that would be taking place in the Smithills Ward and in Bolton as a whole. She explained that the content of the presentation would include:

- Development and Regeneration – The Bolton Context - Local Development Issues - Bolton Town Centre Developments

Ms. Sutton informed the Forum that the main aims were to narrow the gap between the most and least well off members of the public and to ensure economic prosperity.

She then outlined the main developments in the Smithills Ward:

- The moving of Bolton Sixth Form College - BSF - Church Road Primary School - Atlas Mill 8 – Uber Developments - Guide Dogs Site - Old Links Golf Club

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Q3

Leading on from this were the main developments in Bolton, known as the ‘Bolton Innovation Zone’. These were:

- and Sixth Form - Multi Storey Car Parking - Health, Leisure and Research Centre

Ms. Sutton also explained that developments to come soon would be:

- Trinity Interchange - Magistrates Court - Major Highway Improvements

Major regeneration projects included Church Wharf Bolton, a development on Central Street and the Merchant’s Quarter Masterplan.

It was recognised that it was also important to think about public realm, heritage and open spaces and to think about areas such as Queen’s Park and the Urban Village and Little Bolton.

Retail and leisure were also important:

- The Market Place - Victoria Plaza - Café Society - Hotels and mixed use buildings

Following the presentation, a number of questions and comments were put to Ms. Sutton:

- Would Church Road Primary School be moved and if so where to? Also, what would happen to the original site? - Was there a possibility that the old site would be turned into a mosque? - How many more children would the new school be looking at taking?

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Q4

- What would be the impact on traffic at the Atlas Mill Guide Dog Site as there seemed to be an increase in traffic on Chorley New Road already? - Development was a good idea but Bolton needed to retain it’s heritage as well. - It was a good idea to have a cinema in the town centre. - Why was there no common sense involved when planning bus routes for example why couldn’t the 501 and 519 travel down Newport Street? - What were the views of Council Officers regarding Little ? - Where would the money come from to fund all the new developments? - Once the developments had been built, was there a guarantee that they would be occupied? - The bus stop at Doffcocker Lodge was too near to the roundabout. - Was there an intention to remove the kerbs in this area, as, if this was the case, this could cause danger for children and blind people in particular? - Bus stops on roundabouts caused a lot of congestion. - How many offices were unoccupied on Bark Street? - What did Bolton have that would attract all the proposed new businesses? - Had many companies committed and then pulled out? - Bolton residents often underestimated Bolton. - What was involved regarding the planning application for Church Road School, i.e. who would be consulted? - Could business rates be reduced initially in order to attract new businesses? - Did Church Road School need to be pulled down and were there any problems with the building?

Resolved – That the report be noted and the questions that have not been answered at the meeting be directed to the appropriate Council Department or external agency.

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Q5

10. BUDGET UPDATE

Anne Boles, Area Co-ordinator, gave a presentation on the subject of budgets and grants available to the Smithills Ward. She explained that there were five areas of funding to consider:

- Area Based Grant - £8,180 - Area Forum Budget - £5,943.29 remaining - Highways Maintenance Budget - £0 - Positive Contributions Budget - £10,000 - Voluntary Sector Grant - £1,500 remaining

Ms. Boles explained that since the last Area Forum meeting, Members had agreed to allocate £7,995 from the Area Based Grant to undertake footway repairs on Kirkby Road.

Resolved – That Members approved a scheme to undertake footway repairs on Kirby Road under the Forum Scheme of Delegation, leaving an amount of £185 unallocated

The Area Co-ordinator also informed the Forum that at the last meeting Members had agreed to allocate £500 to Nuffield Bowling Club to purchase kitchen equipment. Nuffield Bowling Club informed the Forum that the equipment the club originally wanted had since been allocated by Guide Dogs for the Blind, therefore they had requested a change of use for their allocation.

Resolved - That Members had approved the change of use of funding to a water heater and a water boiler under the Forum scheme of delegation.

11. QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS SESSION

Councillor Hayes Introduced this item on the agenda and invited Forum attendees to ask any questions or voice any concerns they may have regarding issues in the Smithills Ward. A number of questions and comments were put to Councillors and Council Officers:

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Q6

- How long did residents need to tolerate the road being bottle necked at the bottom of Halliwell Road? - What was the situation regarding Harrow Road Garages as it seemed they were just being left to collapse? - Why could no one keep the vandals away from Harrow Road Garages? - What would be happening to the land at the Doffcocker roundabout where cars were being sold? - Cars were parked on Captains Clough Road on the pavement on Tuesday, Thursday and Sunday. Why could this not be controlled and the car park be used? - Why would £30,000 be spent on putting chains on the war memorial on Nelson Square? - Would the Older People’s Support Link be introduced to the Smithills Ward?

Resolved – That the report be noted and the questions that have not been answered at the meeting be directed to the appropriate Council Department or external agency.

12. CHAIR’S CLOSING REMARKS

Councillor Hayes concluded the meeting by thanking everyone for attending and announced that the next Smithills Area Forum would be held on Saturday 10th October at Chorley Old Road Methodist Church Hall at 11.00am. The theme for this meeting would be Community Safety.

(The meeting started at 6.30pm and finished at 8.40pm)

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