Fairmilehead Community Council meeting held on Tuesday 5 March 2019 in Fairmilehead Parish Church Present: Colin Anderson (Vice Chair); Norman Tinlin (Secretary); Fiona Simon (Treasurer); Barbara Dick (Buckstone Association); Andy Lippok; Fraser Simon; Roger West (Friends of Fairmilehead Park); Ex Officio: Councillors Arthur and Ross; PC Eric Jones 16 members of the public Apologies: Dennis Williams (Chair); Johanna Carrie; Carol Lonie; Miss Jamieson; Douglas Grossart; Councillors Rust & Doggart; Ian Murray MP; 1. Police Report PC Jones circulated copies of the police report for February a copy of which is attached at Appendix A. The next Coffee with a Cop is at Morrison’s on 15 March. Questions were raised about double parking at the shops at Buckstone Terrace; enforcement of 20mph limit; Morrison’s shopping trolley in Morningside Park. The Secretary read over an e-mail he had received from PC Crow: “OFFICIAL Councillors and Community Councils, As a result of the recent funding cut back decision by Edinburgh Council, Ward 8 will be losing a funded police officer and will now be covered by one officer. I am sad to say I will be the officer leaving this post, leaving PC Eric Jones alone in the role. I will be remaining at Oxgangs Police Station for the time being, however will now have responsibilities spread across the South West area including Wards 2, 7 and 9 and other additional responsibilities, and will no longer be the main contact for Ward 8 issues, this will be Eric. Please be aware of the extra workload Eric will now be taking on as he manages the Ward alone. As I have said above, I will still be working within Oxgangs CPT so I will still be involved with Ward 8 meetings and appointments etc. in the future, but no longer in a funded capacity.” Monthly Crime Prevention Tip – Thieves will search for easy ways to invade your home. Don’t leave garden tools or ladders lying around and ensure all windows and doors are locked when you leave home. 2. Energy Efficient Lighting Programme Sylvia Taylor, Project Director introduced herself. All street lighting is being upgraded to LEDs and Amy is this successful contractor. There at present 63,500 to 65,000 street lights over the 17 wards. The conservation and World Heritage Sites will meet dealt with separately. Each column gets a new head and access is required to the plate and the top and there is a tele cell on the top. Because of this any shrubbery or hedges that obstruct the head or the plate will require to be cut back. This is the responsibility of the property owner and as a last resort the Council will cut it back and bill the owner. 1 © Fairmilehead Community Council At present the electric bill is £3 million. It is hoped to reduce this by 50 or 60%.The current orange sodium lights consist of chemicals and have to be disposed of under license. The LEDs have a 22- 25 year life span and are guaranteed for 10 years. The project started with a pilot in Ward 7. This Ward (8) will be done between March and May. The control centre is at Sighthill and the tele cell on each head will allow the lights to be monitored so if one has failed it can be attended to without a member of the public having to report it. Questions: What is the capital cost: £30m which should be recouped by year 11. Brightness – This is a subjective matter but it can be adjusted if necessary. There is no requirement to supply street lighting at all. Further information can be found at: http://www.edinburgh.gov.uk/streetlighting 3. Minute Of Meeting Held On 9 January 2019 These were approved by the meeting. 4. Matters Arising: a) Pedestrian Crossing, Buckstone Terrace at Waterfield Road The Secretary reported that to finally close this saga he had made an FOI request regarding the costs of installation. The response was: “Environmental Information (Scotland) Regulations 2004 - Release of Information Subject: Recently constructed pedestrian crossing on Buckstone Terrace at Waterfield Road Thank you for your request for information of 10/01/2019 where you asked the following: Details of the total costs of the recently constructed pedestrian crossing on Buckstone Terrace at Waterfield Road. It would be appreciated if the costs were split into design costs; construction costs and other costs. Your request has been processed and considered under the Environmental Information (Scotland) Regulations 2004 (EIRs) and the information is provided below. The contractor’s final application for payment has still to be agreed. A final agreed cost should be in place later this month. However, at this time the estimated outturn costs are: Design Costs: £29,454.57 Construction Costs: £77,322.01 Other Costs (Road Safety Audit): £625.00 Total: £107,401.58 5. Correspondence a) Fairmilehead Church – Reminder not to park on DYLs at junction with Frogston Road West and not to park too close to residents driveways. b) City of Edinburgh Council Forestry and Natural Heritage Conservation Report 2018 http://www.edinburgh.gov.uk/downloads/file/12032/forestry_and_natural_heritage_nature_conse rvation_report_2018 c) Traffic Orders CEC – Proposed amendment to waiting restrictions – Caiystane View and Oxgangs Road d) Lothian Buses – Our Year 2018 th e) International Women’s Day – Film Screening of “9-to-5” on 7 March at Wester Hailes Library 2 © Fairmilehead Community Council 6. Councillors’ Reports Cllr Arthur distributed copies of his report: Bike Trail - Hillend Leisure Limited have been in touch to say they plan to submit a planning application to develop land at Swanston Farm (111 Swanston Road, Edinburgh, EH10 7DS - Former Lothianburn Golf Course) into an "outdoor mountain bike leisure development with associated hub building complex, located on land at Swanston Farm". This will include a mountain bike trail centre, indoor and outdoor leisure, food and beverages, professional services suites, offices, retailing, short stay visitor accommodation and associated site access, parking, landscaping and other works. This is separate to the plan to redevelop the Dry Ski Slope. Reverse Vending Machine Launch - This really was a great event at the Broadway Convenience Store. The kids were stars. Using the reverse vending machine, people get payments for returning empty bottles and cans - they can spend it in the shop or donate to the fantastic Pentland PS. Speeding - For two weeks in February I had help from PC Roberta (a cut out Police Officer) to help encourage drivers to stick to the speed limit. I spent a lot of time moving her around every day - always to residential areas where people had complained about speeding traffic: Redford Road, Buckstone Road, Buckstone Loan, Buckstone Gate, Buckstone Crescent, Pentland View (twice), Frogston Gardens, Camus Avenue, East Camus Road, Bonaly Road, Oxgangs Road North, Woodhall Road, New Swanston, Oxgangs Farm Avenue and Oxgangs Farm Gardens. Road Safety - A few weeks ago there was another serious accident on Buckstone Terrace. In the coming weeks the Council will start monitoring speed on Buckstone Terrace & Biggar Road, with the clear aim of making the case for reducing the speed limit from 40mph to 30mph. In parallel to this, the Council has agreed to assess accident statistics on rat-runs linked to these roads - Frogston Gardens/Terrace, Pentland View (speed monitoring already underway) and Swanston Avenue. Jumbo Bus - Lothian Buses' 100 seat "Jumbo Buses" will be serving my Ward. They will work on both the 11 & 16 Routes. "The vehicles have been fitted with comfortable high-backed seating, Wi- Fi, USB charging, mood lighting and audio-visual stop announcements, offering a fantastic customer experience." Redford Barracks Working Group – Good news, the sale of Redford Barracks has been delayed until 2025 (i.e. after the next General Election). I hope the Council use this extra time to bring forward a robust plan for the future of the site that delivers both employment and affordable homes. 17 Buckstone Crescent (Abandoned Property) – A skip has appeared outside the house – I have contacted the Council to ensure it has recovered any debts due. Hunters Tryst School Site – A legal problem with the affordable housing allocation was resolved last week, so work should start soon. Comiston Farmhouse – No news. Trams to Newhaven – Overleaf are my current views, thoughts and concerns on the plan to complete the tramline to Newhaven – the “Newhaven Proposal”. I am not expecting everyone to agree with me, but I hope people will respect the fact that I have thought about it before reaching a view. Climate Change - The UK just experienced its warmest February day on record with the Met Office reporting temperatures exceeding 20°C in some places. This alone is not evidence of Climate Change, but temperature records are being broken at an unprecedented rate. This is further justification for me backing calls in the City Chambers for the Council to look seriously at its emissions to ensure it does all it can to reduce climate-changing pollution by at least 90% by 2050. Shooting For the Moon – Thoughts on Taking the Trams to Newhaven in a Binary Political World Below are my current views, thoughts and concerns on the plan to complete the tramline to Newhaven - the "Newhaven Proposal". I am not expecting everyone to agree with me, but I hope people will respect the fact that I have thought about it before reaching a view. We apparently live in a binary world. People are Yes or No. They are Leave or Remain. In Edinburgh, they are either for or against completing the tramline to Newhaven. 3 © Fairmilehead Community Council The reality is different, however. Just like on many other binary arguments, most people are stuck in the middle between hardcore "extremists" on the tram debate.