CONTACT YOUR TOWN COUNCILLOR CONTACT YOUR TOWN COUNCILLOR Gillingham Town Council TOWN WARD HAM WARD Cllr Fiona Cullen Cllr Alison von Clemens 07815 942379 01747 837857 [email protected] [email protected] Cllr Mike Gould Cllr Dennis Griffin 01747 826204 01747 824857 Winter 2020 Newsletter Issue No. 29 [email protected] [email protected] Cllr Paul Harris (Deputy Mayor) MILTON WARD 01747 826991 Gillingham Town Council Cllr Graham Poulter Gateways to Gillingham Address: Town Hall, School Rd, 07890 007347 Gillingham, Dorset SP8 4QR [email protected] Thanks to a grant received two years ago Telephone: 01747 823588 from the former North Dorset District Cllr John Kilcourse [email protected] Email: [email protected] Council, to improve Gillingham’s gateways, it has been possible for Gillingham Town 01747 825451 RURAL WARD Website: www.gillinghamdorset-tc.gov.uk Council to refurbish two of the town’s round- Mayor: Cllr Barry Von Clemens abouts. [email protected] Deputy Mayor: Cllr Paul Harris Local artist and former member of Gillingham Cllr Roger Weeks Town Clerk: Julie Hawkins Town Team, Janet Swiss, created a design for 07703 570905 the roundabout at Shaftesbury Road. It Cllr Val Pothecary Deputy Clerk: Clare Ratcliffe represents Gillingham as a former Royal 01747 826089 Mayor’s Executive Assistant: Jill Ezzard [email protected] Forest favoured in medieval times by Kings Responsible Financial Officer: Debra Edwards John and Henry III. The original design has WYKE WARD Project Administrator : Serena Burgess been modified slightly to meet highway health [email protected] and safety guidelines, but the final result is Works Manager: Simon Dobie stunning. The sculptures were produced by Cllr Sharon Cullingford Deputy Works Manager: Martin Down local sculpture artist, Pauline Dawkins, who Cllr John Robinson 07426 499813 uses recycled chicken wire for her work. 01747 822928 Meetings Unfortunately, due to the Covid pandemic, [email protected] there was a shortage of bulbs this year and so st General Purposes: 1 Monday of the month these will be planted next autumn for a splash [email protected] Planning Committee: 2nd & 4th Monday of the of colour in Spring 2022. Cllr Rupert Evill month Landscaping work on the smaller roundabout 01747 822886 Cllr Donna Toye rd at Peacemarsh will begin in the New Year and Finance Committee: 3 Monday of the month will be just as impressive as the roundabout 01747 590805 th Full Council: 4 Monday of the month along the Shaftesbury Road. [email protected] On 4th April 2020 regulations came into effect which [email protected] allow local councils to hold remote meetings (including by video and telephone conferencing) Cllr Alan Frith for a specified period until May 2021. Gillingham Cllr Barry Von Clemens (Mayor) 01747 826394 Town Council is currently holding meetings via Microsoft Teams. 07835 271287 cllralan.frith@gillinghamdorset- tc.gov.uk The press and public may join the meeting via MS Teams, please contact the Town Council (prior to cllrbarry.vonclemens@gillinghamdorset -tc.gov.uk the meeting during working hours) to request join- ing instructions. Cllr Mick Hill Cllr Keith Wareham 07437 301007 All attendees should try to join the meeting at least 01747 821341 5 minutes prior to the start of the meeting to allow for any connection problems. [email protected] [email protected] -1- Message from the Mayor As 2020 draws to a close, I reflect on last Christmas and our hopes and plans for the year ahead. Who Green Flag Success for Gillingham could have predicted the devastating effect Covid-19 would have on our families and the world at large? We are delighted to announce that once again our open spaces in Gillingham have been awarded I have always said Gillingham’s people are what makes our town so special, and when we asked for Green Flag accreditation. The Green Flag Award scheme, volunteers to help those less able and self-isolating, the positive response we received at the Town managed by environmental charity Keep Britain Tidy, Council was staggering. I was both proud and humbled to be the Mayor of such a caring community. recognises and rewards well-managed parks and green You are all a credit to our town, as are all the groups and organisations who support our community spaces, setting the benchmark standard for their manage- throughout the year. ment across the United Kingdom and around the world. Christmas this year will be very different following the Government’s COVID restrictions, but I hope that Commenting on Gillingham’ s success, Keep Britain Tidy everyone will be able to enjoy this festive time of year in some form or another. Our fabulous town council Chief Executive Allison Ogden-Newton OBE said: grounds team have been adding some festive sparkle decorating our town with over one hundred Christmas trees. “This year, more than ever, our parks and green spaces have been a lifeline and we know that millions of people It is now more important than ever to support local businesses wherever you can. Without our support have used them to relax, meet friends, exercise or simply they may not survive, so let's give them the best Christmas present we can, by giving them our custom. escape for a short time. Sadly, many families are struggling this Christmas. If you can offer a little bit of Christmas cheer through “It is testament to the incredible dedication and hard work of a small donation to a local organisation such as the Gillingham food parks staff and volunteers that, despite the challenges that went along with record numbers of bank, then please do. visitors, Gillingham Town Council has achieved the highest international standards by the Green I would like to thank the Gillingham Community Christmas Meal Flag Award.” volunteers, who this year have stood up to the social distancing challenge. Instead of the usual Christmas Day gathering, they will Dorset Council Road Works deliver Christmas meals, ensuring that they those living alone will still see a friendly face on Christmas Day. Following the demolition of The Old Manse at New Road, construction of the new junction is taking I would like to end by wishing you all a Merry Christmas and a Happy shape. New year on behalf of myself and my fellow councillors and the Current work is focusing on flattening out The Old Manse site to bring the ground level up to the wonderful staff of Gillingham Town Council same height as the surrounding highway, as well as other work in this area such as ducting for the new signal cables and installing sockets for the new poles. Cllr Barry von Clemens Mayor of Gillingham The initial four-way temporary lights put in place on 26 October caused significant delays for drivers and have been replaced with three-way signals. To help this new set-up, vehicles exiting Rose Court Christmas and New Year Bin Collections can now only turn left onto Shaftesbury Road. This has worked much better, although there are still delays at peak times. The three-way temporary lights will stay in place until the project is finished. Over Christmas and New Year, your usual rubbish, recycling and food waste collection Construction work for the junction will finish in mid-January. It will be followed by cabling work by days will be different. Siemens – with the new permanent signals turned on at the end of January. Following the lights being switched on, SCOOT traffic detection system will be installed on the Le Neubourg Way Notice of making a Public Spaces corridor to link the traffic signals together. Usual collection day Revised collection day Protection Order The work to widen the pavements in Higher Station Road has finished. As part of this, the road is Thursday 24 Dec No change Dorset Council has carried out the necessary now one-way southbound (out of town) from High Street to Buckingham Road. The lower section of consultation on its proposal to make The this part of Station Road remains two-way to maintain access to businesses at this end. Some areas Friday 25 Dec Monday 28 Dec Dorset Council Dog Related Public Spaces of new imprinted paving are awaiting a colour finish – this will be carried out in the New Year, Protection Order 2020 (the PSPO’) in weather dependent. Monday 28 Dec Tuesday 29 Dec accordance with section 72 of the above Act. Work to construct the new principal street, is due to Tuesday 29 Dec Wednesday 30 Dec The PSPO has now been made in accordance commence in the Spring. This will signal the start of with section 59 of the Act and it comes into the Southern Extension. The proposed principal Wednesday 30 Dec Thursday 31 Dec force on the 1st January 2021 and will expire street comprises a 1.3km road link between the on the 31st December 2023 B3081 Shaftesbury Road and the B3092 New Road. Thursday 31 Dec Saturday 2 Jan For further information on the content of the The principal street will serve the Gillingham Southern Friday 1 Jan Monday 4 Jan Order, penalty levels, maps and exemptions Extension which proposes circa 1,800 residential see homes to be built in several development parcels to Monday 4 Jan Tuesday 5 Jan the north and south of the principal street. This will Tuesday 5 Jan Wednesday 6 Jan www.dorsetcouncil.gov.uk/environmental- comprise of a central parcel’ of up to 961 dwellings, health/dog-warden-service/responsibilities-of-a- Park Farm hosting 634 dwellings and the Lodden Wednesday 6 Jan Thursday 7 Jan dog-owner.aspx Lakes site, split in to two phases – phase 1 comprises 90 dwellings and phase two up to 115 dwellings.