Issue - meetings

This report discusses a petition received from residents of Medway Gardens in Sudbury regarding the proposed pavement reconstruction. The work was postponed pending the hearing of the petition.

RESOLVED that:

(i)            The petition from residents in Medway Gardens, Sudbury regarding the proposed pavement reconstruction, received by the Council on 26 October 2016 be noted;

(ii)          The Medway Gardens pavement reconstruction goes ahead with asphalt used in between concrete block areas at dropped crossings and street corners; and

(iii)         The Council continue to review and update its policy for consultation with residents on road maintenance issues to provide re-assurance of consistency across the Borough.  

The Chair invited Mrs Anne Groome (representative of residents in Medway Gardens) to address the Committee. Mrs Groome outlined that a petition had been submitted to the Council in October 2016 because residents had been concerned that they had not been adequately consulted on the proposed reconstruction of pavements in Medway Gardens. It was also felt that the plans had not addressed some of the key issues in the Medway Gardens area (including Ash Grove) in accordance with the criteria of the Council’s own Asset Management Plan.

The Committee heard that a fundamental cause of damage had been caused by cars and commercial vehicles parking on the pavements in Medway Gardens, particularly the section of road which leads up to Harrow Road. Mrs Groome stated that the road did not meet the Council’s criteria for the relaxation of parking restrictions outside of the Wembley Controlled Parking Zones and that the proposed maintenance work had not taken this into account. She emphasised that residents had felt that without addressing the number of vehicles parking on the road, the proposed tarmac solution would degrade quickly and would require more frequent maintenance. She noted that Elms Park Avenue, which ran parallel, had brick paving which had been deemed to be more durable, as opposed to tarmac. A second fundamental cause to the damage of the pavement had been cited as traffic crossing the footpath and that, at the time, the Council discounts applied for damage to crossover sections had not been communicated to residents. She concluded that the Council had not considered the key issues facing the different sections of road and that the proposed maintenance should be re-evaluated accordingly before going ahead.

The Chair then invited Mr Jim Moher (resident of Medway Gardens) to address the Committee. Mr Moher drew the Committee’s attention to photographs on page 13 of the agenda pack, stating that this stretch of pavement in Medway Gardens was evidently in a deplorable condition. He believed that the Council was correct to be addressing this issue and that the commercial vehicles parking on the pavements had contributed to its deterioration. The Committee also heard of the effect it had had on the previous number of trees on the pavements, and that he welcomed proposals to install new trees on them. He concluded it was essential that if the proposals were to go ahead, the Council ensured that the work was completed satisfactorily for all residents on the road.

The Chair next invited Councillor Daly (Sudbury Ward) to address the Committee. She stated that she hoped her deputation would bridge the gap between the Council’s statutory duty to ensure pavements were safe for the public whilst also ensuring that the concerns of residents were taken into account. Councillor Daly said that it was important for the Committee to acknowledge that the conditions of the pavements on different sections of the road were variable and there were sections of the road where the paving slabs were suitable and did not  ...  view the full minutes text for item 6