Skateboard Park proposals

Items of note from the Environment Committee at full parish council on Wednesday night. Please note that these minutes and proposals are subject to confirmation.

^1.            War Memorial Green.   Ben Fay had a meeting with PCllr G Young.  He made suggestions as follows:
1.1.     Plant a hawthorn or laurel hedge
1.2.    take bus shelter out and erect metal fence
1.2.1.    It was agreed that separate meeting is arranged with representatives of the committee so that proposals can be put to the council.   PCllrs R Baker, A Morris and G Young will represent the committee.    ^2.            Skateboard Park.   At the last quarterly surgery, the majority of people asked that the facility goes into the Millennium Park.  The Clerk had contacted CBC and they looked favourably upon the project, indicating that it would give permission for the skate park to be sited there.   However the CBC planning did not look favourably, due to location.   RECOMMENDED that Delise Ball should have a meeting with the planners in the New Year.  

Cemetery space fear

Hot news

 Almost half of England's cemeteries could run out of space within the next 20 years, a BBC survey suggests.

And a quarter of 358 local authorities responding to the BBC said they would have no more room for burials within a decade.

Cemetery experts warned of a looming "crisis", while managers called for a change in law to allow graves that are more than 75-years-old to be reused.

The Ministry of Justice (MoJ) said the issue was "under constant review".
BBC Local Radio approached 699 local authorities - 358 of which responded.

 

Many of the councils surveyed, including those in Gosport, Mole Valley, Crawley and Rother, said they had five years or less before they ran out of room. Other areas - such as Tandridge district council in the South East - said they had already run out of space.

Full story BBC News

In Cranfield we should be OK thanks to farsightedness by parish councillors particularly Delise "Dee Eagle" Ball the chairwoman of the PC.  The extension is now ready for use and within the next year will take its first interment. Ground prepared and cut, road constructed. We are looking at extending the water supply.

Cranfield cemetery - our mark on the land

Uni bus service vision

Huge gaps have appeared in Cranfield’s bus services in recent years as Central Beds and Milton Keynes council have pulled back financial support.

Now Cranfield University looks set to plug many of the holes and go one step further with an innovative Flitwick service.

The University has been reviewing investment in its traditional shuttle services for students between Bedford and Milton Keynes. 

It is planning to award a contract, subject to final agreement, for the provision of a regular through bus service between Milton Keynes and Bedford via Cranfield, to be used not just by staff and students but by the public as well.

This would include buses from the centre of the village to Bedford bus station and to Milton Keynes railway station before 7 am. There would be hourly buses with the last bus from Bedford back to the village at 22.15 and from MK station at 22.55. The route includes Wootton and Upper Shelton. All times are subject to final confirmation.

Saturday services will run hourly and late evening and the Sunday service will be every 90 minutes finishing early evening.

An innovative service, Monday to Friday, will run one bus early morning to Flitwick and one late afternoon back again, passing the railway station. This would include Marston and Ampthill. 

There would be a morning bus from Milton Keynes via Newport Pagnell and North Crawley and one back again in the late afternoon.

Passes will be useable on all services, which would start in early September.

The Parish Council was planning to write to the university to express its appreciation.

Along with other parish councillors including Alan Morris I have been involved with public transport issues for a number of years. It has been all bad news as evening and Sunday buses disappeared, we lost our connection to Wootton and Milton Keynes services were taken over by another company.

The University has sought parish council engagement with its plans and listened to our suggestion about a Flitwick service. As a regular user of rail from Flitwick I have felt for years that there should be a commuter service. I hope the University’s vision is vindicated with usage.

Watch the blog and Movers and Shakers for updates

34 Mill Road application approved

The PC had objected to a planning application which involved 'backfilling' at 34 Mill Road. Unfortunately its objections have been overruled. The reasons why CBC has passed this application are stated below.

Planning Application CB/12/04398/FULL, for the erection of two three bedroom dwellings with associated garages at the back of 34 Mill Road, has been granted by Central Beds. with the following conditions:

1)      The work shall commence within three years of the date of the permission;

2)       A  scheme shall be submitted for written approval by Central Beds. setting out the details of the materials to be used for the external walls and roof to protect the visual amenities of the building and of the area generally;

3)     The garage accommodation on the site for Plot 1 shall not be used for any purpose other than as garage accommodation unless Central Beds. agrees in order to retain off-street parking provision and thereby minimise the potential  for on-street parking which could adversely affect the convenience of road users;

4)     Prior to the occupation of the flats (N.B. in the design statement it refers to the two dwellings as family homes) the approved car parking, landscaping scheme, the wall  on the northern boundary and other boundary treatment shall be completed to protect the amenities of the adjacent properties;

5)     Before the premises are occupied the proposed development shall be carried out and completed in all respects in accordance with the access siting and layout, surfacing of the vehicular areas, parking provision and turning area as illustrated in the approved drawings to ensure that the development of the site is completed insofar as its various parts are interrelated and dependent one upon another and to provide adequate and appropriate access arrangements at all times;

6)     Details of a refuse collection point located outside of the public highway shall be submitted  to and approved by Central Beds. prior to the occupation of any dwelling. The scheme shall be fully implemented prior to occupation of any dwelling and shall be retained thereafter in the interest of amenity and in order to minimise danger, obstruction and inconvenience to users of the highway and the premises;

7)     Development shall not commence until a scheme detailing provision for on site parking for construction workers and deliveries for the duration of the construction period has been submitted to and approved in writing by Centra l  Beds., and the scheme shall be implemented throughout the construction period, to ensure adequate off street parking during construction in the interests of road safety.

Cranfield Parish Council objected to this application for the following reasons (these are given with the responses of Central  Beds.):

1)     Overbearing to neighbouring properties, and properties in Lordsmead (An overbearing impact would be considered development that would dominate the adjacent properties; it is considered that with the spacing between these properties – the closest  relationship being some 13 metres- would not be considered dominating or overbearing);

2)     Access- the development site is opposite to the junction of Longbornes, the visibility along Mill Road is poor ( It has been advised that there are suitable relationships with this junction and adjacent roads, the access is already constructed, as it services the existing flats. It is considered that the movements for two additional dwellings would not cause such an intensification that it would  become unsuitable );

3)     Insufficient parking causing cars to be parked on Mill Road which is already congested, causing traffic to weave (Plot 1 has parking in accordance with the Central Beds. parking strategy; Plot 2 has an extra parking space in accordance with the Central Beds. parking strategy. It is considered  that the additional space is reasonable; the garages accord with the size standard prescribed);

4)     Overdevelopment of the site (the site is 800 sq, m. , the site would approximately equate to 25 dwellings per hectare, which is considered a reasonable density for a village setting . In addition to this the garden space equates to the standards (approximately 100sqm) for family sized dwellings are met, and the parking standards are also met. It is not considered that this overdevelopment).

Music evening in Cranfield

Enjoy a varied concert of beautiful music presented by  Manor House String Quartet 

 

ST PETER AND ST PAUL CHURCH
Court Road, Cranfield MK43 0DR

Saturday 8th June 2013 
from 7.30pm


Tickets £10:00
£5.00 students
Includes a glass of wine or soft drink
 
 

For tickets call: 
Andrew 01234 75 13 58 
Trevor 01234 75 13 21
Rev Hugh 01234 75 02 14