minutes+8th+March+2005


 * __Report of HFRA General Meeting – March 8th 2005__**


 * //__RA Delegates Present__://** Joyce Oyeyi Effiong – **Suffolk Road RA, N15;** Colin Marr – **Methuen Park Association, N10;** Ule & Olle Lefmann - **Burleigh Rd Area RA, N8;** Peter Thompson - **Muswell Hill & Fortis Green Assoc, N2;** Laurie Owen - **Parkside Malvern RA, N8;** Dave Morris - **Chestnuts Northside RA, N15;** Jane Laporte - **Woodlands Park RA, N15;** Stephen Whittle - **West Green RA, N15;** Vivienne Cuming and Simon Fedida - **Avenue Gardens RA, N22;** Bob Maltz - **Gladwell, Landrock & Cecile Pk Residents Action Group, N8;** Grahame Pearce - **Heron Wharf RA, N17;** Peter Hall **– Sandlings RA, N22** //And:// Gary Hoffman – Hornsey Vale Community Centre, N8; James and Kate Huddie – Wood Green Residents Against The Towers, N22 **//__Apologies:__//** Pat Ayinde - **Bruce Grove Residents Network, N17;** Alex Irvine - **Bowes Park Community Assoc., N13;** Carol Ingram – **St Ann’s Residents Group, N15;** Joyce Rosser - **Warner Estate RA, N8;** Robert Gainsborough - **St George’s Lodge RA, N10;** Ibilola Campbell – **Tiverton Tewkesbury RA, N15;** //And:// Kit Greveson – Crouch End for People, N8

There were reports from all groups present (and some in writing) about some of their most recent activities and concerns. Some groups brought their recent Newsletters or minutes to pass around – well-received! As usual, some of the issues raised led to general discussion (eg. concerns to ensure that kerb-site materials collected are being correctly recycled). We also agreed to call a joint HFRA / Haringey Agenda 21 special UDP networking session for objectors – to be held on April 9th, 1pm - 2.15pm at Bruce Castle Museum. The Friends of Parks Forum are meeting in the morning there, and HA21 are holding their AGM in the afternoon, so it’ll be part of a ‘Community Environmental Day’. Following a great deal of protests and publicity by RAs and Friends of Parks groups the Council dropped its plans to allow educational institutions to annex areas of the borough’s parks. The Federation was involved in intense lobbying of, and participation in, the Council’s ‘Green Open Spaces Scrutiny Review’ of the management and future of the borough’s green spaces. Most of the HFRA proposals have now been incorporated into the recommendations of the review panel. The Federation ran a stall at the Feb 19th Council-run Tenants & Leaseholders Conference. The main issue at the open plenary sessions of the conference was the ALMO management proposal. The HFRA position was that there should be a ballot on this, and there should be a level playing field for access to central government funding for Council housing. A ballot date for voting on the ALMO has now been set for March 14th. Everything seems ready for the March 19th event at Tottenham Green Leisure Centre. Peter Thompson (MHFGA) had drafted up a briefing for the Federation on the law on Freedom of Information. We agreed to circulate. Exec. Member for Community Engagement) that the Council is failing to compile an accurate, up-to-date database, and refusing to add all the RAs who wish to be on the database. We are awaiting progress on this.
 * __1. Minutes of last meeting__** The minutes for the February 8th General Meeting were agreed.
 * //Matters arising://** It was noted that public pay toilets were being piloted in Wood Green and that disused phone boxes were at last gradually being removed.
 * __2. Local reports from RAs present__**
 * __3. Planning and Development__**
 * a. LBH Unitary Development Plan** The UDP Public Inquiry is scheduled to start on 12th April. There is growing concern that UDP policies are promoting high-density house-building throughout the borough leading to a massive increase in the population, without the protection for community interests and the social infrastructure needed. Indeed, we have discovered that these were the views of the Council itself in its responses to the draft London Plan of the Greater London Authority two years ago. We agreed to continue to press the Council for a formal ‘sustainability appraisal’ of the UDP policies, including making formal presentations to various LBH committees.
 * b. Local planning applications** Regarding the Council allowing the demolition of the historic chapel in Lordship Lane to make way for the proposed Paul Simon Ltd tower blocks it was urged that all RAs remain vigilant about sites of local historic interest and at least try to get all such sites locally listed. There was a long discussion about tower blocks generally – whether in this day and age we should be allowing the return to the unpopular, high-density practices of the past. It was agreed in principle to oppose tower blocks – policy to be affirmed at the next meeting. It was also felt that such housing was particularly unsuitable as family accommodation.
 * c. Front gardens and garden walls** We also agreed to express our concern about the concreting over of front gardens – a vital green part of our public street environment. There seemed to be few planning regulations which could halt this trend. However, residents must pay for special dropped kerbs if they wish to drive over the footway - the Council has recently installed bollards in some cases to prevent this. There were also concerns that front garden walls - protected in some conservation areas – were also being lost. It was felt that the publicly-funded Group Repair Schemes should take note of these concerns.
 * d. Billboards and estate agent signs** Woodlands Park RA reported their success in getting the Council to write to the companies who have illegally erected commercial hoardings, demanding they be taken down. 19 hoardings in their area have since been dismantled. This success could spread throughout the borough if all RAs persued the matter. It should be noted that there’s only 4 main companies involved (names on each site!). It was also reported that Camden Council have written to estate agents demanding they take down surplus signs outside homes once they’re sold or rented.
 * 4.** **__Parks and Green Open Spaces__**
 * 5.** **__Council Housing__**
 * 6. __Tottenham Area Residents Associations Networking Day__**
 * 6.** **__Freedom of Information__**
 * 7.** **__Federation Business__**
 * //a.//** **//Community Action//** **//bulletin//** Being finalised. Please let us know how many copies of the next edition your group could distribute.
 * b.** **//HFRA AGM//** – provisionally set for June 2005. We discussed possible guest speakers.
 * //c.//** **//LBH community groups’ database//** We’ve raised our concerns with Cllr Lorns Reith (LBH
 * //d. HFRA summer fun/fundraising event//** - including cycleride/walk/picnic. We were not sure if we could organise this in time – but if we did, Haringey Cycling Campaign had said they were happy to support it. We agreed that any cycling should be //responsible// (ie NOT on pavements!). 10/7 or 17/7?