minutes+2nd+July+2002


 * Minutes of HFRA General Meeting - Thursday 2nd July 2002**


 * //__RA Delegates Present:__//** M. Allende - **Broadwater Farm RA, N17**; Steve Baron - **Palace Gates RA, N22**; Steve Cook - **Woodstock Road Association, N4**; Simon Fedida (HFRA Treasurer) - **Avenue Gardens RA, N22**; Dave Morris (HFRA Secretary) - **Tower Gardens Residents Network, N17**; Paul Burnham - **Partridge Way TRA, N22**; Mike Towerzey (HFRA Chair) - **The Sandlings RA, N22;** //__Others present:__// Dave Jones (interested in RA for Warham Rd area); Steve Cook also doubled as a delegate from Haringey Defend Council Housing campaign. **//__Apologies__//__:__** Steve Whittle **- West Green RA;** Rosemary McCartan - **South Hornsey RA, N4**; Tim Wilmott and Pat Ayinde - **Bruce Grove South RA, N17**; Frank Forni - **Northumberland Park Independent RA, N17;** John Hajdu - **Muswell Hill & Fortis Green Association, N2**


 * Chair:** Mike Towerzey **Minutes:** Dave Morris


 * 1. Minutes of last meeting** Agreed to be accurate.

//__Woodstock Rd__// //__Assoc, N4__// In response to huge commercial events in Finsbury park (resulting in noise pollution and damage to the park), they have helped form a Reclaim The Park campaign and petition. Unsatisfied with poor record of newly-privatised rubbish collection service (by Accord Ltd). //__Partridge Way RA, N22__// This new local RA is now up and running. Have already succeeded in getting the Council to take responsibility for poor road maintenance on the estate. Conducted their own parking survey. //__Avenue Gardens RA, N22__// Recently completed their own environmental walkabout/audit - 30 residents monitored traffic and the condition of local streets in the latest phase of their efforts seeking traffic calming and other improvements. Have met with LBH head of Environmental Services and other relevant local officials. LBH have now accepted the need for a new pedestrian crossing in busy Park Ave. There is continuing controversy over parking permits - they are a CPZ zone. Want closure of the unused toilets on Wood Green Common. //__Sandlings RA, N22__// Established since 1974! Continue negotiations over an ‘Estate Agreement’ with the LBH and those servicing the estate (repairs, rubbish collection etc). Contract cleaners have replaced their caretaker system - the RA are very unhappy with Accord Ltd. Held a Jubilee party. //__Tower Gardens RN, N17__// Recently leafletted the whole estate with an update about their activities, including campaign for youth club, traffic calming, environmental improvements to streets and local parks, and organising their second residents’ arts and creativity exhibition in Bruce Casstle Museum at the end of August. Helped local youth set up ‘Skatemania - Tottenham Skateboarding Club’. //__Northumberland Pk__// //__RA, N17__// Continuing their weekly ‘drop-ins’ for residents. Helping tenants of one block in Park Lane to take up issues to do with disruption and stress caused by an insensitive new construction development. Have discussed transport issues, including a possible tube extention of the Victoria line to Northumberland Pk. //__Palace Gates RA, N22__// Trying to ensure effective traffic calming throughout the whole local area before major works are undertaken on the North Circular nearby, causing even more rat-running and through traffic. Have therefore formed a single-issue federation with other local RAs. Helping ensure local dumping sites are turned into flower beds. Active for over 15 years. AGM in September. //__Bruce Grove South RA, N15__// Their launch meeting was very successful with 30 residents packed into someone’s house. HFRA Secretary Dave Morris had been invited to address the meeting and answer any questions. There was a great deal of enthusiasm and initiative, with people volunteering to be street reps, and to take up various issues (tree-planting, blue plaques for the former homes of notable ex-residents, street party, rubbish collection etc). //__Woodlands Park RA, N15__// Continue to press for effective local traffic calming, and oppose CPZs. Also taking up issues of dumped rubbish and dumped cars. A controversy was reported widely in the local press over non-attendance by Councillors at a special public meeting organised by the WPRA - this resulted in WPRA issuing a public and detailed list of demands and views, and a hastily rescheduled successful meeting with the Cllrs. //__HOBA & South Tottenham RA, N15__// Helped to open a new residents’ meeting hall this month in honour of a recently deceased tenants’ activist. Have campaigned over issues related to kerb-crawling and prostitution. //__Muswell Hill and Fortis Green Association, N2__// Their June/July Newsletter reports the launch of a new website [www.muswellhillandfortisgreenassociation.co.uk], campaigns over litter, for traffic calming, for a new zebra crossing, improved green sites (including opposing inappropriate development) and more trees, and involvement in the Muswell Hill Festival. //__West Green RA__// Have recently condemned the neglect caused by a disused petrol station site earmarked for a supermarket. //__Warham Rd area...__// Dave Jones explained that he felt there was a need for an RA for this area. A wide range of local issues are being taken up to do with rubbish collection, traffic calming, tree planting. There is a Neighbourhood Watch group.
 * 2. Local reports given or received** **(in brief)**  //__Broadwater Farm RA, N17__// Organised a ‘Right To Manage’ day to involve tenants in joint tenant/LBH management of the whole estate. Organise ‘walkabouts’ and voluntary patrols to monitor the estate. Held AGM in July.


 * 3. The Council’s proposed ‘Unitary Development Plan’** The Council is reviewing its planning and development policies affecting all communities around Haringey over the next 10-15 years. Contact LBH ‘Policies and Projects Group’, 639 High Rd, N17 - 020 88489 5223. Avenue Gardens RA are discussing this issue and hope to bring some ideas to the next Federation meeting.


 * 4. Council Housing** As reported last month, the council is pressing ahead, seemingly against the wishes of tenants, with plans to set up an ‘arms length company’ to manage Haringey’s 20,000 council homes. This is a partial climbdown from attempts to sell off pockets of Haringey’s council housing to Housing Associations, particularly following a successful campaign of opposition, protest and non-cooperation by affected tenants in South Hornsey. Residents on affected estates on the border of Enfield (Barclay Rd) and Hackney (Imperial Wharf) have also been opposing transfer to a Housing Association. But is an ‘Arms Length’ company any better? Why can’t council housing be properly managed and funded? We’ve discussed this in some depth a number of times over the last year and agreed to affiliate to the Haringey Defend Council Housing campaign: 5 RA delegates for, one against, one abstention.


 * 5. Public Voluntary Sector/LBH consultation procedures** On our behalf HFRA treasurer Simon Fedida attended a meeting called by a firm of public management consultants (OPM) to ‘develop new ways of providing collective support and representation for voluntary and community organisations’. 80 individuals and groups went along. It seems that a new ‘umbrella body’ will be set up. We’ve been invited onto the ‘steering committee’, but agreed to maintain an ‘observer’ status. There are concerns that such a body may be linked to LBH’s ‘Best Value Review’ of funding for the voluntary sector, and may by-pass or undermine the right of organisations to speak for themselves.


 * 6. __Federation matters:__** **//a. Publicity//** Dave Morris reported distributing Federation leaflets at the Tottenham Festival in June. We agreed to update our leaflets in the libraries. //Action - DM//
 * //b. Finances and Fundraising//** We have received no official funding as yet. We are therefore about 300 pounds in debt. Dave Morris and Simon Fedida are looking into possible sources of future funds, and Simon will open a bank account with the 50 pounds currently held. We agreed cheques would be signed by the treasurer and any one of the other 3 elected signatories. We need to pay off our debts and raise our own substantial funds for the future, and are appealing to all RAs to send us an annual donation/affiliation: 10 pounds from funded associations, 5 pounds from unfunded associations. (Contributions are voluntary and non-contribution will not affect groups’ attendance and voting rights, or receipt of mailings). //Action - all RAs, DM and SF//
 * //c. Membership//** As a newly-constituted Federation we agreed that all RAs which have attended or sent us apologies or messages of support shall be deemed to be the current HFRA membership. But we will continue to mail out to all RAs and contacts. Any RA queries on this to the Secretary.
 * //d. Relations with LBH//** Steve Baron of Palace Gates RA volunteered to contact the Council about supporting the Federation.