MARK PARISH COUNCIL
A Meeting of Mark Parish Council was held via Zoom on Tuesday, 5th January 2021 at 7.00 p.m.
Present:- Councillor S. Emary (Chairman) Councillors D. Champion, Mrs E. Corkish, W. Human, J. Spencer and Mrs J. Weekes with the Clerk and County Councillor D. Huxtable until 7.10 p.m.
Apology for absence received from Councillor G. Francis.
99. Declarations of Interest
Councillors Mrs E. Corkish and Mrs J. Weekes declared personal interests in matters relating to the Village Hall.
100. Minutes
The Minutes of the Meeting of the Council held on 3rd November 2020 were confirmed and would be signed by the Chairman as a correct record.
101. Report of the County Councillor
County Councillor Huxtable reported upon possible proposals for a village gateway on the western approach to Blackford which was actually in the parish of Mark. This Council would be kept inform of any developments. He also reported upon the consultation plan for the proposed safety improvements in the vicinity of Mark First School. It was agreed to request an extension of the hatching up to the gateway of Ampthill House and for the siting of a sign to be checked following the rebuilding of a wall. He also reported that future funding of the 67 bus service was still being negotiated and undertook to chase up the provision of 30 mph repeater signs at Blackford Road.
102. Vacancy
It was agreed to co-opt Mr D. Sellers to serve on the Parish Council to fill the casual vacancy caused by the resignation of Mrs J. Horn. Mr Sellers would be requested to sign a declaration of acceptance of office prior to the next Meeting.
103. Finance
a) Balance of Accounts
It was reported that the balance of accounts at 1st December were as follows - Current £14,029.55, Reserve £26,770.43.
b) Authorisation for Payment
It was agreed that the following payments be confirmed:-
000916 GB Sport & Leisure play equipment maintenance £991.70
000917 PKF Littlejohn audit fee £240.00
000918 Mark Community Association grant £3,949.07
000919 GWB Services grass cutting £311.00
000920 Parish Clerk expenses & sundry payments £532.41
c) Audit of Accounts, Risk Management Report and Statement of Internal Control
The Council considered and approved a Risk Management Report and Statement of Internal Control for 2020/21. The outcome of the audit of the 2019/20 accounts was also noted.
d) Mark Cricket Club
Following a request for financial assistance, it was agreed to make a grant of £1,000 to Mark Cricket Club towards the cost of facilities at their new ground.
104. Planning Portfolio
It was agreed to confirm recommendations made relating to the following applications since the last Meeting:-
024 Erection of a dwelling on the site of an agricultural building to be demolished and erection of a garage/car port, Fairview Farm, Blackford Road, Mark – P. Bonell. Parish Council commented 18.11.2020
043 Variation of Condition 4 of Planning Permission 33/18/00020 (Erection of garage and work area partly on site of existing garage to be demolished.) to be used solely as a private garage/workshop and shall not be used for a commercial business, Victory House, Northwick Road, Mark – P. Anderson. Parish Council recommended refusal 23.12.2020.
044 Erection of house and formation of access, Norville, The Causeway, Mark – Altinok Construction. Parish Council recommended permission 21.12.2020.
045 Prior approval for change of use of agricultural building to dwelling and associated operational development, Littlemoor Farm, Littlemoor Road, Mark – Mr & Mrs S. House. Parish Council made observations 18.12.2020.
047 Change of use of agricultural land to tourism for siting up to 6 shepherds huts, Moor View, Yarrow Road, Mark – Mr & Mrs Hann. Parish Council recommended permission 23.12.2020.
048 Erection of 1.8m high timber fence along part of southern boundary, Sunnyside, The Causeway, Mark – Mr & Mrs G. Peters. Parish Council recommended permission 21.12.2020.
105. Public Areas Portfolio
a) Highway Matters
It was agreed to report road defects at Blackford Road and fly-tipping deposits at Green Drove and opposite the White Horse Inn. It was agreed to defer the Village Clean- up Day until the spring due to Covid restrictions. It was noted that temporary road closures were planned for Harp Road and Dutch Road. It was agreed to request County Highways to investigate the road markings and signage in the vicinity of the eastern end of The Causeway, the Harp Road/Causeway junction and at the Southwick crossroads where there had been recent accidents. The District Council would be requested to replace a damaged nameplate for The Causeway.
Councillor Francis had reported that a grant of £20,000 had been approved by National Grid towards the cost of 6 more advanced SIDs for use in Mark, Burnham Without and East Huntspill. County Highways would be requested to approve new sites and provide poles for these SIDs.
b) Play Area
It was noted that essential maintenance work to the play equipment had been completed following the recent safety inspection.
c) Public Rights of Way
Councillor Human undertook to investigate and, if necessary, report specified issues at Green Drove to the appropriate authorities.
d) Village Hall /Football Pitch Area
It was noted that the Mark Community Association were investigating replacement of the goalposts.
e) Church Street Parish Noticeboard
It was agreed to make arrangements for the noticeboard outside the Village Stores to be refurbished.
106. Web-site Portfolio
Councillor Mrs Weekes reported upon statistics relating to visits to the web-site during December.
107. Next Meeting
It was agreed that the next Meeting be held on 2nd March 2021 starting at 7.00 p.m.
The Meeting closed at 8.10 p.m. Chairman
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