Minutes of the ordinary meeting of Aberdyfi Community Council held virtually via teleconferencing on Monday, 20th July 2020
Present were:
Councillors:
Cllr Dewi Owen – Chair
Cllr Dai Owens
Cllr Brian Kelly
Cllr Bob Tyrrell
Cllr Megan Reynolds
Cllr Catrin O’Neill
Cllr Dave Williams
Cllr James Bradbury-Willis
Cllr Sara Bradbury-Willis
AGENDA ITEM 1- Apologies
CL/56/20.07.20
Cllr Gareth Jones, Cllr Nigel Pearson
AGENDA ITEM 2- Chairman’s Announcements
CL/57/20.07.20
The Chair noted that it has been very busy in the village this last week and because of the good weather, it is likely to continue and unfortunately many people aren’t sticking to the Gov. guidelines, so we will have to put up with it until the village quietens down again.
AGENDA ITEM 3- Receive & confirm minutes of meeting 15th June & 7th July 2020
CL/58/20.07.20
Proposed: Cllr Kelly Seconded: Cllr Williams
Unanimously approved.
AGENDA ITEM 4 – Matters arising
CL/59/20.07.20
M/155/(16.3.20) Public Toilets Counters & maintenance
Chair said that the toilets are open but that Gwynedd have closed off one washing facility in each toilet, which will put extra pressure on the toilets generally.
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M/40/(15.6.20) Treasurer’s Report
The Clerk reported that the fees paid for this year’s internal audit were £828.00, against fees of £832.00 last year.
The Chair thanked Steve Lister for his work on this.
The Clerk reported that she has contacted BT and found that the Council was out of contract and had been paying a standard tariff for many months. She has now organised a new 24 month contract for £43.45/month instead of £85.80 as previously.
M/25/(18.5.20) Wharf Reconstruction Project
The Chair reported that he hasn’t been able to talk to Gwynedd Council yet but will report back as soon as he hears anything. Cllr Williams reminded everyone that there is no meeting next month, so asked if the Clerk could let everyone know any updates via email before the next meeting. It is still hoped that the work will start this Autumn so that the work doesn’t impact on the tourist season next year.
M/43/(15.6.20) Considerations for reopening of the village
The Clerk is currently in contact with Gwynedd Council and is in the process of clarifying the situation with respect to income from the main and Nantiesin car parks, with a view to confirming that Aberdyfi Council is entitled to income from all sources of income from the car parks, irrespective of how it is collected, now or in the future. Cllr Kelly suggested we check the signs in the car parks as well, to see what they say, although Cllr Tyrrell pointed out that ultimately it is the letter of agreement we have with Gwynedd that is the most important thing. The Chair said he will also check with Gywnedd Council.
Action: Clerk to report back the reply she receives to her emails. Chair to check with Gwynedd Council.
M/51/(15.6.20) Request for drinking water fountain
Cllr O’Neill reported that she has contacted the scheme and has distributed the information for everyone to digest. If the Council joins the scheme we would receive a discount when buying the fountain. It was agreed the Council should pursue this project, especially as there are plans to do some work on the wharf gardens during / after the Wharf Reconstruction Project. Cllr Williams suggested we need to start on this now, as the wharf area is under the management of Gwynedd Maritime and Cllr Kelly said that even although it is a small project, it needs to be in their plans right from the start. Cllr Owen informed the Council that both the Harbourmaster and
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Gwynedd Maritime have no objections to the project and asked the Clerk tofind out how much it will cost to connect to the existing pipes that are under the grass in between the Tourist information Centre and the main road.
It was agreed to have a small committee to look into this project further. Cllr O’Neill volunteered and it was agreed that when she meets with the Clerk, they will send out an invite to all the other Councillors so they can attend if they wish.
Action: Clerk to contact water board to find out connection costs and meet with Cllr O’Neill to move this project forward. Chair will also discuss this issue with the Clerk
M/55/(7.7.20) Response to letter of 1st July from Gwynedd Council
Cllr Williams informed the Council that the Harbourmaster assistant in now back working and that there are now 3 beach wardens in place in Tywyn.
Cllr Kelly asked about the situation with the counters in the toilets and the Clerk said she will talk to the ex-clerk to find out what needs to be done. Cllr Tyrrell pointed out that he believes the ex-clerk has a record of the numbers on a spreadsheet. Chair asked Cllr Kelly to work with the Clerk on this.
Action: Clerk to work with Cllr Kelly to check if the counters need new batteries. Clerk to check counters monthly and add numbers to the spreadsheet.
AGENDA ITEM 5 – Treasurer’s Report
CL/60/(20.7.20)
Proposed: Cllr Reynolds Seconded: Cllr Tyrrell
Unanimously approved.
AGENDA ITEM 6 – Committee Reports
CL/61/20.07.20
Nothing to report
AGENDA ITEM 7 – Gwynedd Council Report
CL/62/20.07.20
Nothing to report
AGENDA ITEM 8 – Considerations for reopening of the village
CL/63/20.07.20
The Chair reported that the village has been very busy recently and that there have been problems with queues outside the shops causing problems for people trying to get into other shops. It was agreed that we should encourage businesses to work with each other to sort out these sort of problems.
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Action: In Rushlight, Clerk to say thank you to all the businesses for their efforts in social distancing and encourage them to work with each other to sort out any problems
AGENDA ITEM 9 – Planning
CL/64/20.07.20
NP5/50/147 Nyth Robin Campsite, Panteidal, LL35 0RG
Construction of Rural Enterprise Dwelling
Application received via email
No objections, unanimously agreed
NP5/50/L513 1 Aber Villas, Brynteg, Aberdyfi, LL35 0HR
New replacement garage with roof decking
Application received via email
No objections, unanimously agreed
AGENDA ITEM 10 – Cambrian Coast Sportive
CL/65/20.07.20
An email was received from Wales Cycling Events asking for the thoughts of the Council on running the Cambrian Coast Sportive in September this year.
Cllr O’Neill said how nice it was that they were asking the opinions of the Council. It was agreed that the Council would support the event, assuming it is allowed and all safety is in place.
Action: Clerk to reply to Wales Cycling Events giving our support of the Cambrian Coast Sportive. Chair to liaise with the Clerk in case of any issues with this event, as the next Council meeting won’t be until after the event has taken place.
AGENDA ITEM 11 – Correspondence
CL/66/20.07.20
Martin Sugarman Request for amendment to the war memorial in Penhelig Gardens
Action: Clerk to reply to Mr. Sugarman reiterating that we stand by our decision and this is the end of the matter as far as we are concerned.
AGENDA ITEM 12 – Items for Consideration at Future Meetings / Urgent Business
CL/67/20.07.20
Clerk asked for the possible purchase of the domain name of Aberdyfi.com to be put on the agenda for the next meeting.
Clerk asked the Council to retain Nigel Upton’s services for the next 6 months while she gets up to speed with editing the website. Agreed unanimously.
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Cllr Williams reminded everyone that the Chair and Clerk have delegated powers during the summer recess.
Cllr Williams informed the Council that the Welsh Government have announced funding for cycle paths and suggested we restart this project
Action: Clerk and Councillors to restart the project
Cllr Williams reported that the bins at Nantiesin weren’t emptied for 2 weeks and were overflowing and causing problems. It happened at the same time last year as well, so we should be mindful of this for next year.
Cllr Tyrrell reported that the path between Aberdyfi Village Park and Erw Pistyll had been strimmed and looked very tidy, so he thanked the person working on it.
The Chair reported that last week the Welsh Government were discussing speed limits in villages and it looks like we can apply to have a 20mph speed limit put in place in Aberdyfi and they are hoping they will be in place by 2022. The Chair reported that this issue has been ongoing in Aberdyfi for years and welcomed the proposals.
Action: Chair and Clerk to find out more information
Cllr Reynolds reported that Betsi Cadwaladr Health Board do not have the 111 system like most other Health Boards, having a different number.
Action: Community Health Council to write to Betsi Cadwaladr to ask why they don’t have the 111 system.
AGENDA ITEM 13 – Items for Rushlight / Website / Facebook
CL/68/20.07.20
- Thank you to the frontline workers in the village for all their hard work
- Thank you to shops
- Thank you for all the work in planting and maintaining the wharf gardens and planters round the village
AGENDA ITEM 14 – Date of next meeting
CL/69/20.07.2020
Monday 21st September 2020, 7pm
There being no further business the meeting closed at 8.40pm
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