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BOURNEMOUTH CIVIC SOCIETY

 

Minutes of a Meeting of the Committee held at St Peter’s Church

at 2pm on Monday 23rd January 2017

 

Present: John Barker (President), Ken Mantock (Chairman), Hilda Brownlow,             Sally McGrath (Membership Secretary), John Soane (Built Environment Officer) and Paul Newsome (Minutes Secretary)

 

  1. Apologies:  Jean Bird (Vice Chairman), Elaine Cooper, Beryl Parker (Social

Secretary), and James Weir (Heritage and Conservation Officer)

    

  1.   The minutes for the meeting held on 7th November were agreed.

 

  1. Matters Arising from the Minutes.  There were no matters arising.

 

  1. Local Development Framework.  Nothing to report as there hasn’t been an

LDF meeting recently.

 

  1. Built Environment.

5.1                   Durley Road Flats (BDC) Revised plans were awaited.

5.2                   Belvedere Hotel.  A special meeting of the Planning Board was being held this afternoon with a recommendation to approve. The design had been revised twice and the Society had supported the application.

 

5.3       Hospital Access from the Spur Road . The proposals for road works and accessways through the green belt at Riverside Avenue would be monitored and commented on when the public consultation process begins.

5.4       St Stephen’s Road Flats (BDC). The revised scheme was better suited to the site, retained more trees and gave a better backdrop to the streetscene and adjacent St Stephens Church.

5.5       Winter Gardens. The latest proposals seemed to far better represent our aspirations for the site in terms of tree retention, building lines, open space between buildings and overall impact. Heights of some blocks might be better a little lower.

 

  1.   Heritage and Conservation
    • Westover Road Cinemas. The request for listing was rejected, probably because the

latest papers had not been studied as fully as we would have hoped.  James was

querying this decision.  The original plans and even more surprizing second plans

submitted by the developers would be discussed by members of our Planning sub-

committee on 20th February with Andrew England.

  • Boscombe and Pokesdown Plan. The next meeting to consider the plan was

scheduled for 8th February and James was helping with the Heritage Policies.

  • Victorian Shelter on West Cliff. There was a suggestion that the shelter might be

moved.  The Society would support the local residents association’s efforts to have it

retained and refurbished.

6.4       Golden Anniversary of Conservation Areas.  This occurs in 2017 and we ought to

publicise the history and features within Bournemouth CAs. Ken and James to

discuss.

 

  1.        See John Soane’s report:
    • Lansdowne Drill Hall. Development of flats and shops acceptable
    • 5 Ferncroft Road. The proposal for 4 houses on the site of a bungalow was tight, but acceptable
    • 17 Howarth Road. A proposal to build a bungalow in the garden, should be refused

as the site is too small

  • 938-946 Ringwood Road. The plan for 15 flats was excessive for the site.
  • 59-61 St Alban’s Avenue. The proposed 17 flat block was overbearing.  To reduce

            the impact the development should be in two blocks.

  • 38 Southbourne Grove. The proposal to build a house on a commercial site should

            be refused

  • 181 Holdenhurst Road. As above.
  • Branksome Hill Road. The proposed 5 houses and 20 flats was far too much for the

site and should be refused

  • 140-142 Holdenhurst Road (South Western Hotel). This site should be retained as

an inn/restaurant and the conversion to 20 student flats was inappropriate.

  • 241 Charminster Road. The proposed 7 flats needed design improvements
  • 56 Christchurch Road. The proposed 32 flats should be allowed after improvement

to the overbearing architecture

  • Roland House, Hinton Road. The proposed extra two storeys was too much, but an

additional single storey would improve the building

  • 91 Curzon Road. The proposed single house should be permitted as an exception.
  • 15 Glenferness Avenue. An ‘Arts and Crafts’ design for the proposed 10 flats would

be more suitable for the site.

  • 17 Wimborne Road. The design for 9 flats was banal, redesign was needed.
  • 1374 Christchurch Road. There had been 33 objections to this Housing Association

proposal to build 18 flats, it should be rejected.

  • 9 Walpole Road. The proposal for 4 houses would lead to overcrowding, one pair of

semi-detached houses would be appropriate for the site.

  • 64 Irving Road. The plan to build 5 houses should be refused – too crowded.
  • 9 Merlewood Close. The proposed 7 flat building was overbearing and should be

again refused

  • 5 Florence Road. The plan for 9 flats was acceptable
  • Wessex Hotel. The plans to demolish the Hotel and rebuild to include flats was

            inappropriate for the area.

 

  1. Planning Board Observation.  John S reported:
    • Winter Gardens. There was a presentation on the latest scheme.  There was more open space, but the height of the towers needed to be reduced together with a change

from the asymmetric fenestration

  • Bus Station – Casino. The Council had no power to refuse a casino on the site, but it

would have a separate entrance

 

  • St Stephen’s Road Flats. They were approved on 16th January, but with the building moved back from the road and with increased tree cover between the flats and the

Church

  • 2 Wilfred Road. Permission was granted for the conversion of a coach house to residential use

 

  1. Communications Timetable.  The Newsletter had been distributed

 

  1. Civic Voice.  Publications had been distributed

 

  1. Bournemouth 20/26   Nothing to report

 

  1. Bournemouth-in-Bloom.  The AGM would be held at the Miramar Hotel on

2nd March, followed with a Black Tie Dinner at Highcliffe Castle in May

 

  1. Activities Officers’ Reports.  The Committee expressed their delight that

Beryl would be receiving her well deserved ‘Citizen’s Award’ at the Palace of

Westminster later this week.

 

  1. Membership Officer’s Report.  Sally would be sending subscription

Reminders with the AGM notice.

 

  1. Webmaster’s Report. The website was ‘work in progress’
  2. Treasurer’s Report: Current Account – £2,765.67, CAF Account – £7,408.60.  The annual accounts were in the course of preparation.  The account signatories agreed at previous meetings had now been confirmed by the banks.

 

  1. Annual General Meeting. This would be at 6.30 for 7pm on Monday 3rd April at the Connaught Hotel with coffee on arrival.  The hotel would be asked to provide round tables, rather than rows of chairs and seating for 50. Following the formal business James Weir would make a presentation on The Regent Cinema and his investigations into the remaining historic fabric.

 

 

  1. Any Other Business.

18.1     Closure of Lansdowne Road.  Sally informed the committee that Lansdowne Road Slip Road to the railway station had been closed on Christmas Eve and New Year’s Eve causing considerable difficulty for bus passengers.  This would be raised with Andrew England.

 

18.2     Inaccessibilty of The Square Seats.  Sally informed the committee that on a number of occasions during the Christmas period the commemorative seats opposite Tesco had been blocked by commercial operations.  This meant that seats which were regularly and frequently used were not available at these times

 

The meeting closed at 15.15             

 

 

Ken Mantock

27th February 2017                                                                                         Chairman

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