EREWASH PRIDE?



LITTER ON EREWASH LAND



No wonder many Ilkeston people are disillusioned with Tory Erewash's double standards. The site of the former Cotmanhay Community Centre, which is still owned by Erewash, is a right mess. The litter on the site is appalling. Where is the pride in Erewash? Certainly not at this site at the bottom of Skeavington Lane.



POT HOLE ON PLAY AREA
SKEAVINGTON LANE



On the nearby hard surfaced play area is a dangerous pot hole, just another sign of a poor service to local folk. Where is the duty of care being exercised, not in Ilkeston North. It's about time the Council had an even handed attitude instead of treating Ilkeston folk as second class citizens.





POOPER SCOOTERS FOR EREWASH?



Cllr Graham Chapman and Cllr Howard Griffiths



One of the most persistent complaints from residents in Erewash is the amount of dog droppings on footpaths. The most vociferous complaints come from Parents walking their youngsters to and from school and particularly people with pushchairs. I want to introduce Pooper Scooters into Erewash. The idea is a converted motorbike with a vacuum device which firstly sprays the offending dog mess and then removes it.  Pooper Scooters would enable a quick and mobile response to complaints of dog fouling.

The idea was one of many initiatives that were discussed at my recent meeting with Councillor Graham Chapman Deputy Leader of Nottingham City Council. We discussed how a Labour Erewash could make real improvements to our area within existing financial contraints.

Graham was proud of the way Nottingham had been transformed by the City Council. With the remodelled Old Market Square, the tram system and just as importantly, keeping the City clean. Now Nottingham looks more on a level with comparable European Cities. Nottingham shows how a dynamic local Council can make a real difference.









NUTBROOK TRAIL

The Nutbrook Trail, which runs between Long Eaton and Shipley Park, will be hit by Derbyshire funding cuts. The maintenance was carried out by an organisation called SUSTRANS on behalf of Derbyshire County Council. The £4,000 used by them to carry out routine maintenance has been cut from the DCC budget.

I rode up the trail the other day and was struck by the bad state of the Shipley Park end. The cycleway needs more repairs not less.

I believe we should be opening up more footpaths, cycle and bridleways, not running down the one we've already got. Not only is encouraging people off the roads good for health but it also helps local tourism. Another mindless cut from Derbyshire County Council.

LONG EATON FIRE

The fire which led to the death of Linda Parkes has been the subject of recent attention in the Derby Evening Telegraph. 

WELLINGTON ST BLAZE



The responses from both Jessica Lee M.P. and Cllr Chris Corbett were predictable. The M.P.'s response was we may need another Law. The Councillor's response was we may need another meeting. The Department for Communities and Local Government quickly responded that Local Authorities already had the powers to "take appropriate action" if homes are "found to contain serious hazards." Perhaps if Jessica Lee had contacted the DCLG directly she would have been able to speak with more authority on the subject. It's not new laws we need, it's money and the will to enforce the ones we've already got.

Cllr Corbett seems to have been waiting a long time for his urgent report and has prematurely come to the conclusion that a meeting was the answer to the problem of accumulated rubbish at a residential property.  However Erewash already have a Community Safety Partnership where matters such as this case could have been discussed. We don't need another set of meetings, we just need the present set up to work more effectively.

In the Linda Parkes case some facts have emerged. A complaint about accumulated rubbish around the front door was made to Erewash on the 20th August 2010 by a Police Officer. A Council official called at the premises and talked to the occupier. No action resulted and so a formal notice was served to secure the removal of the rubbish. This also had no effect. The question that may come to mind is, should it have taken as long as six months for a Council to take action on a complaint about rubbish blocking a front door? In fact it seems that in this case Erewash took no effective action at all!