Davidson’s Mains Primary – expansion update

We were pleased to attend the information evening organised by Council education officials on the expansion of Davidson’s Mains Primary.

The plan involves constructing a new, two storey, eight classroom building. This would be just to the west of the current main building on the playground/playing field.

This would provide significant new capacity for the rising school roll.

The ‘temporary’ huts near the school entrance would then be demolished with the land either tarmaced over or possibly converted to new outdoor classrooms. The project has been developed to minimise the impact on the current school during construction.

Officials aim to submit a planning application later this month. If approved, construction would start in February so the new building is available from next August.

We will be getting detailed pdfs of the plans so anyone who would like these can email us at either Louise.young@edinburgh.gov.uk or kevin.lang@edinburgh.gov.uk

Housing plans for former Silverlea care home site

One of several brown field sites which the Council is looking to transfer over to housebuilding is the are on and around the former Silverlea Care Home at Muirhouse Parkway.

The site is approximately 2.3 hectares and consists of the former Silverlea Care Home and grounds, Craigroyston Boys Club changing/clubroom facilities, mature trees, shrubland and open space, which contains remnants of former riding stables. Part of the site is within the Green Belt.

AHR Architects has been appointed by the Council to undertake a feasibility study for mixed tenure housing on the site. The estimated development capacity of the site is around 140 homes.

The scope of the study includes, but not limited to, archaeological, ecological, topographical, transport and utility surveys and assessments, intrusive site investigations and preparation of concept development plans, drainage and energy strategies.

In parallel with these studies, preparatory plans are well under way to demolish the former care home.  The ground floor doors and windows have been fitted with security panels and safety fencing erected around the building. It is expected the building will be demolished before the Spring 2018.

An initial meeting has been held with members of the Craigroyston Boys Club committee regarding the relocation of the club’s facilities which occupy part of the site. Consultations will continue with them throughout the redevelopment process.

During the next 8 months the following activities will be progressed:

  • Site surveys
  • Desk and site investigations
  • Demolition of the former care home
  • Preparation of concept development plans
  • Financial viability exercise
  • Community engagement & consultations
  • Preparation of feasibility report.

We will make sure to keep local people informed as this project moves forward.

Motorbike crime – Council approves Kevin’s motion unanimously

We’re delighted that Edinburgh City Council unanimously supported Kevin’s motion today in praise of the police’s work to tackle motorbike crime in north west Edinburgh.

The motion also called for a new report on what more the Council can do to support the police as well as invest in education and community activities.

The horrific events from last weekend involving a motorbike hit and run, which left a 10 year old boy in Drylaw in hospital, shows why more work is needed and needed now.

Here is Kevin’s motion which all political groups in the Council supported.

“Council recognises:
a) the ongoing problems of motorbike crime and other antisocial behaviour which blights many communities in the north and north west of Edinburgh,
b) that such disorder is caused by a small number of individuals who are not reflective of the wider community,
c) the commitment, professionalism and bravery of police officers who work hard to provide a visible police presence and have often been victim to violence or attempts at violence,
d) that the success in tackling these issues will depend, not just on effective policing but also on improved education and community support.
Council commends Police Scotland for its work as part of the Stronger North campaign which was re-launched in June.

Council welcomes the additional national policing resources which were deployed in local communities to bolster this campaign, and in so doing recognises the positive impact of a visible on the street police presence in areas affected by crime.
Council notes that over the course of the campaign, there were:
i) 71 arrests with 15 stolen motorcycles and 5 stolen cars recovered,
ii) 28 vehicles seized and impounded whilst drivers were charged with corresponding offences,
iii) 9 misuse of drugs warrant executions resulting in the recovery of £9000 of drugs.
Council welcomes the cross-party support which exists for the campaign and the collaboration between local councillors, MSPs and MPs with local police, council officials and community representatives.

Council commits to continuing to support this campaign by working with the police, voluntary organisations and the wider community, providing the necessary support and resources where required.
Council commits to further tackling these issues through education in schools and community based activities which can help reduce situations which lead to antisocial behaviour.
Council therefore calls for a report to be made to the Corporate Policy & Strategy Committee within two cycles on what further action the Council can take to address the underlying issues which lead to crime and antisocial behaviour as part of a longer-term strategy on these issues.

Davidson’s Mains bridge weight restriction

A number of residents in Davidson’s Mains and Silverknowes have contacted about HGV’s using the bridge at Main Street, Davidson Mains.

We raised this with the local police who have also discussed with the Council.

The bridge restriction relates to a maximum weight limit of 7.5t on Main Street. It is not due to any weight limit on the bridge, which has a maximum limit of 20t. The road weight restriction is in place for the length of Main Street due to control exhaust emissions through the village.

Authorised Roads Policing (traffic) officers are trained to carry out checks on a vehicle’s weight. The process involves the HGV being stopped and taken to a weighbridge for the weight to be established, this evidence would be required for any formal enforcement.

If any resident observes any HGV go over the bridgr and they suspect it breaches the weight limit they should contact the police on 101 at the time wit’s the details of the HGV.

Of course, an empty vehicle may not be over the weight limit and therefore would be permitted. The same HGV carrying a load may be over the weight and would constitute an offence. The only way to confirm is by having the vehicle weighed. Larger articulated vehicles would likely be over weight either way.

Concerns have been passed to the Roads Policing branch wits a request that they keep in the area in mind for proactive patrolling.

Weeds – time for action from Edinburgh City Council

One of the issues re-emerging over the summer months is the problem of weeds across west Edinburgh.

This issue was debated at a recent meeting of the full City of Edinburgh Council with concerns raised about the under resourcing of the team responsible for removing weeds.  There have also been problems since the decision to phase out the use of harmful glyphosate weed-killer with a delay in developing effective alternatives.

Both of us backed a motion to push for urgent action.  Unfortunately, this was voted down by the Labour and SNP administration councillors. Instead, they chose to delay taking action until later in the year.

The failure by those running the Council to properly understand the seriousness of the weeds problem was shown when one administration councillor glibly argued that “a weed is just a plant in the wrong place.”

Labour and SNP councillors may be happy to see our streets covered in weeds but we think residents deserve better.  That is why we will keep fighting for action.

If there is a major weeds problem on your street then let us know by contacting us on kevin.lang@edinburgh.gov.uk and/or louise.young@edinburgh.gov.uk

 

 

 

20mph roll out in Barnton, Cramond, Davidson’s Mains, Muirhouse and Silverknowes

Residents will have seen new 20mph signage going up on lamp-posts and being painted on roads throughout Barnton, Cramond, Davidson’s Mains, Muirhouse and Silverknowes.  This is part of the city-wide roll out of 20mph as agreed by the last Council in January 2015.

Even though the signage is going up, the new 20mph limit will not come into force in these areas until Wednesday 16 August.

As part of this third phase of the project, virtually all roads in the area will be 20mph.  Roads which will not change include:

  • Queensferry Road (remaining 40mph)
  • Whitehouse Road (between the Barnton junction and Gamekeeper’s Road remaining 30mph)
  • Gamekeeper’s Road (remaining 30mph)
  • Cramond Road South (30mph)
  • Lauriston Farm Road (30mph)
  • Silverknowes Parkway (30mph)
  • Ferry Road (30mph)
  • Muirhouse Parkway (30mph)

You can view a map which show all the changes by clicking here.

These changes come after the 20mph roll out in Queensferry, Dalmeny, Kirkliston, Newbridge and Ratho Station last year.

The fourth and final phase of the project throughout south Edinburgh is due to take place in January 2018.  There will then be a full review of all streets after a year.

For all the information about the 20mph roll out, visit the Council’s dedicated web page.

IMPORTANT – WASTE AND RECYCLING UPDATE

Many more residents have contacted us over recent days about the problem is missed waste and recycling collections.

We have now received a full briefing on this and it is clear the problem is an acute lack of HGV drivers which is causing major delays across the city.

Here is the update we received.

WASTE & RECYCLING COLLECTION UPDATE
Waste and Recycling collections are currently experiencing delays in parts of the city. Garden waste collections are running three days behind schedule. There are also some delays of between one and two days for some food and glass collections.

The main issue causing the delays is a shortage of available LGV (HGV) drivers.

A recent recruitment exercise resulted in 10 appointments. However, a mix of both agency and permanent staff have subsequently left the service for work elsewhere. Our agency provider is assisting in trying to source drivers but has so far been unable to cover all vacancies. This shortage is not an Edinburgh specific problem (as several other Scottish councils have confirmed to officers recently). Both the public and private sectors are citing issues in securing and retaining HGV drivers.

As of the start of the week commencing 10th July the service was 10 drivers short; eight at Russell Road Depot and two at Seafield Depot. All of the driver vacancies are on kerbside services – individual household bins for garden, landfill, mixed recycling, food and glass services.

The actions being taken to eliminate the delays on services are:
1) The hourly rate being offered to agency drivers has been increased and adverts have been placed on social media sites, via our agency partner.
2) LGV drivers from the Cleansing service will undertake driving duties in waste collection for the remainder of the week, including the weekend. This will be reviewed for the following week subject to progress against delayed collections whilst ensuring that cleansing requirements are not compromised.
3) Other employment agencies are being contacted and invited to supply drivers. Two drivers have been sourced and are being assessed on the 11th July with a view to an immediate start.
4) Supervisors with appropriate licences have been employed on driving duties.
5) Extra collection routes are being serviced on a Saturday and Sunday to reduce the number of collection rounds running behind at the start of next week.
6) Given the national shortage of drivers the service is looking at upskilling existing staff through a learning contract. This is not an immediate solution but is more sustainable in the long term than reliance on agency and will avoid future recurrences.

It is also recognised that changes to the way in which customers can contact the Council to report a missed collection has caused frustration due to the number of options available to the customer.

Resulting from recent customer feedback a dedicated line for waste enquiries is anticipated to be operational by the end of July. This will make it more straightforward for residents to log missed collections.

Joy riding and motorbike crime

During the recent council election campaign, we said that tackling the issue of motorbike crime and joyriding through Silverknowes, Davidson’s Mains and Muirhouse would be amongst our top priorities.

We have been working with the local police since we elected as new local councillors. This has been important as anti-social behaviour including the use of stolen motorcycles tends to get worse over the lighter summer months.

Earlier today and in partnership with the Council, the local police in north Edinburgh launched a new “Stronger North” initiative. This should provide a better and more organised approach to tackle youth disorder, anti-social behaviour and crime in north west of Edinburgh.

We are pleased to say this initiative will also bring extra resources, including additional officers. We have been promised they will provide a very visible presence within the area and robustly tackle any criminality. Additional support such as road policing, specialist crime resources, police dog handlers and the Police Scotland helicopter will also be available.

As councillors, we have seen a real determination from the police to try and tackle these issues which are caused by a small number of people but have caused real distress in the local area. We hope these extra resources as well as the ongoing support and assistance from the community will make a real difference.

Remember, if you want to report crime in your area, you can do so by speaking to police in complete confidentiality, or by phoning Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.

Rubbish/recycling collection – have your say

Complete Louise’s survey here.

Later this week, Cllr Louise Young will be asking the Council’s new convener of environment about the problem of waste collection across north and west Edinburgh.  She wants to hear about your own experiences in your street.  Her survey takes no more than five minutes to complete.

So if you’ve suffered from missed collection or broken bins then let her know by using the link below.

Complete Louise’s survey here.

Update on the 42 bus service

Since we were elected local councillors, we have been working with our colleague Cllr Hal Osler on the the issue of the 42 bus.

The bus route was recently cut back so it terminates at Craigleith Retail Park rather than the Tesco in Davidson’s Mains. It has caused all kinds of difficulty for those who relied on the bus and further reduced our local public transport options.

After Lothian Buses’ decision to cut back the route, Council officials wrote to the company and offered direct funding to reinstate the changes for six months. This would have allowed Lothian to work with the local communities and properly monitor passenger usage.

Unfortunately, the Managing Director of Lothian Buses did not support the reintroduction of the Craigleith-Davidson’s Mains part of the route, even with this subsidy. This was obviously a very disappointing and frustrating decision.

We always believed that, rather than reducing the route, the 42 should have been extended out to Cramond. We know there are many residents who are keen for a reliable bus service between Cramond and Davidson’s Mains which avoids the Barnton junction. We felt this kind of extension would have significantly increased passenger numbers on the 42 and made it more viable.

As councillors, we will continue to make this case to Lothian a part of our package of suggestions to improve public transport in the north west of Edinburgh. We’ll work to try and make sure this is considered in next route review.