Council Cabinet Reviews: Cycle route, reservoir works and other issues
By Paul McLaughlin
The cabinet of Hastings Borough Council (HBC), shorn of Green councillors since the breakup in October of their party’s coalition with Labour, met on 5 December. Items on the agenda were the hotly contested plans for a cycle route through Alexandra Park; safety works to the Buckshole Reservoir; plans for a major overhaul of the East Cliff Railway; and next year’s fees and charges.
Cycle route through Alexandra Park
Cllr Ali Roark, Chair of the Environment Committee, presented a 100-page report on the previously aired plan for a cycle route through Alexandra Park.
The proposal is for a shared cycle/walking path through the Grade-II listed park with new paths constructed in accordance with independent road safety and equalities impact assessments undertaken by East Sussex County Council (ESCC). They are fully funding it, but the promise of money is time-limited and could be withdrawn if there are further serious delays. The plans were first drawn up almost seven years ago in January 2016.
Cllr Roark acknowledged that the cycle route had “attracted some controversy”, to the extent that she felt the issue should go before the full council so that “all councillors and all political groups get the chance to vote on whether it should go ahead.” She would, however, would be speaking in favour of the project in the full council meeting.
Paul Barnett, not only in his role as leader of the council but as chair of its Regeneration and Climate Change committee, also supported it, as an integral part of a much wider cycle route across the town which would connect those people who did not drive.
The cabinet voted unanimously to recommend the report be passed to the full council meeting this Thursday 15 December for a final decision on the plan.
Buckshole Reservoir – will Southern Water contribute to the repair costs?
CREDIT: Ben Cornwell
Buckshole Reservoir Improvement Works
The council was required to make improvements to the reservoir in 2016 following a safety inspection, which identified a risk to the town centre of flooding. The original budget for the works was approved in January 2020. Upgrade work was delayed because of the Covid crisis, however, and a sharp increase in capital costs since the pandemic has created a financial headache for the council, as the originally allocated budget has not been sufficient to cover all the works.
The cabinet was informed that the safety works have now been completed apart from the area around the reservoir, which will be left as bare soil until the spring, when new trees will be planted to restore it to its former natural beauty.
However, Cllr Maya Evans, the deputy leader of HBC and chair of the Housing & Community Development committee, told her colleagues that the council was now proactively looking for funding to cover important safety works to its legacy assets, not only relating to the reservoir but also to the cliffs around the town which are eroding and need netting installed to prevent any threat to the public from falling rocks. The council had a duty to undertake the works but were not being given the necessary funding to do so. In consequence, local MP Sally-Ann Hart has been asked to work with them to seek additional government funding
Cllr Evans said she met with Mrs Hart last month, and they discussed making an application to the Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs (DEFRA) for funding under the Bellwin scheme – named after an Environment minister of the 1980s to provide local authorities with emergency financial assistance for costs incurred on, or in connection with, their immediate actions to safeguard life and property.
Sally-Ann Hart has confirmed subsequently to HIP that she has written both to Thérèse Coffey, the DEFRA Secretary of State, and to Michael Gove, the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities (DLUHC), in support of HBC’s funding application.
The MP said she had also written to the CEO of Southern Water asking for financial help from that company to fund the council’s additional costs. She suggested it would be a gesture of goodwill by the water company to the town after their recent unacceptable performance in releasing raw sewage into local waters.
East Hill Cliff Railway Major Works
HBC looks set to give the go-ahead to plans for a major overhaul of the East Cliff Railway. The funicular has been closed since October when a series of faults to the track were discovered. The last time it underwent a similar refurbishment was back in 1973.
The railway, which was opened in 1902, will require the replacement of concrete pillars and rails and the removal of the lift cars, and this will require specialist contractors. Because of this, the Cabinet backed plans for a derogation from the normal procurement process to allow a preferred contractor to be appointed and to advise the council on the likely cost and timescale of the work. It is hoped the works can be completed as soon as possible, with the aim of re-opening the railway before the start of next summer.
Cllr Andy Batsford, chair of the Health and Culture committee, said the funicular, which is claimed to be the steepest railway in the UK, “was one of the town’s key cultural and tourist assets and attracted visitors from across the globe.” The money to bring it back to life, he added, “would be money well spent, as it would generate so much more income for the town than it would cost to repair.”
This view was endorsed by Cllr Barnett, who added that the railway generated over £250,000 annually in ticket sales, which was “more than its servicing costs but not enough to cover the major overhaul which was now required.”
Council Fees and Charges
The Cabinet also considered the annual report on fees and charges for 2023-24 to be set against the costs of provide essential services and to supplement government funding.
Cllr Simon Willis, the chair of the Finance and Equalities committee, said this year’s review had been a very challenging process. Council costs have increased significantly, due to inflation, and this has meant that the fees charged by the council would have to increase simply to cover costs. He stressed, however, that the council was aware of the need to “balance these increases with the financial situation many of our residents will be in”; as a result, the proposals put to the cabinet “are mainly below the current inflation rate”. Nevertheless, it is proposed that fees and charges will be increased by 10%. This will net an additional £600,000 of income, which will allow the council to continue to fund services rather than make deep cuts.
The cost of an off-street parking annual season ticket will rise from £765 to £840. A quarterly ticket rises from £215 to £235, the monthly ticket from £85 to £95, and the weekly ticket from £35 to £40.
Whilst most planning and licensing charges have not increased, some services will see larger increases. The cost for use of the chapel as part of the cemetery and crematorium fees will increase by 74% from £149 to £259. Councillor Willis explained that this was because this fee had not increased in years, and it would still be competitive when compared with other councils.
Cabinet members who attended the meeting in addition to those mentioned above were John Cannan (Charity Committee) and Judy Rogers (Community Safety, Governance and Disabled Access).
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