Advance Notice - Planning and Parking Seminar for Broomhill and Crookesmoor residents

The Central Community Assembly are organising a special seminar for residents of Broomhill and Crookesmoor on the topics of planning and parking. This seminar has been proposed as a result of the intensive discussions around the issue of temporary parking in the area during redevelopment of the Childrens' Hospital.

The seminar will take place on Wednesday May 1st, from 6.30 - 8.30 pm at the Town Hall.  Please put this in your diaries and start mentioning it to people - a proper flyer with full information about the agenda will be produced shortly.

 

Participants will include the council planners, University of Sheffield, Sheffield Teaching Hospitals Trust, Harcourt Road Action Group, Broomhill Forum and BANG, as well as local residents.

Community policing in Broomhill

The following information for Broomhill residents comes from Broomhill Forum:

Inspector Darren Starkey reported at the Forum meeting that his team is now responsible for the Central Community Assembly area and that additional staff are being recruited for the Broomhill area in particular. Overall, crime has fallen by 20% in the area, but burglary from HMOs and theft of mobile phones are, increasingly, a cause of concern. During a recent check in Broomhill, police were able to gain free access to 20 out of 40 properties simply because the doors were not locked.  A recent initiative has improved security by fitting ‘split follower’ lever locks, which stop the levers from opening the doors from the outside, but allow free escape from the inside face of the door.

Inspector Starkey pointed out that:

§           basic ‘eurolocks’, which are commonly fitted to UPVC patio doors, can easily be twisted from the outside (by smashing the PVC) to gain access, so householders should check these.A simple upgrade is available.

§           car keys are commonly left overnight on worktops in kitchens or by front doors or in jacket pockets, where they can easily be found. It was suggested that keys should be hidden more securely or taken upstairs, as burglars rarely venture to the upper floors of a property.

§           the following security applications for phones and pcs were have been found to be effective : preyproject.com (a GPS locater for computers); findmyiphone.com or wheresmydroid.com – free applications for smart phones that take and send a photo of anyone trying to make off with the phone, then send an alarm call. igotchagps.com is a commonly used tracker system for cars.

Broomhill Library Update

Broomhill Forum have issued the following update for local residents:

At the last meeting of the Forum, Dave Hempshall, from Sheffield City Council, reported that negotiations for the acquisition of Willis House for a new library had ceased, because the property valuations could not be reconciled, and the matter was in abeyance pro tem, given the imminent publication of the SCC Library Services review. Following that report, the Council has announced its need to make reductions in Council expenditure and that it intends to reduce the number of libraries in the City. The most two most heavily used libraries in the city are Ecclesall and Broomhill, in that order, and you are encouraged to make your views know through councillors, petitions, and other lawful means, if you wish to preserve library facilities in Broomhill.

According to local press reports, Councillor Mazher Iqbal, cabinet member for library services, said, in January, that he is appealing for voluntary groups to come forward. "We will be publishing prospectuses on each community library later this month and inviting groups to make a bid. There will be an eight week deadline for responses which will then be assessed for viability".  However, if there is insufficient interest up to 14 of 27 community libraries could close.

As yet we have no further information from the Council on its proposals for alternative scenarios if the local library closes.

Update on Sheffield Roads PFI (Streets Ahead) from Broomhill Forum

Broomhill Forum issued the following update for local residents:
Amey, the Council contractors for the renewal and maintenance of Sheffield roads, are about to begin operations in the south-west of the city, this year and are on schedule to start works in the ‘northern’ part of Broomhill in August 2013. The company is mounting road shows in areas of the city before they begin the work to inform the local communities what the timetable is for the road works in their area, what they intend to do, and how they will be operating. 

Broomhill is subdivided into 3 zones for renewal work. The area lying above the A57 will be started in 2013; the area to the north east of Glossop road in 2014 and the area to the south west ofGlossop Road in 2017. The main trunk routes will be implemented as a separate phase in 2015 /16. The Broomhill Library has been provided with a copy of Amey’s map showing the Broomhill subdivisions for display.

A comprehensive presentation on the scheme was given to the  Broomhill Forum by Graeme Symonds (GS) (Project Director for Amey) and Moira Code (Community Assembly Liaison Steward), on the scope of works. The PFI contract will extend for 25 years at a cost of £2 billion. In addition to repairs and maintenance to every road and public footpath in the city, the works will include major structures such as bridges, as well as street lighting (with new LED technology), traffic lights and the replacement of trees where necessary. The Streets Ahead team will now handle street cleaning;

The Amey representatives made it clear that cars which are parked on the street must be moved to allow the road works to take place. Letters will be sent to households and notices will be posted warning everyone of this, but as a last resort, vehicles remaining on the roadway will be towed away to allow work to proceed. There will be leaflet drops to every household in a street before work begins on that street and there will be an opportunity for negotiation with any business or household that is affected by the works. Veolia and SYPTE will also be consulted to coordinate any temporary alterations to collection times, bus routes etc that are needed.

The Amey representatives have been made aware of the need to preserve the Broomhill Conservation area and have indicated that:

§           road finishes will be replaced on a like-for-like basis, so granite kerbs, natural stone flag paving and cobbles etc will be retained and supplemented where there are gaps at present;

§           historic gas lamps will be refurbished and reinstated with new gas supplies;

§           old concrete flag paving in the footway which becomes uneven and gives rise to trip hazards will be replaced with tarmacadam;

§           special light fittings that are appropriate to the conservation area will be used;

§           financial allowance has been made for the replacement of trees where needed and assurance was given that this replacement will not be arbitrary and all work will be supervised by qualified arboriculturalists. Essential replacement of trees will be phased over 25 years and the contract includes provision for on-going specialist maintenance of all trees;

§           a dedicated ‘First Point’ contact line at 0114 273 4567 (email:streetsahead@sheffield.gov.uk) has been established which will enable all questions, queries, concerns and emergencies to be routed directly to the relevant Amey staff.

Important 'Streets Ahead' Roadshow on 13th February

The 'Streets Ahead' project will renew all of the roads in Sheffield and is being carried out on behalf of the council by Amey. Later this year, work in the Broomhill area will start on Tapton Hill and Crosspool. Next wednesday there will be a roadshow organised by the 'Streets Ahead' team to inform local residents about the road replacement work and what it will involve. Those who recall the gas replacement work a couple of years ago will recall the huge disruption involved.

The roadshow will take place at the Wesley Hall, Crookes, from 1 pm to 5.45 pm. It will cover details of the work to be done, and time scales for the work. Hopefull we will also find out about re-routing of local buses and relocation of bus stops.