A Councillor's Comments - October 2006

At our October 2006 Meeting, no one took the opportunity of having their say in our slot for "Public Comment Time", so the meeting proceeded with our agenda items.

A presentation was given on "Affordable Housing" by Laura Razzell, Rural Housing Enabler for Cambridgeshire. She gave her presentation under twelve headings, the first of which was reaching out to members of the community in asking how does this affect you? and what can you do about it? She said that her job was aiming to increase the provision of affordable housing in rural areas, and that priority allocation will be given to those already living in the town or who have a strong local connection. At the moment there are 174 who require affordable housing; there are 50 units coming through leaving a massive shortfall. One of the problems is the availability of land, and there is an "Exceptions Policy" in place, where a small site next to the development envelope may be used for this purpose which otherwise would be subject to development restraints. The reasons for lack of rural affordable housing, are rising house prices, reduction in social housing due to right to buy, and high building costs on small schemes. The lack of affordable housing can have a dramatic affect on the community; younger and less well off people moving away, break up of family networks, and older family members losing close family support. What can the town council do? Encourage every one with a housing need to register with the District Council, and help to undertake a housing needs survey. The question was raised what kind of response would we get from the survey? The answer was, because housing is so vital, the response could be high. The survey would highlight the real housing need of the community as every resident is sent a questionnaire and all results are strictly confidential. By involving everyone in the town it may highlight objection or support. This will enable the District Council to plan on a number of fronts. Laura can be contacted at Cambridge ACRE, 32 Main Street, Littleport, Ely, CB6 1P7.

The Council were informed of a proposed traffic regulation in regards to Longmere Lane. This lane now crosses the link road between Townsend and Mereside/ Broadpiece. This lane in the past was open to all means of travel including driving a vehicle, but in view of the danger of crossing this link road, vehicles will be prohibited to exit from the lane onto the link road, or enter from the road into the lane, as bollards will be in place. Safe waiting areas at the link road for horses will be provided.

A lady wrote to the Council regarding the growing problem of Muscovy Ducks. This letter was taken seriously and was discussed at length as an agenda item. What are Muscovy Ducks? Originating from Brazil, Muscovies are the only domestic ducks that are not derived from Mallard stock. They are unique because of their bright red crest around their eyes and above their beaks. They do not swim much because their oil glands are underdeveloped compared to most ducks. The hens can set three times a year producing clutches of 8 - 21 eggs. They are appearing in many places in growing numbers, the mothers are very caring for their young, so many survive. Because they don't swim much they are quite happy to make their home around the estates where there is a good potential source of food. They will continue to grow in numbers unless something is done. The Council is seeking advice from various sources to find ways of reducing the numbers of these ducks, as we already have an abundance of our own native ducks. The public can play their part in making sure they do not feed them, because this will undermine any other measures put in place by the Council or other bodies.

Kindest Regards

George Ginn
Soham Town Councilor