Police surgery in Arbury Court

I've just received by email the news that the local policing team are running a surgery in Arbury Court tomorrow between 11am and 2pm.

The e-cops email said:

We are bringing the CCTV van and will be in the Arbury Court car park.
Please do come and say hello, or tell us about any concerns or worries you may
have. Also, Pauline Grounds from the Cambridge Mediation Services will be in
Arbury Court Library at the same time and she would love to see you.

To sign up for e-cops, which is a regular email service from the local police team visit the Cambridgeshire Police web site.

In unrelated Arbury Court news the toilets are opening on Wednesday 29 April.

Budget response from Vince Cable

The BBC iPlayer has Vince Cable's response to the budget.

This is well worth a watch as Vince Cable, the LibDem deputy leader and shadow chancellor, has proved to be an accurate critic of the Government.

Planning applications on Milton Road

Two applications in the weekly list in King's Hedges this week, both on Milton Road.

Number 412 has put in an application for "alterations and two storey rear extension" (application reference 09/0295/FUL), and number 378 for "First floor front extension and conservatory to rear" (reference 09/0345/FUL).

As usual more details can be obtained from the City Council's development control people.

In case of difficulty do get in touch with the team

Welcome news on traffic problems

A quick news update:

The Cambridge News are reporting a further crack down by the police on traffic offences in Cambridgeshire. Included in that is a target on King's Hedges and the north of the city.

The LibDem team shall continue to campaign for more such action. I have asked at North Area Committee for more enforcement on King's Hedges Road and Northfield Avenue in particular.

Happy St George's Day!

Today is St George's Day!

At tonight's Council meeting I am proposing a motion to try and get Cambridge as a city to mark this day next year. This has been reported in the Cambridge News and on local radio.

April 23 is also the Shakespeare's (possible) birthday and the anniversary of his death, and so the day is also International Day of the Book.

Cambridge is an important city with its strong connections to education and books and it would be wonderful if we could stage a celebration that everyone could take part in regardless of nationality or religion.

St George is a symbol of diversity. He is not only the patron Saint of England but of many other cities and countries in Europe and the Middle East. He is tightly connected to English tradition, yet was also a Roman soldier from the Middle East.

If you have any suggestions as to how Cambridge could mark the day do let us know in the usual way!

"20 is Plenty" Petition for Northfield Avenue

Following on from our Residents Survey along and around Northfield Avenue it became clear there was clear community support for something to be done to reduce speeding, especially outside the Primary School.

To demonstrate this support to the Conservative Run County Council I've created a Petition to introduce a 20mph Speed Limit on Northfield Avenue. A form for this Petition will be included in the next "Focus on Kings Hedges" issue (due soon). To kick things off the form is also available online at;

http://campaigns.libdems.org.uk/northfieldave

You will also have the opportunity on the website to sign-up for Notifications from this campaign.

The recent announcements by the Government has led to the County Council considering changes in some parts of the city (see this Cambridge News article). This change is very welcome and suggests that the County Council might be willing to listen.

Please sign up so we can get a sensible limit in King's Hedges!

County council ignores pleas for action to save lives

The whole team here fear someone will be killed in the King’s Hedges area unless the county council changes its priorities to include the safety of city residents.

The Conservative run Cambridgeshire County Council has refused our ideas for cutting drivers’ speed on King’s Hedges Road. Speeding drivers are also putting lives at risk in the Northfield Avenue area.

Yet again, there's been two crashes on King's Hedges Road, supports our fight for traffic calming measures.

Councillor Mike Pitt said: “All the ideas I have put forward to try to cut speed and save lives on this road have been turned down by the county council.
“It is only a matter of time before someone dies on this dangerous stretch of road and yet the county council seems oblivious to that fact. Its priorities have been set up to exclude Cambridge city residents and their concerns for safety.”
Mike has suggested better signage, temporary or fixed speed cameras, painting the 30mph limit on the road and even moving the 30mph sign at the Histon Road end to make it more visible, and all of these have been turned down.

Campaigner, Andy Pellew has also been fighting for traffic calming measures in the area. He wants to see action taken in Northfield Avenue especially on the stretch between King’s Hedges Primary School, The Red Hen House and The Ship.

He said: “There have been accidents on this road and traffic regularly speeds along this stretch. I believe it is only a matter of time before there is another serious accident.
“The county council must start listening to the people of Cambridge and realise that speeding traffic in this area is a real threat.”

Worried about speeding on Northfield Avenue, or anywhere in King's Hedges? Please get in touch!

Planning application in Ramsden Square

One planning application to report in the ward.

There is a new application to develop next to 42 Ramsden Square for "Erection of detached two storey dwelling with new additional access and off street parking."

The application reference is 09/0286/FUL. More details from the City Council development control website, including how to see the plans and how to comment.

Tree works on Moore Close / Woodhead Drive

We've been told that the City Arboricultural Officers are looking to replace 3 goat willows that overlook the end of Moore Close. They're currently encroaching onto property, and have been causing issues growing into a lamppost and the pavement.

They'll be removed by the roots, which will allow more suitable trees to be planted. In this case, three birches. These should live longer, and be easier to maintain and being a conical shape, should let more natural light in through the canopy. They've also been picked so that they match the birches on the opposite side of the road.

Unfortunately, due to planting seasons, we can't plant the replacements until November, and the willows need to be removed in the next 6 to 8 weeks to prevent any further damage to the property.

With this in mind, Myself, Mike Pitt, and local campaigner Andy Pellew went down to see the trees, and chat with residents in the area on Saturday. The ones for replacement are marked with a small pink spot on their base, and are actually planted on Woodhead Drive. There does seem to be quite a bit of other cover around, but if you have any thoughts or comments, please let us know!

Speeding/ Accidents on Northfield Avenue

First of all let me introduce myself, my name is Andy Pellew, I live locally and I'm campaigning to get some taffic calming measures implemented for Northfield Avenue - especially the stretch of road between King's Hedges Primary School, Red Hen House (part of the Red Hen Project), and The Ship. Many of us are aware of accidents or have witnessed speeding on this stretch of road and I believe it's important we do something before there is a serious incident.

Myself, Mike Pitt, and Neil McGovern have already begun speaking to local residents about this idea and I hope soon to start a petition to put before the council to make this road safer not only for local residents but for all users of this important road. Watch this space!

Augustus Close Street Lighting

After getting local complaints of a faulty streetlight leading to inadequate lighting in Augustus Close (just off Minerva Way) I reported it to the County Council, and the light has now been repaired by the Council:

If there are any lighting problems near you please let me know (click here) and I'll endevour to have those looked into as well (please be as specific as you can, as you can see the work will be done during the day so "a streetlight isn't working on Milton Road" isn't enough information for us to get it fixed, but "the streetlight outside of number 50" would be!).

You can also report lighting problems online, but if you don't hear back please get in touch and we will chase it for you!