Sunday 7 February 2010

Consultation underway....

Hello all sorry for the silence, lots has been going on as you can imagine.

Firstly thanks to everyone who has been in touch. We have now been contacted by people from right around the proposed (and the existing) zones. Marten Road, Douglas Ave, Penrhyn etc many people having been totally caught out by the consultation dropping through the door and having just 3 weeks to respond or even work through the issues with neighbours and figure out what is best for them.

I'm attaching a link to another blog that a resident has started (hello!), I think it would be good if we all take a look at both, as we will no doubt come across different issues.

The DROP IN's
Have been quite a hot topic with residents reporting fury at the one on wednesday, with no councillors in attendance and apparently Tom Wright claiming that the residents of Winns Ave wanted the zone they are in, hence the problems for everyone else. Now we all know that the Winns Ave residents voted convincingly against being included and it was a unilateral decision by Mr Belam that went against the consultation results, so this is a worrying turn of events - complete misinformation. If anyone has anything to report from teh Saturday meeting it would be great to hear your thoughts.

Various residents are proposing petitions, leaflets, some posters went up on lampposts too, but they were taken down by the Council. It would be great if you would all act on these ideas - the Council has started pointing people in our direction when they ask difficult questions that they don't want to answer. I'd like to encourage you to hassle the Council for information - it is the Councils job to listen to us, we elect them and pay our taxes. We are very pleased to hear from you, but don't let the Council fob you off with "get in touch with them", get annoyed and get answers!

They didn't listen to any of our feedback about these consultations, they didn't let us see a draft for the LP zone (which gives few options and doesn't reflect the prefered results from WinnsA and Diana Rd when they were consulted in 2008). They didn't even inform us when it was going to take place (though they managed to tell other resident groups). The only way we will get any joy is to get residents to get involved and vote and use the comments boxes, to call, email and write letters to the Council and hopefully get the local press involved.

I'm trying to attach a text only copy of the leaflet we have been putting through doors (or will upload a picture of it), so that residents in other areas can see what information we are passing around. Do feel free to copy, print and distribute where you are. And please let us know if you find people who haven't had the consultation pack through - just FYI I had a complaint against the council partially upheld, and only partially because the Council kept such poor records, because not all residents (4 including me that I know of on Winns Ave alone) simply did not get the pack through their door. I have had 2 emails so far this time saying the same thing - so please do let us know.

There is lots more to be said but for now we have to get on with writing to LP and WA zone residents (on the W side of the park, if anyone is interested in sorting the E side let me know).
Best wishes all - and Lorna, thank you for getting in touch about Penrhyn Hall, a worrying story and one to add to our list. Are you are in touch with the Council and petitioning users of the hall? I would also contact the local Guardian newspaper - it is an important local news story.
Andrea

3 comments:

  1. Hi, I attended both meetings, the first on Wednesday and to say it was a free for all, there was no organisation on the council side, i had a conversation with tom wrights side kick who told me along with others that if a majority of the residents say no it would not go ahead, i ask him if in my own time i got a petition together from the residents in the said proposal area and handed it in with the majority saying no it would not go ahead, he told that’s right it would not go a head.

    I arranged a petition and went back Saturday to ask him how he would like it to be done, i.e. on there paper ect and he denied even saying he said that it would be looked at, his words were, you must of taken me out of context...they will only look at the green proposal forms.

    I also asked Tom Wright about the co2 issue and why they felt it necessary to add an increase to people with bigger engines, is this not a parking issue how can they tax you on your emissions while parked and was told that, Waltham forest takes co2 very seriously and want to lower co2 in the borough… I asked him that if you lived in the Waltham forest borough and wasn’t in the resident parking scheme you would not be tax for the co2, how is that fair and told him that there is a camera smart car that sits at Blackhorse road every day with its engine running while ticketing, he then started to do that mumbling and nodding and is not listing to a word you say, giving you the impression that you have taken too much of his time.

    Dave of North Countess Road

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  2. I live in Waltham forest and they have a crafty way of introducing the CPZs, what they do is they start it in an area and wait for the surrounding resident to get fed up with all the cars from that CPZs area that don’t want to pay for the permits and park in the other roads out side the CPZ, mean while the residents from the controlled area think great I can park.
    After a while they then offer the surrounding roads the same offer of CPZs, not all the surround roads will want it but they will get a small amount of the remaining area and it all starts again, the people from that area who don’t want to pay will move into other areas and so on and on…until they have the complete area weather you want it or not, of course they carry out consultation with the residents but they ignore what we want and just go through the motions.
    Then comes the increases

    What I would like to know is how they can charge more for cars with bigger engines,
    My neighbor has a 1600cc car and does around 15,000 plus miles a year and I have a 4000cc car that is only used at weekends and do around 4000 miles a year tops
    WHO IS THE BIGGER POULUTER?
    Dave P, Waltamstow

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  3. Hi Dave, completely agree, and it isn't even that crafty! If they had not included WInns Ave, who didn't want or need parking restrictions, the problems of Carr Fleeming etc wouldn't have been exacerbated. They know that, they included it "because the overspill from Diana, Mersey etc might have caused problems for Winns Ave residents". They use it as an excuse to include whoever they like and then deny they are using it as a tactic to spread CPZs - which is part of the environmental policy. To reduce car use, while not rewarding non-car owners like myself, with free visitor parking. They have disgracefully included on teh information they sent out that they are considering free visitor permits - that will never happen and they knew it. They have decreased some costs by a tiny amouont that is all. I cannot believe they had the gall to say that on an official document. Completely disgraceful.

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