The next MP & AM Advice Surgery will be on Friday 4 October between 5:00 and 6:00pm at the Old Church Rooms, Park Road, Radyr. Mr Kevin Brennan MP will be attending the surgery. No appointment is needed.
For further details, click on: MP & AM Advice Surgery (English) or MP & AM Advice Surgery (Welsh).
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Each year, the accounts of Radyr and Morganstown Community Council are audited by the Auditor General for Wales and are available for inspection by local electors following the conclusion of audit.
Please click on Notice of Conclusion of Audit for Year Ended 31 March 2019 to see the notice and contact details for local electors to arrange an appointment to inspect the accounts. Please click on Annual Return for Year Ended 31 March 2019 to see the Annual Return. We received a number of complaints during the summer from residents worried about the possible impact on their homes of blasting at the CEMEX Quarry near Taffs Well.
Here's a flavour of the comments we received: Very loud explosion and house shook like a small earthquake. Worst I have heard / felt in 14 years. Whilst the blasts in the Morganstown area are seeming to get worse, this Tuesday was particularly bad. My house has never shook this much and windows slammed shut. Quite a few residents say this. Tuesday blast was much more powerful than before. We discussed these comments with Graham Warrington, the Quarry's site manager. He explained that: The blast on Tuesday, August 20th was on the west face of the quarry and not the southern face; the southern face is the face closest to Morganstown. The weather that day was overcast and such conditions do affect the perception of a blast. Nevertheless, it was a relatively small blast and gave a low vibration reading. For future blasts on the southern face the intention is to monitor in the vicinity of the properties where residents have expressed concern. Quarry blasting is a very sophisticated process and the way this operation is designed, prepared and executed is highly technical and subject to an array of regulatory, safety and operational criteria. The levels of vibration permitted are extremely low and far beneath any that would cause structural damage to a property. However, perception, which can be influenced by a number of factors including the prevailing weather conditions, can sometimes be misleading. In order to provide a clearer understanding of how this highly regulated operation is managed and monitored, the company can arrange for a session with either its own staff or a blasting contractor in order to explain the process, answer questions and gain feedback. Such a session could be organised at a forthcoming liaison meeting in order to allay any concerns residents may have. It is good to see the quarry responding to the community's concerns - and it is reassuring to learn that the company works hard to keep vibration to a minimum. Indeed, we haven't received any further complaints since August. In the meantime, please contact us (or the quarry) if you would like to attend the educational session kindly offered by CEMEX. Radyr and Morganstown Community Council was invited by Cardiff Council to submit ideas for 'local infrastructure ideas', which could be funded through Section 106 agreements, or by other means.
We consulted about this with the public (via an online survey) and the Radyr and Morganstown Association. We also received a number of ideas from our community councillors. We have included all of the ideas we received in a spreadsheet, which we have sent to Cardiff Council, with a covering letter. We were given a tight deadline by Cardiff, which meant that we had to move quickly to respond. The 41 ideas we received range from drainage works on the route of the proposed Penrhys Pilgrimage path - to a new community hall on the Mound Field (behind Pugh's Garden centre). We have included every eligible idea in our spreadsheet. We will need to discuss some of the ideas with other interested parties in Radyr and Morganstown. Some of the ideas we received dealt with issues that require revenue funding, or the development of new services or events, rather than infrastructure and capital costs. These were not included in our spreadsheet. Our next step is to meet with Cardiff Council officials to discuss the 41 ideas - and to press for the adoption of as many of them as possible - as projects to be funded either with Section 106 money, or via Cardiff's mainstream funds. The spreadsheet is quite an ambitious list - but we are an ambitious community council. And if we didn't ask Cardiff Council for these improvements, then we couldn't complain if other parts of Cardiff benefited from new developments, whilst we got nothing. Cardiff Council has explained that their Infrastructure Ideas List will remain a live and amendable document. As such, we can add to the list any ideas that come to mind over the coming months and years. What do you think about the ideas in our spreadsheet? Have we missed something? Do you disagree with something? Let us know by leaving a comment, below. What is a Section 106 agreement? This is a legal agreement between an applicant seeking planning permission and a local planning authority. It is used to mitigate the impact of, for instance, a large housing development on the local community and its current infrastructure. For example, new housing could mean more cars on the roads and more children attending local schools, putting more strain on local services. As such, Section 106 Agreements often require a financial contribution from the developer, to fund projects that can help mitigate the impact of the development. Radyr Woods is a hugely valuable resource for Radyr and Morganstown residents.
This little green oasis brings a natural woodland and a wide diversity of wildlife right to our doors. As the seasons change, so do the woods - and no two visits are the same. However - the woods don't look after themselves! Without the work of the Radyr Woods Wardens, paths would be overgrown, brambles would thrive, weeds would choke everything - and the ponds would turn green and foul. So - if you like Radyr Woods, why not join the wardens to help maintain and develop this great habitat? They are looking for new volunteers - and would be more than happy to welcome you to the team, whether you can spend an hour every month, or more, or less. You can find out more about the wardens, here. And if you want to be a warden (or if you're just warden-curious) you can contact our clerk to discuss the possibilities. During our recent meeting with Cardiff Council, we were invited to develop (for consideration by Cardiff), proposals for improving Station Road and the surrounding area, to improve its role as a place for the community to meet, shop and socialise.
This could include introducing a one-way system, changes to parking, closure to traffic at specific times and more. This is all very exciting - and we will be consulting with residents about this in the near future. So please keep an eye out for more news about this! During our recent meeting with Cardiff Council we were informed that the nextbikes station will be located outside McColl's on Station Road.
The station will be installed in the very near future. The bike station will measure 7m by 2m (7m by 1 m without the bikes). If this location proves to be unsuitable, the station can be moved quite easily. Cardiff is also considering installing electric bikes at Radyr Station. Other locations may also be considered. What is a nextbike? This is a system which rents bicycles for anyone who has downloaded the nextbikes app onto hir, or her, mobile. You can rent a bike from any nextbike station - and leave it at any other station. You can read more about nextbikes here. This could be another useful resource for Radyr and Morganstown residents. For instance, you could go to town on the train - but fancy cycling home. Now you will be able to grab a nextbike and enjoy riding along the Taff Trail. We will have to see how the nextbikes look outside McColl's. Will they limit the room available for pedestrians? Let us know what you think after they are installed. Following its recent consultation about the future of Golf Club Lane, Cardiff Council has taken the decision to close it to traffic.
A traffic regulatory order is being prepared by the Council (which will be issued for consultation, in due course). Start of works is expected in summer 2020. Bollards will be placed at either end of the lane (which is not deemed suitable for emergency vehicles, even when the main road was blocked). Golf Club Lane will certainly be safer for walkers as a result of this move - which could also reduce the use of Bryn Derwen as a rat-run. More road safety measures are being considered, of course, including a 20mph zone for Radyr and Morganstown. You can read about all of the road safety ideas here. We reported some time ago about Cardiff Council's consultation with regard to three new zevra crossings along Heol Isaf and Ty Nant Road. These were:
Following a positive response to the consultation, the crossings are now at detailed design stage. The work will go out to tender in October, with start of works planned for January / February 2020. They will be funded with £300k of Section 106 money, released early by Redrow Homes. They will be simple zebra crossings (not pelican crossings) since these would enable pedestrians to cross more quickly, compared to waiting for pelican lights to change. We hope you agree that this is good news for Radyr and Morganstown. More road safety measures are being considered, of course, including a 20mph zone for Radyr and Morganstown. You can read about all of the road safety ideas here. We held another meeting with Cardiff Council's Head of Transportation on 10 September. It turned out to be a very positive meeting - and it was great to hear Cardiff officials saying how much they valued the close relationship they had developed with our community, through the work of Radyr and Morgantown Community Council - and its Road Safety Working group. Our thanks go, again, to Cllr Rod McKerlich (our County Councillor) for facilitating the meeting.
This is what we discussed:
Chair Radyr and Morganstown Community Council |
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