ST PAULS PLACE RECEIVES NATIONAL RECOGNITION

Aldwyck Housing Group and partners St Albans City and District Council have been recognised by the Building for Life Awards for their commitment to sustainable communities with the St Pauls scheme in St Albans receiving a Silver Standard.

The prestigious awards, run as a partnership by the Commission for Architecture and the Built Environment, the Home Builders Federation and Design for Life, celebrate innovative housing developments which promote sustainable communities.

St Pauls Place on Hatfield Road is a scheme of eight one-bedroom flats designed specifically for elderly residents, with a number of features to make their lives easier, such as secure mobility scooter stores and assistive technology.

The development was conceived in partnership with St Albans City and District Council, architects Kyle Smart Associates and builder VE Parrott to satisfy a local housing need, and transform the previous building which contained difficult to let bed sits.

Aldwyck’s Acting Chief Executive Harj Singh commented: “Naturally we are delighted to be recognised by the Building for Life Awards for the positive work we are doing.

“St Pauls is an innovative response to satisfy a local need and demonstrates our desire to work closely with local authorities and customers to provide top quality housing in the communities in which we operate.”

The Building for Life assessors concluded in their report: “St Pauls Place is a high quality and considerate scheme. The building slots well into the existing site and the Hatfield Road townscape – providing exciting new homes for single elderly people in the area.”

Colin Smart, of Kyle Smart Associates, said: “The St Paul’s project is a fine example of a partnering approach to design and delivery of a project with multi stakeholders. The site had particular challenges and required careful design which has been carried through to completion.”

Having received a Silver Standard, St Pauls Place will now advance to a further stage of the competition, where a judging panel will decide which of the standard winners deserves special recognition.

Highways latest update: St Peter’s ward

Holywell Hill. Herts County Council’s safety engineers have unhelpfully decreed that there doesn’t need to be a sign on the road warning motorists of the pedestrian crossing ahead. Chris White has protested about this – not least because of the accident record and previous promises of a much clear policy about road signs.

He has also reminded Herts Highways that there is an issue about ‘street furniture’ – the needless clutter which distracts drivers coming down the hill and leads to accidents.

Watson’s Walk and London Road lining: the urgent work (due for over a year now) has still not been done – for example painting or repainting Keep Clear sings on various parts of Watson’s Walk. But the contractors have managed to do put down lots of lines in the wrong place. This should have been corrected weeks ago – more of your money wasted by Herts Highways.

Victoria Street: Chris has reminded Herts Highways that the road is starting to collapse near the Alma Road junction.

High Street and Peahen junction phasing: many promises have been made about sorting this out and making sure that the pedestrian lights are not out of phase with the traffic lights a few metres away at the Peahen. No sign of any progress here – possibly another broken promise.

Improved customer service for Council leaseholders

Residents who have bought their homes from St Albans City and District Council under a leasehold agreement are to be sent quarterly repair statements and provided with a dedicated officer to handle their queries as part of an initiative to improve the service that they receive.

On 6th October, Cabinet approved an action plan to bring the leasehold management service provided to these residents into line with best practice.

Following feedback gathered through focus groups with Council leaseholders, a number of steps are being taken to improve the management service. These include:
the appointment of a Leasehold and Charges Officer to manage leaseholder relations;
the adoption of clearer communication with leaseholders, for example, through a revised leasehold handbook, an annual leasehold report and better information on the Council’s website;
the provision of quarterly repair summary statements for leaseholders;
the creation of an opportunity for customer feedback, for example, through a survey to assess leaseholders’ satisfaction levels.

The improved service will apply to all those residents who have bought their flats under a lease with the Council either through the government’s right to buy scheme or from other leaseholders who have previously acquired their property from the Council. The Council, as freeholder, is responsible for maintaining the structure of these leasehold flats, of which there are approximately 1,012 in the District, and recouping the cost of repairs from these leaseholders.

Cllr Joyce Lusby, Portfolio Holder for Housing Services at St Albans City and District Council, said: “We have listened to the Council’s leaseholders and taken on board their concerns about the management of their homes. We will continue to improve our communications and procedures so that they are informed about potential repairs and associated costs as early as possible. We hope that these steps will lead to a better relationship between the Council and its leaseholders.”

‘Fast News’ service launched by Lib Dem county council group

Hertfordshire Liberal Democrats have today launched their new ‘Fast
News’ service. This will be a regular video feature that will explain
what is happening at the County Council in the coming week.
fast-news.jpg

This week’s edition includes the questions over the incinerator,
county council property and school places. You can watch it here
herts.libdems.org

Chris White, Liberal Democrat Opposition Leader, said: ‘Times have
changed and we need to communicate using not just traditional leaflets
and canvassing but also by providing a fast up to date news bulletin
that can be accessed not only from your laptop but also your mobile
phone.’

Grants for insulation and solar panels are available to homeowners

Grants for loft and cavity wall insulation and solar panels are among the energy efficiency measures that are being offered to homeowners and tenants living in the St Albans and City District, as part of an initiative to cut carbon dioxide emissions and reduce fuel poverty.

St Albans City and District Council is one of 15 local authorities across Hertfordshire and Essex that have together obtained £6.6million worth of government funding to help install a range of energy efficiency and renewable energy measures for private homeowners, leaseholders and tenants over a two-year period. Together they have formed Herts Essex Energy Partnership (HEEP) which has appointed Climate Energy to manage the initiative, oversee the works, appoint contractors, grant payments and market the scheme.

Homeowners in receipt of qualifying benefits or who are aged 70 years or more will be eligible to receive free energy-saving measures such as loft and cavity wall insulation, heating system upgrades, and renewable technologies such as solar panels, subject to the availability of funding, qualifying criteria and a technical survey.

Those who are not in receipt of benefits are entitled to loft or cavity wall insulation at subsidised prices that start at £99. In addition, they may be eligible to receive grants and interest free loans to cover the cost of installing renewable technologies and heating upgrades, again subject to the availability of funding, qualifying criteria and a technical survey.

Cllr Mike Ellis, Portfolio Holder for Environment and Sustainability at St Albans City and District Council, said: “I would commend this scheme to residents. It will help homeowners improve the energy efficiency of their homes and reduce their fuel bills. It will also help reduce the number of households that suffer from fuel poverty and bring down the carbon emissions of the district.”

It is estimated that 13,500 households across Hertfordshire and Essex will benefit from this package of measures. The aim is to increase the energy ratings of these homes, as measured by the government’s Standard Assessment Procedure (SAP), to more than 65, which would help reduce their carbon dioxide emissions by 25% on average. This would result in the scheme producing a combined reduction of approximately 10,000 tonnes of CO2 per annum.

Residents who are interested in the scheme should call 0800 980 6026, quoting STA1009, or go to www.heepgrant.org.

Swine flu update: note from District Council

As of Friday 9 October 2009

In Hertfordshire, the number of patients showing swine flu symptoms remains steady. Regionally, there has been a small increase in the number of people issued with antivirals.

Subject to licensing, GP practices will be receiving their first vaccine delivery from 19 October.

A number of new pharmacies have joined the expanding antiviral collection point (ACP) network, bringing the total number of ACPs in Hertfordshire to sixteen. This includes an internet only pharmacy, which can be used by those over 18 who have a credit card (for identification purposes). Asda Pharmacy at Hatfield is administering a service for the ‘flu friendless’. The pharmacy can be contacted on 01707 630810. Locally, the ACPs are:

Borehamwood – Boots Chemist ( 9am to 6pm, Mon to Fri; 9am to 5.30pm, Saturday; closed, Sunday)
Harpenden – Topkins Pharmacy (9.30am to 6.30pm, Mon to Fri; 9.30am to 5pm, Sat; closed Sunday)
Hatfield – Asda Pharmacy (8am to 10pm, Mon to Sat; 10am to 4pm, Sunday)
Hemel Hempstead – Lloyds Pharmacy (8.30am to 9pm, Mon to Fri 9am to 8pm, Saturday 10am to 5pm, Sunday)
Rickmansworth – Delite Chemist (10am to 6pm, Mon to Fri; 10am to 3pm, Saturday; closed, Sunday)
Stevenage – Asda Pharmacy (9am to 10pm, Monday; 8am to 10pm, Tues to Fr; 8am to 9pm Saturday; 10am to 4pm, Sunday)
Watford – Boots – Waterfields Retail Park, (8am to midnight, Mon to Sat; 11am to 5pm, Sunday)
Internet – Masters Direct Pharmacy (9am to 5pm, Mon to Fri)

The Council continues to assess the position on an on-going basis, and weekly at the Chief Executive’s Board meeting

New Westminster Lodge gets go-ahead

Westminster Lodge Leisure Centre is to be replaced with an exciting new leisure centre that will also offer a full-scale Spa experience and a standalone café/bistro following feedback from residents.

Cabinet for St Albans City and District Council last night gave the green light to the new leisure centre to be built adjacent to the existing leisure centre after respondents to a public consultation exercise overwhelmingly backed this option.

The new development will include a 25m pool, a 17m learner pool, a fitness suite with 200 stations (including a cycle spinning studio), two exercise studios, a climbing wall, a four court sports hall, a crèche and soft play area and a dedicated youth facility.

In addition, it will offer visitors access to a Spa equipped with facilities over and above those found in a standard health suite, such as a sauna, steam room and spa pool. The enhanced Spa facilities could include hot rooms, aroma steam rooms, a scented sauna, rasul mud treatments and a hammam offering different water based treatments, similar to those in Roman baths.

Cllr Sheila Burton, Portfolio Holder for Sport and Healthy Living at St Albans City and District Council, said: “This option will not only improve the leisure facilities available to local residents, but will also attract visitors from further afield, helping to contribute to the economic regeneration and sustainability of the City’s tourism market”

Since the public consultation, the design for the new leisure centre has been amended to take account of additional feedback from residents, stakeholder groups, such as St Albans Disability Access Group, and the community panel. It can be viewed on the Council’s website at www.stalbans.gov.uk.

The design will form the basis of a planning application which is due to be submitted to the Council in January 2010. Construction work is expected to begin in November 2010 and the new leisure centre is due to open in Spring 2012. It is anticipated that the existing Westminster Lodge Leisure Centre will remain open for business until then when it will be closed and later demolished

Planning application for former Fleetville Library

Application Reference 5/2009/1911 Application Type MIND

Location Fleetville Library 237 Hatfield Road St Albans AL1 4TB
Ward Clarence
Proposal Demolition of existing single storey library and erection of three storey block consisting of three, two bedroom flats and three, one bedroom flats for social housing
Status This application is under consultation which is due to end on 02/11/2009. A decision is due be made on or before 24/11/2009

Applicant’s Name: Ability Housing Association
Applicant’s Address:
The Coach House Gresham Road
Staines
Middlesex
TW18 2AE
Agent: Gelder And Kitchen LLP
Agent’s Address:
Maister House high Street
Hull
HU1 1NL

Case Officer Hayden Todd
Telephone 01727 866100 Extension: 2725

Key dates
Valid Date 30/09/2009 End of statutory period 24/11/2009
Advertised Date 30/09/2009 External Consultation 21/10/2009
Responses By 26/10/2009

Descision Type Delegated
Committee Date 23/11/2009
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