Minutes 7th June 2005

Minutes of Meeting on 7 June 2005:

CRYSTAL PALACE & NORWOOD CHAMBER OF COMMERCE
HELD AT 1ST FLOOR, LORENZO'S RESTAURANT, WESTOW HILL

1. Present
Honorary Chairman - James Slattery-Kavanagh - Quotes
Honorary Membership Secretary - Mary Kennedy - The Tanning Shop
Honorary Treasurer - Peter Runacres - Thornton Springer
John Payne - Crystal Palace Community Association
Suzanne Nagle - Triangle Traders
Lorenzo Nargi - Lorenzo
Dr Nigel G Harris - The Railway Consultancy
Kevin Carleton-Reeves - Transport Consultant
Yemi Dada - Palace Estates
John Ellner - Joannas
Geoffrey Gibbs - Gibsons
John Greatrex - Great Exhibition 2001 Ltd

2. Apologies
Honorary Secretary - Lucy Smith - MyMatiz.com
Honorary Solicitor - Geoff Harding - Bennett Welch
Francis Pons - Tamnag Thai
David Bentley - The Norwood Society

3. Minutes of previous meeting
The minutes were proposed by Nigel Harris and seconded by John Payne.

4. Matters arising
There were no matters arising.

5. Chairman's Review
5.1 Membership and Finances
The Chairman reported that 21 members had so far renewed and we were chasing up some members who had not yet paid. The Treasurer reported that the finances were still okay, but that we could do with more membership.

5.2 East London Line Extension
Peter Boxell had sent a letter notifying that the East London Line Project had appointed Parsons Brinkerhoff as contractors for the main works contract. TFL Taylor Woodrow were appointed to do £30,000,000 of civil engineering works prior to EU tenders being requested. These were due to be received by TFL on 6 June 2005. The bottom line would therefore appear to be that work is starting. Geoff asked if it would be Southern Trains or London Underground running the new services, and unfortunately the answer was not known, although there was an extensive discussion.

5.3 Parking Restrictions
John Payne, Sharon Baldwin and the Chairman had a follow up meeting with Lambeth and Croydon Parking Officers on 13th May at the Norwood Library. The expected participants did not attend and left the meeting in the charge of their deputies. There was a proposal for three extra parking spaces and to extend the waiting allowance by 30 minutes. The meeting did not consider this was acceptable to the Chamber, and requested Lambeth and Croydon to think again. The Chairman was not confident that any further meetings would lead to the substantial improvements that were needed.

5.4 Flower Displays
Mark Allen from Allen's Florist had been arranged as the guest speaker but was cancelled after it was discovered his shop had closed. Sharon Baldwin was not available to comment. The Chairman suggested we should make our own arrangements. The suggestion of sponsorship was raised and Sue suggested we might have a Crystal Palace In Bloom Competition with window boxes etc, and Geoff Gibbs suggested that he knew a pensioner who might be prepared to do the watering.

6. Victorian Weekend
The Chamber attended the Victorian Weekend last year, the 150th Anniversary, and will be attending again this year. The Chairman asked for help on the stand, at which he would hand out newsletters to increase awareness of the Chamber. He reported that he found three new members last year. It was suggested that we should have an information board about what happens in Crystal Palace that it is a nice place to work in. Sue suggested it was important to entertain the children, then the parents would take interest in the stall. The Chairman asked for helpers and lots of ideas circulated. Several people volunteered, including Mary Kennedy, Geoff Gibbs and Yemi Dada.

7. Any Other Business
7.1 Crack Radio
It was reported that Mary had been given a radio in the hope that she would be able to persuade other shop keepers to use the radio to deter the criminal element in Crystal Palace. Alex Marshall, Croydon Council said that the cameras were only used for parking, unless an emergency such as murder and grievous bodily harm was actually being perpetrated. All of the cameras were controlled by radio and there was evidence to show that they are not being used for crime prevention in any shape at all. Several members suggested the cameras should be removed. The Chairman said we asked for publicity to be posted a long time ago, but we had no response. John Ellner said he was worried about the lack of pride in the area by some shopkeepers, and he particularly always tidied up, especially chewing gum outside Joannas.

7.2 Paxton's Crystal Palace Corner Project
John Greatrex gave a report on the proposal to erect a corner of the original Crystal Palace on its original site, and the membership were all looking forward to seeing it. It was due to arrive on 8 June, but he still needed some funds to be raised for a new concrete raft, and it was expected that it would be erected by 30 November 2005.

7.3 Crystal Palace Park Westaway Consultation
The Chairman has tried to get involved, although the next meeting will be in September, and despite the best efforts the Chamber of Commerce has not been invited. There is no confidence in the consultation process being representative of local business interests. John Ellner asked if the Chamber of Commerce would be prepared to give input if they could, and the Chairman said "yes of course". Sue explained she had been to many meetings and was convinced they were not going to recommend what the Chamber of Commerce wants, and that there would be no real consultation and that they had already made up their mind what they proposed to do. It was agreed that the Chamber would try to get involved further.

The Meeting closed at 9.20pm.

Date of next meeting: Tuesday 5 July 2005 at 7pm, Lorenzo's Restaurant (First Tuesday in the Month)