Minutes of Meeting on 1 March 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 Solicitor - Geoff Harding - Bennett Welch

John Payne - Crystal Palace Community Association

Lorenzo Nargi - Lorenzos

Marcus Graziani - Amphlett Lissimore

Peter Louka

Francis Pons - Tamnag Thai

2. Apologies

Honorary Secretary - Lucy Smith - MyMatiz.com

Honorary Membership Secretary - Mary Kennedy - The Tanning Shop

Honorary Treasurer - Peter Runacres - Thornton Springer

Sharon Parry Baldwin - Town Centre Manager

Kevin Carleton-Reeves - Transport Consultant

Dr Nigel G Harris - The Railway Consultancy

Terry Marks - 2 Bob Café

3. Minutes of previous meeting

The minutes were proposed by John Payne and seconded by Lorenzo Nargi.

4. Matters arising

There were no matters arising.

5. Chairman's Review

5.1 Membership and Finances

The chamber is attracting new members. Membership fees were due at the end of the month and membership details will be reconciled soon after.

5.2 Notice of AGM

The AGM will be held at Lorenzos on Tuesday 5th April 2005 at 7pm for 7.15pm. There will be a guest speaker talking about life coaching and NLP (Neuro Linguistic Programming).

5.3 Recycling Bins

The Chamber and CPCA had a meeting with Lambeth officials regarding the location of recycling bins on the pavement. It was agreed that bins outside the library would be relocated to the side of the newsagents at the top of Jasper Road. They would liaise with Croydon regarding relocation of bins located outside Lorenzos to the same location, plus enquire about finding other suitable locations, and work on planning proposals for a kerb side bay.

5.4 Pens

The chairman proposed ordering another 500 personalised pens at a cost of approximately £215, ideal for distribution at the Victorian Weekend. Geoff suggested approval best carried forward to another meeting with better committee attendance.

6. Parking Restrictions

Lorenzo said there was not much change in footfall. Frank said parking was a real problem and business was down 20%; they were getting feedback from customers about problems; the restaurant created demand for 125 car spaces per night; parking in the evening is illegal. James had received a phone message from Sharon Baldwin (TCM) that Croydon would be conducting a full consultation on parking. Lorenzo said there were only 40 spaces in the Triangle and we needed more spaces. John said a controlled parking zone doesn't allow for a single yellow line; measurement of the roads was necessary. James said he needed input from members. Lorenzo said scrap dedicated spaces and have single yellow line all round. James said that despite illegal parking the traffic still flows so it indicates some markings were unnecessary. John said a broken down bus last week caused gridlock; the one way system was sensitive to problems; there is the potential for buses to run one way in a two way system. Frank said Billericay has three car parks and ample space compared to Crystal Palace. Lorenzo said there is only one real lane of traffic flow so scrap two lane marking. Frank said buses do not pull into bays properly. Lorenzo said buses ahead of schedule were waiting in bays rather than going to the bus station. Frank asked whether zigzags could be shortened after a pedestrian crossing. Lorenzo suggested making Jasper Road one way downhill because of problems with traffic joining at top and ensuing noise disturbance, and it is a narrow road. John suggested doing a survey.

7. Any Other Business

7.1 John circulated a letter from Croydon regarding Gipsy Hill junction.

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