text:
|WHAT IS THIS? The CMU Daily - to which you are subscribed. Unsubscribe information is at the end.
NOTE: Make sure you 'enable images' to see this e-bulletin properly. CLICK HERE to read this online.
As much previously reported, many artists with pre-internet record contracts are being paid royalties on download sales as if they were record sales. But, some acts reckon download revenue - which is, after all, secured by signing one-off licensing deals with download platforms, and which is generated with much less risk than the manufacture and sale of CDs - should be treated as 'licensing income'. This is an important distinction, because artists usually earn a much bigger cut of licensing revenue versus record sale monies, often 20-35% more.
The biggest legal dispute on this issue to date, of course, was between early Eminem collaborators FBT Productions, who have a stake in the hip hop star's early recordings, and Universal Music, which distributes those recordings via its Interscope/Aftermath division. The producers sued for a bigger cut of digital royalties through the American courts and won on appeal. A court hearing is upcoming to decide how much Universal should pay FBT, both now and in terms of future digital royalties.
Universal insists that the ruling in the FBT case relates only to the specific wording of their contract, but many artists and music lawyers in the US do not agree. Rob Zombie, Chuck D and the estate of Rick James are among those now suing Universal for a bigger cut of the download loot, citing the FBT judgement, while the other majors, EMI, Warner and Sony, have been targeted by similar litigation from Kenny Rogers, Sister Sledge and Toto respectively.
But Sony actually has more experience on this issue than its rivals, because it was subject to a much earlier digital royalties dispute led by The Allman Brothers, Cheap Trick and The Youngbloods, who sued the major way back in 2006. Sony initially succeeded in fighting off that legal attack, the first lawsuit being dismissed on various technicalities. But, as previously reported, in 2009 another judge overturned that initial dismissal, giving the green light for the claimants to pursue their case anew.
But then everything went quiet, and it looked like Sony had successfully kicked the case into the long grass, perhaps because the old rockers being given the OK to proceed in 2009 coincided with the first stage of the FBT litigation, where Universal won. But no, it turns out talks between Sony and legal reps for the Allman Brothers et al have been ongoing ever since, during which time, of course, the appeals courts have found in favour of the Eminem collaborators (in 2009 the Allman Bros' lawyers were distancing themselves from that case, but presumably more recently they've been citing it quite frequently to Sony's legal monkeys).
After Toto announced they were pulling Sony into the latest round of digital royalty squabbling last month, we heard rumours that a secret multi-million deal was close to be finalised between the major and its first digital royalty foes. And last week that was confirmed as the claimants filed details of that deal to the court for judicial approval.
If approved, the deal will see Sony set aside $7.95 million to compensate affected artists, and commit to increase those artists' cut of digital income by 3%. According to Billboard, about $2.5 million of the upfront money would go to the lawyers. Quite how the rest would be divvied up isn't currently clear, because this is a class action, so a whole bunch of artists with pre-internet contracts with Sony Music would be entitled to benefit (whether that would include Toto isn't clear either). It is likely those artists who are big digital sellers would see the lion's share of the initial settlement, though all would get the 3% increase in digital royalties moving forward.
More important than all that, though, is that this agreement is seemingly a major label basically admitting that there is indeed a case to say that all digital royalties on pre-internet record contracts should be higher than is currently being paid. Universal, of course, maintains that that principle is not generic, and in their case only applies under the FBT Productions contract (which was much more recent than most of the other recording agreements under dispute here).
Sony conceding on this point won't help its competitors. Meanwhile, arguably, Sony bosses have contained the problem to an extent by agreeing to pay outs considerably less than the Allman Brothers' legal team were originally pitching for. Paying 3% more on download sales than CD sales makes the digital pay out considerably less than what most artists could have expected to receive from conventional 'licensing deal' arrangements.
If the Allman agreement is approved by the courts, any Sony artist deemed to be within the 'class' can claim the extra digital royalty. If they reckon they are due more, they'd have to opt out of the class action ruling and then pursue their own litigation. Many might reckon an automatic 3% increase is better than going to the time, hassle and expense of pursuing their own lawsuits.
Whether Universal and Warner can negotiate similar out of court deals with their heritage artists remain to be seen. It will likely depend a lot on what settlement the courts force on the former in the FBT case. If the Eminem producers cash in big time, other Universal acts are likely to push for similar deals.
As much, much, much, much previously reported, so called Low Value Consignment Relief meant that companies could sell products under £18 (or more recently £15) by mail-order from outside the EU into the UK without charging Value Added Tax. The tax dodge was originally set up because the quantity of such sales was so low, and the cost of administering the collection of the VAT was relatively high, meaning the tax man would likely end off losing money overall.
But as the mail-order industry came of age in the late 1990s, aided by the rise of the web, some companies spotted that if they based online stores selling low-cost goods offshore they could use the tax relief system to gain competitive advantage, because they could sell their products 15-20% cheaper without affecting their profit margins. To achieve this they needed an offshore location that was logistically convenient for the UK, and the Channel Islands fitted the bill.
The likes of Play.com led the way, but others followed, including the big boys of UK entertainment retail who also based their operations in Jersey and Guernsey to compete with the newcomers to the mail-order market. Which was good news for all those guys, but left the independent retailers who couldn't afford a Channel Islands base at a major disadvantage, and many reckon the VAT dodge contributed to the collapse of the independent entertainment retail sector.
As the independent retailers started to complain, both the British government and politicians on the Channel Islands promised to do something about the increased use of the tax break, but did little, and subsequently played down its impact. Meanwhile the UK Inland Revenue washed its hands of the problem, and those Jersey and Guernsey located companies benefiting insisted they were based in the middle of the English Channel because they liked the sea breeze.
But those campaigning against the VAT dodge got more organised - forming the campaigning body RAVAS - and discovered the rampant use of LVCR breached European tax laws. The current coalition government then pledged to act, and last year announced that the relief system would be axed for the Channel Islands next month. The announcement caused many of those companies whose mail-order operations are based on Jersey or Guernsey to privately or publicly plan a move, either onto the UK mainland where logistical overheads are cheaper, or into other nearby non-EU countries where the tax relief will still apply (possibly Switzerland).
The latter point - that LVCR is only being removed from the Channel Islands - will be key to the arguments presented by reps for the Jersey and Guernsey governments in the London courts this week. They will claim the UK government's move on this issue is illegal and discriminatory, and that it won't help UK retailers or increase British tax revenues because the mail-order businesses currently on the Channel Islands will move to other countries outside the EU. They will also claim that the move will result in a 50%+ increase in unemployment on the islands.
Of course the fact that so many mail-order firms who previously insisted they weren't based on the Channel Islands for tax reasons are now leaving proves that they were specifically set up there to exploit the tax break. While the fact that Channel Island political chiefs previously played down the significance of the VAT dodge industry there, but are now predicting doom and gloom if it departs, damages the Islands' credibility somewhat. RAVAS campaigners, meanwhile, have pointed out that some key political players on the Channel Islands have personal interests in companies related to the tax dodging mail-order industry.
Those campaigners also hope that the ruling in this court case will set a precedent that would allow LVCR to be withdrawn from any other countries where its use is widely used by mail-order companies selling primarily into the UK, thus deterring Play.com etc to relocate to such places, and countering those who say that the closure of the Channel Islands loophole is simply going to move the problem elsewhere. RAVAS will take an active role in this week's judicial review, which is also likely to result in criticism of the UK's Inland Revenue over its past inaction on this issue, despite the government tax collector fighting to save the loophole closure in this week's court battle.
Confirming that RAVAS will make a submission to the hearing, the group's spokesman Richard Allen told CMU: "Although we had effectively ended our campaign it was clear that powerful commercial interests were involved in the Channel Islands challenge to the UK's LVCR legislation. We felt that we could not remain silent if those commercial interests were going to be closely involved with the move. The LVCR trade is a complex area of law and commerce, and clearly HMRC need assistance from businesses that not only understand how it works but whom also understand at first hand the insidious distortionary effects of this VAT abuse. The long term and blatant abuse has destroyed many UK businesses that other than for the lack of a 20% trading advantage would have been viable healthy operations giving people jobs and generating tax revenue in the UK".
He continued: "Whilst we of course have sympathy for the effect on employment in the Channel Islands that the closure of this industry will have, it is for the people of the Islands to strongly question their elected representatives as to how they could possibly allow an industry that was based on the abuse of tax to become so important to the Islands' economy. Not only did a report commissioned by the Jersey Government in 2005 outline that LVCR was the only reason that the fulfilment industry existed on the Islands but it also warned that the tax exemption that was being exploited was controlled by the UK and could be removed at any time. Now companies are closing up shop they cannot claim their trade was not entirely reliant on LVCR".
Johnson accused the two hip hoppers of sampling his song without asking for permission, after West unsuccessfully tried to secure the rights to sample the song for a track on his 'My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy' long player.
Had the case got to court tedious technicalities relating to how federal and state copyright systems in the US interconnect would have been the main subject of debate, because the original release of 'Different Strokes' preceded the launch of the federal system in 1972, and Kan-Z's lawyers were expected to say that, as a result, it didn't get copyright protection. Johnson was trying to fight the case under Illinois State Law.
But, according to TMZ, none of this will have to happen, because the lawsuit was dismissed last week after both sides reached some sort of settlement. So that's nice.
The Trammps originally came together in Philadelphia during the late 1960s, but first came to wider attention in the US in 1972 when their cover of 1930s song 'Zing! Went The Strings Of My Heart' charted. Arguably one of the first disco bands, further success on America's R&B charts followed, though it was the 1976 release 'Disco Inferno' that was to be their biggest hit.
The record was popular in the UK straight away, but came to wider attention in America and elsewhere when it was included on the soundtrack to 1977 movie 'Saturday Night Fever'. A re-release in the US the following year saw them enter the main Billboard charts with the record, which continues to be played three decades on.
Although they peaked in the 70s, The Trammps have remained a popular act, and have continued to tour on and off with differing line ups over the years (with, on occasion, differing versions of the group touring concurrently, as sometimes happens with pop acts from their era). Ellis himself toured with the group on and off until 2008, and regrouped with the outfit's original line-up when 'Disco Inferno' was inducted into the Dance Music Hall Of Fame in 2005.
According to a spokesman, Ellis died on Thursday at a nursing home in South Carolina. CNN reports that a memorial service is being planned for Friday in Charlotte, North Carolina.
Says GZA: "I recently met with quantum physicists who deepened my interest in the cosmos and gave me further inspiration for this next album. I want to take my listeners on a journey through deep space and deconstruct the idea of science fiction".
And delving deeper: "I will take a quantum leap and discuss the universe while taking us on a journey through deep space. Travelling at lightspeed from the galactic centre of one galaxy to the farthest corners of another. I hope my listeners will enjoy this cosmic adventure within a world of colossal planets, gas giants, meteorites, comets, and asteroids in the most extreme conditions". And those solar flares, one mustn't omit solar flares.
'Dark Matter' is slated for release later this year, by which point we may all have been melted by solar flares anyway. And wouldn't that be ironic?
Billed in PR speak as "a frank, funny and original insight into the lives of one of the UK's best-loved bands", readers are promised the chance to "get to know the men behind McFly in a way they never thought they would".
Many readers, and the Attitude Magazine-purchasing public in particular, are pretty well acquainted with all of McFly already. But wait... that's not all, because the book will also "shine a light on what it takes to make it to the top and stay there for nine years, all told in McFly's unique and inimitable style".
To indulge in the 'buzz', why not preview the track beneath this list of Peace's very imminent tour dates:
13 Mar: Brighton, The Haunt
BESTIVAL, Robin Hill Country, Isle of Wight, 6-9 Sep: Acts including Bat For Lashes, SBTRKT, Roots Manuva, Porcelain Raft, Toy, Iceage, Dirty Beaches, Chairlift, Grimes and Kindness serve as the latest supplement to Bestival's bustling 2012 bill, joining prior confirmations New Order, Orbital, The xx, Sigur Ros, Justice, Two Door Cinema Club and so very many more at the wildlife-themed weekender. www.bestival.net
CREAMFIELDS, Daresbury Estate, Halton, Cheshire, 24-26 Aug: Creamfields completes its electronic-specific programme with one final flourish, adding Afrojack, Goodgreef Xtra Hard, Kutski and Alex Kidd to a vast roster that also hosts Deadmau5, David Guetta, Avicii, Skrillex, Calvin Harris, Benga & Youngman and Axwell. www.creamfields.com
GHOSTFEST, Leeds University Students Union, Leeds, 30 Jun - 1 Jul: Noisesome new conscriptions TRC, Heights, Feed The Rhino, Bury Tomorrow, Prowler and All Teeth ally with an ever-expanding army of Ghostfest troops, as also include Emmure, All Shall Perish, Comeback Kid, Defeater, The Haarp Machine, Silent Screams, Departures, Polar and Continents. www.impericon.com/uk/ghostfest.html
NOZSTOCK, Bromyard, Herefordshire, 27-29 Jul: Dreadzone, The Proclaimers, and Andy C & MC GQ feature at the fore of Nozstock's first billing additions this year, with the eclectic likes of Skinny Lister, Tomb Crew, The Four Owls, Son Of Dave, Juan Zelada and Camo & Krooked following suit. www.nozstock.com
RHYTHM FESTIVALS, Old Warden Park, Biggleswade, Bedfordshire, 24-26 Aug: Rhythm & Blues, one of three events taking place beneath the Rhythm Festivals banner, has disclosed its full three-day roster. Brand new bookings include Geno Washington & Yo-Yo Blues, Buick 6, the all-star Blues Band, Chantel McGregor and The Oli Brown Band. www.rhythmfestival.com
The Kiss By Monster Mini Golf site will not only have a glow-in-the-dark mini golf course, but an arcade, party rooms and wedding chapel. Says Kiss man Paul Stanley: "This is miniature golf Kiss style and another part of our Kiss world. We've big plans for this".
While Gene Simmons says: "This venue is perfect for Las Vegas. Where else can you go play a round of Kiss By Monster Mini Golf and then renew your wedding vows in an official Kiss Hotter Than Hell Wedding Chapel? Only in Vegas".
So romantic.
Originally launched by Leo Fender in 1946, the Fender company was a division of CBS for 20 odd years, before being bought by the late William Schultz and current board member William Mendello in 1985, making it an independent privately owned company. New investors have been brought in over the years, and according to Bloomberg San Francisco-based Weston Presidio Capital is currently the biggest single shareholder.
The guitar firm saw sales grow by 13% last year, and in its IPO documents the company says that its brand is still "closely associated with the birth of rock n roll and has a strong legacy in music and in popular culture", adding that post the share sale management intend to "extend our reach to a broader global consumer base".
Vebner opened the first MEN office abroad, in London, in 2008. The trade office then opened another base in Berlin in 2010, and although Vebner is currently primarily UK-based, he has spent 20% of his time working in the German capital for the last year. He will replace Siri Narverud Moen in running the Berlin office from September, while a new UK rep is still to be appointed.
Confirming his move, Vebner told CMU: "It has been a privilege to open MEN's first office abroad, and I can look back on four fantastic, exciting and enterprising years in the UK. It has been incredibly inspiring to work with so many talented Norwegian and British colleagues along the way. It will be very important to me to keep the close connection with the industry, and I am looking forward to working towards the German-speaking market with the same energy and enthusiasm as when I started here in London".
Elsewhere Liz Kershaw will lose an hour of her early afternoon slot, 'The Craig Charles Funk And Soul Show' will run an hour earlier, Tom Robinson will get a new Saturday night programme, and Jon Holmes will take over what optimists like myself continue to call the Adam & Joe slot, from 10am-1pm.
In other 6music changes, Stuart Maconie's 'Freakzone' will move to an 8pm Sunday evening slot, while it's been confirmed that the station's early breakfast show, fronted by Chris Hawkins, will be relocated to the BBC's new Northern HQ in Salford.
And while you might think that in the Sky Plus/iPlayer age such scheduling clashes shouldn't matter anymore, remember this is also the 'second screening age', and shows like this are increasingly capitalising on an audience who have only a lukewarm interest in the actual show, but a big interest in bitching about it on Facebook or Twitter - making first airings important again.
The Beeb claims that it finalised the launch date for its new show first, and ITV then deliberately brought this year's 'BGT' monstrosity forward to compete, though the commercial broadcaster says its talent franchise is having to run a month earlier this year because Euro 2012 and the Queen's Diamond Jubilee will steal some Saturday nights from the series in the early summer. And ITV, for its part, reckons the BBC is at fault here, deliberately scheduling its expensive talent show acquisition to compete with ITV's big earner.
There is still some room for manoeuvre because the schedules for the weekend of 24 Mar will be properly confirmed early this week, though unless one side or the other is willing to postpone launch or move to a Sunday slot - and that seems very unlikely - the two big talent shows of the spring are likely to go head to head. Which means if you, like me, intend to watch neither, probably best to steer clear of the social networks that night.
Rumour has it that producers were talking to Whitney Houston about a judging role before her sudden death last month, and that Janet Jackson - another possible - expressed interest but couldn't do it because of existing clashing commitments. So now the favourite to join incumbents Simon Cowell and LA Reid behind the judging desk is one Britney Spears. A source told The Hollywood Reporter that Spears' agent (and fiancé as of last December) Jason Trawick is currently locked in negotiations, but a deal could be struck as early as this week.
Elsewhere in 'X-Factor' judge news, word has it Gary Barlow may not be able to return to the UK version of the show this year, despite wanting to, because of all the celebrating of the Queen's 60 years of rule that he's committed to. Co-writing a song, making a TV show and organising a big gig on the Mall all to celebrate the Diamond Jubilee will make the Take That geezer very busy just as the X-2012 auditions are getting underway.
But Cowell is apparently doing everything he can to accommodate Barlow - which may or may not include persuading the Queen to move her Jubilee celebrations. If it hadn't been for Queen Victoria, they wouldn't be due for another fifteen years anyway. Damn Queen Victoria and her messing with Simon Cowell's telly franchises.
Auditions will begin today for a new Lloyd Webber-fronted ITV show, which is presumably based on the idea that the tedious composer being given a fifth TV talent show to plug his multi-million pound West End revivals business is clearly the first sign of the apocalypse, so we might as well speed up the second coming and find Christ via the same format.
The new Jesus will reach the masses via a tour of Britain's arenas. Free bread and fishes with every ticket presumably.
So, yes, Dappy has become a fan of classical music. And classic rock. Anything with 'classic' in the name really, including the biscuit presumably. The one time N-Dubber and now Brian May collaborator told The Sun: "I listen to everything [these days] but I've been listening to lots of classical CDs recently. And I love 80s rock. I want Slash on my next album".
Pop rapper with classic rock collaborators and classical passions? Give the boy a Sonisphere headline slot I say. Or maybe a BBC Prom.


text:
USB 3.0 femtoPHY - TSMC 16FFPGL, FFPLL, FFC x1 OTG, North/South Poly Orientation
DesignWare DDR4/3 PHY IP in TSMC 12FFC Process
Optimized for high performance, low latency, low area, low power, and ease of integration, the DesignWare DDR4/3 PHY is provided as a hard DDR PHY that is primarily delivered as GDSII including integrated application-specific DDR4/3 I/Os. Supporting the GDSII-based PHY is the RTL-based PHY Utility Block (PUB) that includes PHY control features such as read/write leveling, data eye training, per-bit data deskew control, PVT compensation, and support for production testing of the DDR4/3 PHY. The PUB also includes an embedded ARC® calibration processor to execute hardware-assisted, firmware-based training algorithms. The DDR4/3 PHY includes a DFI 4.0 interface to the memory controller and can be combined with Synopsys' Enhanced Universal Memory (uMCTL2) or Protocol (uPCTL2) controllers for a complete DDR interface solution.
- Supports JEDEC standard DDR4, DDR3, and DDR3L SDRAMs
- High-performance DDR PHY supporting data rates up to 3200 Mbps
- PHY independent, firmware-based training using an embedded calibration processor
- Supports up to 4 trained states/frequencies with <5μs switching time
- I/O receiver decision feedback equalization and driver feed-forward equalization
- VT compensated delay lines for DQS centering, read/write leveling, and per bit deskew
- DFI 4.0-compliant controller interface
- Designed for rapid integration with Synopsys memory or protocol controllers for a complete DDR interface solution
- Executable .run installation file, including GDSII, LEF Files, LVS netlists, .lib/.db timing models, Verilog model, DRC/LVS log files, I/O IBIS model, I/O HSPICE netlist, parameterized Verilog top-level PHY netlist files, sample verification environment, PHY data book, physical implementation guide, application notes, verification guide, installation guide, implementation checklist
- The PHY Utility Block includes Verilog code, synthesis/STA constraints and scripts, sample verification environment, data book, binary image of firmware for training, and 2D eye mapping DFT
- DDR PHY Compiler
Video Demo of the DesignWare DDR4/3 PHY IP in TSMC 12FFC Process
View DesignWare DDR4/3 PHY IP in TSMC 12FFC Process full description to...
- see the entire DesignWare DDR4/3 PHY IP in TSMC 12FFC Process datasheet
- get in contact with DesignWare DDR4/3 PHY IP in TSMC 12FFC Process Supplier

subset: commoncrawl


text:
Final curve from the dyno session. No ign, fuel or cam timing tuning was done.
98 B20B stock head and block, 94 P75/LS ecu Intake: GSR stock cone filter and tube (no airbox), LS intake manifold, 64mm TB Ex: GSR exhaust manifold, test pipe, Greddy BL exhaust Comments: 128hp to the wheels is rougly 150hp to the flywheel. Interesting since the engine is rated only 126 hp flywheel. The increase in power can probably be accounted to the GSR exhaust manifold, free flow exhaust and the LS intake manifold. The stock cast GSR exhaust manifold that was used looks like a better piece than the stock stamped and welded CRV part. We did not have a matching down pipe for the CRV ex manifold, so we could not try it to be sure. The intermittent glitch at ~6200 was later discovered to be a loose crimp connector on the ignitor.
Since it was occuring after power peak, it really doesn't hurt the results. The 64mm TB probably is not needed at this power level. Not yet ;)The -5 hp stock cat mod. Remember kids, the stock Civic cat is not a high flow design after many years of use and abuse. Brand new Honda cats work good. But over time they start to hurt the flow. Dyno proof right here. We did a couple runs to make sure the car was back up at operating temp to improve the accuracy of the comparison. A new cat is on order.
Look at the torque. Torque you can feel. The lag in the power band from 3.5k- 4.5k will be the target of a future dyno session. You can feel the engine labor through it a bit. But when it reaches 4.2K, hold on, because it ramps up in a...


text:
Part 2, continued from Scientific Theories of Psychic Phenomena Part 1
Crisis Apparitions
When an apparition of a person is seen near the time of his death, it is called a crisis-apparition. Evidence of crisis-apparitions comes in the form of anecdotes because their occurrence is not predictable and can't be studied in a laboratory. Because of this, initially it was not known if there was a true correlation between a sighting of an apparition and the death of the individual.
A previous post on this blog, Studying Personal Experiences, describes an investigation into crisis-apparitions. The investigation was intended to determine if there was a correlation between the death of a relative or acquaintance and seeing an apparition of them. If there was a correlation, it would seem to be an important area for scientific investigation because the known laws of science could not explain what could cause such correlation to occur.
The test to determine if there was a correlation between seeing an apparition of an individual and the time of their death was very simple.
- The coincidence of seeing an apparition of an individual near the time of his death should occur more frequently than can be explained by chance.
The investigators who carried out this test made a survey from which it was possible to determine the frequency at which apparitions were seen by members of the population of England. Then, using data on frequency of deaths, the probability of someone seeing an apparition of someone by chance coincidence near the time of his death was calculated. This was compared to the actual frequency of crisis-apparitions. It was found that seeing a crisis-apparition occurred much more frequently than chance coincidence could explain.
If this investigation had shown that crisis-apparitions occurred at a frequency expected by chance, the investigation would have falsified the theory that there is a correlation between a sighting of an apparition and the death of the person.
However this investigation demonstrated that there is a correlation between the death of a person and an apparition of a person being seen. This is an extremely important result because no known laws of science can explain it. It demonstrates that crisis-apparitions are a real phenomena worthy of scientific study.
To be continued...
Copyright © 2009 by ncu9nc All rights reserved. Texts quoted from other sources are Copyright © by their owners.


text:
Minutes of the Hanover and Elm Grove LAT meeting of 30th September 2013
Present (as recorded on attendance list): Chris Taylor (Chaired the meeting), Hannah Booth (Secretary), Liz Wakefield (B&H Councillor), Simon Bannister (B&H Council, Community Projects), Bill Randall (Councillor), PCSO Dawn Kitson & PC Leatham (Sussex Police NPT), Steve Reeves (Reeves Town & Council Planning), Patricia Smith, Andrew Smith (Hanover Terrace), Christina Pepper (Washington St.), Brian Ravenett (Beaufort Terrace), Charlie Doidge (Lincoln St.), Ivor Fried (Carlyle St.), Julie & Phillip Darnbrough (Ewart St.), Nick Barnett (Arnold St.), Gill Perkins, Gillian Fleming (Hanover Street), Lisa Murray, David Gibson, Simon White, Wilf Nicholls, Fi Nicholls, Ian Macintyre, Colin Chadwick (QPLAT), Sonia Hogg, Charlie Heather, Jill Harbord, Alex Potter, Steve Phipps, Jon Simmons (Elm Grove) and Brian Witten (Bonchurch Rd.)
Apologies: Mark Woolford (Sussex Uni. Housing Assistant), Emma Daniel (Councillor), Angela Sains, Julia Pilgrim (Hanover Terrace), John & Sally Holmes (Hanover Terrace), Claudia Lester and Pam & Steve Chapman
No other official absence apologies reported.
1. Minutes and matters arising:
Garden/Green waste collection: In reference to last month's minutes, Bill Randall confirmed that proposals are in but no follow-up/report received as yet.
Communal Bins: Bill opened discussion on by passing on apologies from CityClean who are currently undergoing changes and, amongst other problems, sent out recent flyers stating the wrong days for changed refuse and recycling collections; he can help to clear up any confusion if people require confirmation or information.
Bill also reported that CityClean themselves have stated that they have received no negative reports regarding the existing communal bins in Washington & Coleman Streets. Suggestions at the last meeting of action for more collections per week – especially for communal bins in all areas of the city (3 weekly collections) – are part of the considerations but there are no reports on any proposals yet.
Charlie Doidge stated that she would be happy to help in any future surveys or proposals conducted by HEGLAT regarding the bins and also parking; there is also feeling from Washington St. (mentioned by Christina Pepper) that initial surveys were fair for many residents (70% in favour of communal bins); further discussion on potential surveys TBC.
Graffiti: It was confirmed that Damien Mamura (local CityClean manager) is the main contact for dealing with issues of graffiti.
1 Parking and proposed Elm Grove CPZ
The great majority of the meeting was dedicated to discussing the imminent introduction of CPZ and parking restriction proposals, affecting Elm Grove itself and therefore potentially affecting the wider area of HEGLAT residents.
Steve Reeves (Town & Council Planning) had been invited to speak on the subject of how to approach alternative proposals for the area, not just regarding the Elm Grove proposals – of which the meeting had only just heard about – but also with regards to ongoing discussion, concern and LAT survey proposals for the Hanover area (see previous minutes for details of suggestions discussed).
Chris Taylor had put together some ideas for potential survey points (see Chris or Hannah for details) which prompted discussion and raised additional points to consider including what is considered to be a stable or permanent resident, issues of city-wide parking, students, Amex, costs of permits and administration.
Steve Reeves talked about previous surveys having been conducted in local and city-wide areas, all of which can be viewed online; these reports also list costs. Steve can e-mail the meeting a summary of costs and previous CPZ planning details.
How the council spends income from CPZs was hotly debated; Steve discussed monies being spent on bus-routes and reduced fares as well as some community funded projects, although it was pointed out that residents' opinions are not properly taken into account and there is a bigger, city-wide problem in addition to the local HEGLAT area.
Lots of discussion lent towards the fact that parking is an issue city-wide and only by revisiting city-wide aspects of parking would things resolve locally. There was much impassioned discussion from all attendees around different aspects of parking and effects on different areas, city-wide issues, comparisons to how the city 'worked' in the past, cycling, reduction of cars, changes to the timing of parking limits (i.e. no more '8 to 8' restrictions) and how much revenue would be paid back into the community. Steve Reeves stated that a "soft-touch" approach in presenting alternatives to the council "wouldn't work" and that the council were unlikely to reduce or alter the '8 to 8' restrictions "due to loss of revenue". Steve Bannister and Bill Randall both agreed in favour of a survey of some sort for our local area, gaining necessary statistics and improving the "soft-touch" approach by looking at proposals in a different way. Liz Wakefield spoke about people's feelings and views echoing those which have been raised in the past, regarding both issues of parking and refuse; she considered a local survey option to be positive, carefully choosing questions for such a survey, taking into account student vehicles, ensuring the council doesn't "over-sell" CPZ permits per space (as in Hove), consulting with Amex about their proposed travel-planning scheme for workers – this final point in particular being considered an action point for the meeting.
Bill raised the point (in consideration of Steve Reeves' comments about spending of revenue on bus-related issues) that buses are in fact privatised (under the Conservatives) and the council no longer has any relations to the bus companies in Brighton & Hove. David Gibson echoed other comments that this clearly isn't an easy' problem to solve but we can still act as a community and consider our next steps: getting together a 'working party', drawing up questionnaire(s) accordingly and acquiring as much statistical data as possible to present to the council in the future.
Steve Reeves drew discussion towards a close by reminding the meeting that not all people's views will be able to be reflected in decisions; the principle of council consultation is to gain views but there are no guarantees; the council does require raw data and a "decent survey" in order to consider an alternative type of CPZ tailored for the local area. For any further details regarding discussion at the meeting and points raised by Steve Reeves or others present, please see Hannah directly.
Actions agreed were as follows:
- Chris Taylor to organise a working party as soon as possible (names taken at the end of the meeting – see Hannah for more details if required).
- Working Party to meet at an agreed time/date to begin survey proposals.
- Bill Randall & Liz Wakefield to find out what "soft-touch" options could be pursued positively.
- Steve Reeves to put together information for the meeting and working party regarding legalisation and ideas for a survey.
- Chris Taylor to action informing all residents on Elm Grove of the recent developments in proposals and enforcement of a new CPZ/fines scheme.
- Chris Taylor and the attendees of the HEGLAT to put forward an agreed indicative motion/statement (drawn up in the meeting during discussion) which will be relayed by Bill Randall to the council at the meeting on Wednesday 2nd October to stop proposals moving forward, if possible.
3. Accommodation Issues:
Bill Randall has followed up actions agreed at the last meeting on detailing planning laws and HMO guidelines, Licensing & Registration legalities (Article 4) etc. City-wide across 5 wards two-thirds of known HMOs have applied for licensing and are being processed; Bill appealed to local residents to inform the council of any unregistered HMOs in the area. The council will be conducting an official appeal for people to come forward with information of any potentially unregistered HMO including 'party houses'.
Some discussion was begun (Wilf Nicholls) regarding past concerns and actions/proposals seeming to have been "brushed over" by the council; there is a decline of family interest/stability in housing in the area compared to time past and so on – matters for further discussion and continued pressure to be applied to the council to make changes/listen to residents (agreed by Bill Randall and Chris Taylor).
4. Police report:
PCSO Dawn and PC Leatham presented the issue of Scamming to the meeting. There has been a sharp rise is cases of scamming (by post), particularly targeting the elderly and infirm or bereaved – Dawn had visited 8 targeted houses in Hanover just that day (30th Sept.). A request was made to the attendees of the meeting to be vigilant, check on neighbours and watch out for anything suspicious etc. and to contact police immediately if receiving such postal scams. Information booklets were available at the meeting for distribution (Hannah Booth to distribute some booklets to local places such as the Health Centre, Fanny's Deli, Archer's Butchers, Islingword Rd. Post Office and so on). The Home Office itself has set up a Police operation (Op. Jessica) to deal with scamming; B&H local police have their own initiative as part of this national operation (Op. Signature).
Bill Randall discussed the issues of complaints about vandalism and fires (burnt motorbike) in the Hartington Road area and reiterated that if anything is seen or heard the police as well as the council should be contacted immediately. Colin Chadwick praised the police for their quick, effective response to issues of late.
Other Actions agreed:
- Simon Bannister said that he would be updating the official contact list on the HEGLAT website, adding details of the PCSOs, University Accommodation Officers, Graffiti Officer, transport and parking wardens, and noise patrol officers and so on.
- Bill Randall and Simon Bannister agreed to look into a potential issue brought up by Christina Pepper of alcohol licensing for a shop on a corner of Southover Street and Washington Street.
- Wilf Nicholls and others discussed concerns about the planning permission and proposed development for the 'Piano Warehouse'; Liz Wakefield agreed to look into one resident's particular issue of light being blocked from his property.
- Simon Bannister will look into the possibility of developing a "neighbourhood plan" for the area affected by the 'Piano Warehouse' development, and similarly the issue of the development of the London Unity pub on Islingword Road/Hanover Terrace.
Recycling issues were also raised again, pertaining to the incorrect information flyers issued by CityClean (previously mentioned here in point 1 regarding refuse collection and communal bins) and the repercussions of more problems with refuse collection. Bill Randall & Liz Wakefield are both involved with dealing with this matter and agree it is an outrage
6. Date of next meeting:
It was agreed to hold the next meeting on Monday 2nd December 2013, 7:00pm at The Hanover.
PCSO contact details: email@example.com email@example.com
Mark Woolford: email@example.com
Richard Roalfe: email@example.com Phoenix Halls – 01273 230949
To report anti social driving go to: http://www.operationcrackdown.org
To keep in touch with issues discussed at the HEGLAT please visit the website: https://heglat.wordpress.com/