Cllr Pearl Lewis

On Wednesday 3^rd March, I went to my first parish council meeting as an elected councillor of AVDC, in Maids Moreton village hall. We discussed speed limits on the A413 – both myself and David Polhill have had an enquiry from a resident who is keen to get the 30 mph limit moved up towards the white gates near Bycell Road. This would mean that drivers wouldn’t speed up until they leave the village. We also discussed the option of SID’s (Speed Indicator Devices), also known as the ‘light up speed signs’ that tell drivers how fast they are travelling. It was agreed that until the speed limit review at Bucks County Council is done (although this may not be until the end of the year) it would not be sensible to be making any changes that could cost a lot of money and not be necessary in the future. The development along the Moreton Road should hopefully strengthen the case to expand the 30mph limit right to the end of the village. Area 14 (our speed area) is being discussed at a meeting on the 13^th April that members of the parish council are attending, and I will be writing a letter to the speed review team to echo our sentiments. I will also be discussing the Section 106 implications for the area with Malcolm Beck to ensure that the infrastructure of Maids Moreton is properly provided for with the new development.

Bucks County Council is undertaking a speed review of the roads in our ward, Area 14

Potholes were mentioned, and residents said they felt forgotten up the north of the county. I informed the group that I have passed on the details of a news article about a new pothole filling machine to our county councillor David Polhill who was very interested in the scheme.

The details of the JetPatcher are here: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/magazine/8529964.stm and I would welcome constituent’s thoughts on this.

The Police Community Support Officers updated the council on the campaign to get residents to clear up after their dogs. They are working with the Advertiser newspaper to launch this and if anyone is found to be breaking the law then they will face prosecution. It is hoped that by enforcing tough measures this will deter others.

They also told the group of their open door surgery sessions that are being launched as part of the Policing Pledge, which aims to connect the local police officers with the community and be more visible. These sessions are once a month at a local location – the next is on the 9^th March at Buckingham library, and then on the 14^th April at Buckingham Tesco.

Maids Moreton Hall is still being subjected to break ins from local criminals for the marble and copper contained in the building. The local police are aware and are monitoring the situation.

The next meeting of the parish council is on the 7^th April, and this is the annual meeting with reports from all local groups and societies connected with the village. Local residents are encouraged to attend to meet their representatives at parish, district (me) and county (David Polhill) level.

The Council Tax rates were formally agreed at this meeting: a rise of 1.95%.

Aylesbury Theatre - CO2 friendly!

10:10 Campaign: Council members agreed to sign AVDC up to the 10:10 Campaign which encourages organisations and individuals to work towards making a 10% cut in their carbon emissions. Councillors commented that while regardless of the controversy over whether or not global warming is occurring, this initiative would save taxpayers money, and therefore make sense economically. The new theatre is a good example of the new ideas for saving carbon – they are installing ground source heat pumps for energy, leading to a 30% saving in carbon emissions.

A motion was also passed to confirm that the Council is committed to saving our public assets from sale by the Government, and to protect them for the benefit of the local people in Aylesbury Vale.

The Housing and Homelessness Strategy was renewed for the following year, and it was agreed that the housing team at AVDC are doing a wonderful job.

Cllr Pearl Lewis and Cllr John Cartwright, Leader of the District Council after the counting of the votes

Hello to my new constituents! Thank you for voting me in to represent you at Aylesbury Vale District Council. I hope this website can be a good way for me to keep you updated on what I’m doing and the things that AVDC are making decisions on. I want you to feel I’m working hard for you, so please do contact me using the details on the right hand side of this page.

Its been a busy week since the election on the 11th – the Bucks Herald and the Buckingham Advertiser have both interviewed me and I’ve been working my way through the mass of paperwork for the first Council meeting on the 23rd and the Scrutiny Committee on the 2nd March. I went over to the AVDC offices yesterday to complete some paperwork, have my photograph taken and meet some of the staff working there.