Meeting 5th August 2014

Moss Lea Allotment Society

Minutes of the Committee Meeting held on
Tuesday 5^th August 2014, 8 pm at Astley Bridge Cricket Club

Present:

Steve Barlow	Gwen Kinloch	Andy Warburton
Phil Almond	Steve Richardson	Geoff Liddicote
Ray Hardcastle	Derek Eccles	Pauline Oliver
Barry Ashton	Joe Tarkowski

Apologies: Jeannie Bilardi

Minutes of the Previous Meeting

The Minutes of the meeting of 24^th June 2014 were accepted as a correct record.

Matters Arising

There were no matters arising from the previous minutes.

Secretary’s Report

Operational Management Agreement: This has now been signed and the Society has received the waiting list.  Plots have been allocated to newcomers, including half of the community plot.  All(except the Community Plot) are on a two month, rent free trial and will take on a formal lease after that period if they wish to stay.  The Community plot is rent-free for a year with the plot-holder first in line for any future vacant plot. Thanks were extended to Phil Almond and Steve Watson for helping to strim the plots in preparation for the new tenants. The only ‘vacancy’ at present is the remaining half of the Community Plot.

Vandalism: The fence was damaged where some tresspassers had climbed up and over to access the site.  It has since been repaired and a tree that was being used to get into the site has been cut back.

Maintenance Sundays: General maintenance will be undertaken on the first Sunday after the monthly meeting.  The main task on Sunday 10^th August will be cleaning out the amenity hut in readiness for the Annual Show and to clear space for tools.  All tenants are invited to give a hand.  The Monthly Site Report will also be completed around this date. Non-cultivation: Steve has spoken to a couple of tenants whose plots were not being worked and both members’ agreed to attend to this issue. This was the step before Stage 1 of the Council’s Breach of Terms and Conditions arrangements. Buddies: Steve has formally notified the Council of Derek Eccles’ buddy.

Re-designation of Plots: Steve has received a request from a tenant to re-designate two half plots as one full plot.  He will submit the request to the Council.

Association of Bolton Allotment Societies: Steve and Phil attended the recent meeting.  Most Societies are adopting the operational management agreement.

Show: Saturday August 30^th at 2pm.

The various tasks that need to be done in preparation for the Show and on the day were discussed and allocated.  In addition, Steve will extend an invitation to local ward councillors to attend and contact the Bolton News.  A notice needs to be put up quickly to prevent any wood chip or manure being delivered before the Show and reducing the area available for car parking. The admission price is only 25p which also includes entry into the Lucky Ticket draw…. Please encourage friends and family to turn out for this great ‘Day Out’ : you can pick up tickets from Steve Barlow or pay on the gate.

Steve will circulate the pro-forma for the Show competition  via e-mail and arrange for spare entry forms to be placed in each greenhouse. Please review what you are growing and see if you can enter as many classes as possible. The deadline for returning the Entry forms to Gwen is  Friday 29^th August at 5pm. If you are not around then you can pass to Gwen, Andy Steve Barlow or Phil Almond who will pass it on. Early returns are appreciated to cut down on the late administration.

On the day of the Show, Saturday 30^th August, all actual entries must be in place on the tables in the Amenity Hut by 10.45am so that the Judge can make his rounds from 11am. Geoff Liddicote and Steve Richardson have volunteered to accompany him.

If any member not sure about the classes, or how to present their entry…. Please ask the more experienced plot-holders …

If the weather is fine and expected to stay fine overnight we will erect the gazebo and awnings etc on the Friday late pm/early evening Friday. If you able to help, please come along. If the weather is bad, it will be early Saturday morning.

Greenhouses and Sheds:

Steve carried out a survey of tenants to get views on individual sheds and greenhouses on plots with 26 returns.  On Question 1 re. use of a communal tool storage area, there was clear support for this. It was proposed and agreed that asap the amenity hut should be used for tool  storage.  Anyone interested in using the hut would be asked to pay to have a key cut and to label the tools with their plot number and/or name/mark. There will be several storage bins where the tools can be kept.  We will evaluate how this system works next year to inform discussion on whether we need a separate communal tool shed.

On Question 2 re. having a shed on individual plots, the  results were not so clear cut. 13 plotholders said ‘Yes’ to having a shed on an individual plot whilst exactly the same number 13 said ‘No’ to having a shed. The meeting agreed that we would discuss this issue later in the year, after seeing whether the availability of the Amenity Hut might meet plot-holders storage needs.

On Question 4 re greenhouses : it was discussed that this question was not particularly well phrased with some plotholders confused over what it was actually asking. 8 said ‘Yes ‘ to wishing to erect a greenhouse and 13 said ‘No’ with one ‘maybe’. It was pointed out that the greenhouse issue is not quite the same as the shed issue as no plot holder has a shed but the majority of plot-holders do have a greenhouse space meaning that there will always be some plotholders who miss out on the benefits of a greenhouse . We agreed that we would come back to this issue immediately after the Show with a view to allowing all members to vote on whether individual plot holders without a greenhouse space should have the opportunity (if they wish)to erect a greenhouse on their plot (with clear information (on size, siting, construction material, conditions if a plot-holder left etc) available for plotholders to read beforehand.

Any Other Business

There was no other business.

Date of Next Meeting: Tuesday 30^th September 2014 8 pm Astley Bridge Cricket Club