The week ahead...

Monday
On public holiday but a busy day ahead. In the morning I will be attending a funeral service at Greenock Crematorium for Mrs Charlotte (Daisy) MacLean, a longstanding local Labour Party member and wife of former Regional Councillor Alex MacLean. I will also be meeting with River Clyde Homes officials, along with my colleague James McColgan, to discuss investment plans for the Slaemuir estate in Port Glasgow. At lunchtime I have a meeting with officers. In the afternoon I will be attending the Inverclyde Council pre-agenda and in the evening the St Francis Primary School Parent Council.
Tuesday
A full day at work. In the evening I have a surgery in Kilmacolm followed by a meeting of Kilmacolm Community Council.
Wednesday
At work in the morning. In the afternoon I have my weekly meeting with the Chief Executive, the Inverclyde Alliance pre-agenda and a meeting of the Labour Group. In the evening I will be attending the school show at Newark Primary School.
Thursday
At work in the morning. In the afternoon I have a Labour Group planning session followed by a meeting of the Peter Stanton Memorial Trust. I will then be returning to work in Glasgow for an evening meeting.
Friday
On annual leave from work and attending the COSLA Leaders' meeting in Edinburgh. In the evening I will be attending the AGM of Renfrewshire North & West Labour Party.

The week ahead...

Monday
A full day at work with no evening commitments.
Tuesday
At work in the morning. In the afternoon I will be chairing a meeting of the Policy & Resources Committee. This promises to be contentious as we will be discussing the proposal to create a transit site for gypsy travellers at Kelburn Park in my ward.
Wednesday
At work in the morning. In the afternoon I have my weekly meeting with the Chief Executive followed by the weekly meeting of the Labour Group. In the evening I hope to attend a meeting of Newark Primary School Parent Council.
Thursday
A full day at work. I have had to put in my apologies for the Central Gourock Working Group due to work commitments.
Friday
On public holiday from work. I have arranged a visit to the new St Columba's High School to see how it is taking shape.
Saturday
Attending the official launch of 'Better Together Inverclyde' at the Beacon Arts Centre in the morning.

Clune Park Task Group Update...

I chaired a meeting of the Clune Park Task Group tonight where officers gave an update on the progress of the regeneration strategy, including the proposed new build development at Lower Mary Street by Link and Persimmon.

Members of the Task Group were disappointed to hear that some of the private landlords are seeking to frustrate the Council's efforts to acquire and demolish the properties in the Clune Park area by opposing closing and demolition orders. Despite this the Council remains committed to pushing ahead with our strategy as quickly as possible.

Members of the Task Group were also disappointed to hear that some residents of the Kingston Dock estate are talking about objecting to the new build development at nearby Lower Mary Street. The Task Group feel that any concerns over the social problems in the Clune Park area being exported to Lower Mary Street are unwarranted.

The residents who will be moving to Lower Mary Street will be longstanding owner occupiers and tenants. The development will also be managed to a very high standard by one of Scotland's most respected housing associations.

A look back...

Was looking through the Greenock Telegraph archives from 2006 and came across this article:

SECONDARY school pupils and staff in Inverclyde could face years of crumbling buildings, it is claimed. A controversial school re-organisation programme may now not be signed off before the next local council election. And a new administration may scrap proposals to close six schools and build three new ones - and start again from scratch. Now a call has been made for Lib-Dem councillors who introduced the programme to think again. 'The present administration had hoped for a binding contract by May 2007 but it is highly unlikely now,' opposition Labour group leader Stephen McCabe said. 'They have to face the political reality that they cannot deliver their proposals.' Councillor McCabe said the original time-scale had slipped due to delays in a decision by education minister Peter Peacock on whether schools presently running at 80 per cent capacity could be closed. Should the minister give the go-ahead, a funding application for a public private partnership (PPP) will still need to be made. 'As we stand there is no prospect of a PPP contract before the next council election in May 2007,' Councillor McCabe said. 'A new administration will be looking to change the proposals and that will delay investment. 'That is in no-one"s interest. 'The present administration needs to take stock now and sit down with parents, school boards and other political parties to come up with proposals that are acceptable to everyone. 'This will be a major political issue unless everyone can be accommodated.' Councillor McCabe said the Labour group had two major objections to the secondary school proposals - the closure of Notre Dame and St Columba"s that is central to the proposals and the re-zoning of the catchment areas of the east end of Greenock to Port Glasgow. 'We are not opposed to building new schools in principle and we want to see investment,' Councillor McCabe said. Education convener Councillor Jim Mitchell admitted the time-scale had slipped but said the proposals would still go ahead. 'It is more likely now the re-building programme will start in 2009 rather than 2008 and finish in 2011 rather than 2010,' he said. 'It will not make one iota of difference if there is an election before that. 'The Labour party has no alternative proposals and would be terrified of making any. Whatever decisions are taken will be unpopular.'

Alan Blair was fond of telling me that Jim Mitchell was always right. Not on this occasion Alan!

The week ahead...

Monday
A full day at work. In the evening I will be chairing a meeting of the Clune Park Task Group.
Tuesday
Another full day at work. I have a surgery at 6.00 in St Francis' Primary School.
Wednesday
At work until lunchtime. In the afternoon I have a meeting of the Council's Strategic Leadership Forum followed by my weekly meeting with the Chief Executive. I then have the Annual General Meeting of the Labour Group, where I hope to be re-elected as Group Leader, followed by our normal weekly meeting.
Thursday
A full day at work. In the evening I will be attending my daughter's Confirmation in St Mirren's Cathedral, Paisley.
Friday
Another full day at work.

The week ahead...

Monday
Public holiday. Looking forward to a bit of a lie in following spending much of the weekend at work catching up.
Tuesday
At work until noon then down to Greenock for the Policy & Resources Committee pre-agenda. This is followed by a meeting with officers before the Education & Communities Committee at 3.00. I have the River Clyde Homes Audit Committee at 5.30 and the St Stephen's High School Parent Council at 7.00.
Wednesday
At work until early afternoon before heading to Greenock for my weekly meetings with the Chief Executive and Labour Group.
Thursday
A full day at work. I have a personal commitment in the evening.
Friday
Early morning photo call before heading to work for the rest of the day.

Kilmacolm and Quarrier's Report May 2013

The Council’s new flagship £700,000 park and ride facility at Port Glasgow station – funded by Strathclyde Partnership for Transport (SPT) - is open for business. There are 150 spaces available, including 8 for disabled drivers, and parking is free all day. There is a frequent train service to Glasgow from Port Glasgow station as it is on both the Gourock and Wemyss Bay lines. The investment in the park and ride follows earlier investment by SPT in the upgrading of Port Glasgow bus terminus.

The resurfacing of part of Gryffe Road in Kilmacolm (between Bridge of Weir Road and Houston Road) is scheduled for Tuesday 7 May to Saturday 11 May. Diversions will be in place. This is part of the Council’s record £17m investment in upgrading roads, footways and street lighting over the next 3 years.

I am delighted to report that an interim refurbishment of pupil and staff toilets at Kilmacolm Primary School will be carried out during the coming summer. The full £3.7m refurbishment of the school is scheduled to commence in July 2015 and be completed by October 2016. The provision of the new sports pitch is planned for financial year 2014/15.

The proposed redevelopment of the site of the former Kilmacolm Community Centre and adjoining shops is progressing, with a planning application likely to be submitted in the near future. I am advised that the new development will comprise of two shop units – one large and one small - on the ground floor and flats above.

I was invited by Quarriers to act as an independent scrutineer for the recent Common Users’ Referendum to decide if they would continue as property manager. After a long, and at times difficult, meeting in Somerville Weir Hall on 17 April, a clear majority of those who voted agreed to support Quarriers continuing to manage the common areas on their behalf. Quarriers recognise that residents do have a number of concerns over the basis of how they charge for their services and the quality of the services. I would hope that Quarriers will work with residents to try to resolve these issues in a spirit of genuine partnership.

I was pleased to hear when I was at the meeting in Somerville Weir Hall that the plans for the provision of a passenger lift and an accessible toilet are progressing well. This work is being funded by a £41,000 grant from the Council.

My advice surgeries are advertised on the Council’s website (www.inverclyde.gov.uk) and in The Greenock Telegraph. My next surgery in Kilmacolm is on Tuesday 28 May in the Community Centre from 6.00 to 7.00 p.m. I also have a surgery in St Francis Primary School, East Barmoss Avenue, Port Glasgow on Tuesday 14 May from 6.00 to 7.00 p.m.