News from Green Party Clifton councillors
Paula O’Rourke and Jerome Thomas
Downs improvements
Paula is very pleased to be working closely with the new Downs manager, who was appointed for one year to help make the Downs self-financing and to support the aims of the Downs land, which is to provide leisure and recreation for the citizens of Bristol.
Currently, the Downs Committee is reliant on income from events on the Downs to help pay for the cost of maintenance (around half a million a year!) and we know that this can be disruptive and cause noise pollution. We have recently had emails on this topic and Paula will be reporting these concerns back to the committee.
Working with the new manager, we are exploring ways to bring in alternative income which would be less disruptive, while also promoting recreation and leisure. Presently, we are exploring grant options to refurbish the changing rooms by the cafe with an option to put a second floor viewing terrace on the present building site. We would also like to see cricket nets and padel courts and other sporting facilities which would attract people from all across the city to enjoy this wonderful parkland.
While Paula was Lord Mayor (and chair of the Downs Committee) she oversaw the setting up of the Downs Advisory Panel, the purpose of which is to be a conduit for residents to communicate with the committee. If you have issues you want heard, do please write to downspanel@gmail.com
Lion pub community buyout?
In June sadly the very popular Lion Pub on Church Lane in Cliftonwood closed after after being run successfully for the last two for the last 16 years by Fiona, David, Andrea and team.
In this time they have created a wonderful warm and welcoming community pub with legendary Sunday lunches and they will be sorely missed. High costs, particularly energy costs and high rent costs have meant that the finances of the pub simply no longer stacked up.
The owners of the pub Stonegate are reviewing their options, and a community purchase of the pub is one of those options. Jerome has met with locals regarding the closure of the pub. They are keen to follow many other successful examples of pubs that have closed and then been taken into community ownership.
Clifton Vale closure
In the early summer a wall that faces onto the road at the top of
Clifton Vale was struck by an HGV resulting in damage to the wall and
potential risk of collapse into the road. It is disappointing that it
has been closed for so long, but appropriate insurers have
acknowledged responsibility and repairs can now take place. The
council is charging the insurers for delays in repair so there is a
strong incentive for it to be reopened as soon as possible. We will keep you updated on the likely reopening date for Clifton Vale as we know that there is a significant knock on impact on traffic levels in
the surrounding streets, particularly Granby Hill.
Tesco deliveries in Clifton Village
Concerns have been raised about the number of the number and size of large HGVs, both Tesco and Tesco suppliers, that are parked outside the Tesco store in clifton Village for long periods of time, often two at a time including in zig zag lines. Paula has been in discussions with Tesco about reducing the number and size of vehicles necessary to deliver and the times at which they deliver. She’s also met with transport officials in Bristol city Council to review the optimum way of achieving these deliveries.
Waste management
After a long summer of a war of attrition with overflowing bins on the streets of Clifton, we have persuaded the city council that Clifton will be the next area for the roll-out of the ‘Waste Improvement
Project’. This is an alternative collection system for homes above
shops and will also include new commercial waste management which will see the removal of all bins off the streets. Bring it on!!
Paula O’Rourke: cllr.paula.orourke@bristol.gov.uk
Jerome Thomas: cllr.jerome.thomas@bristol.gov.uk