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 North Laine Traders Association
Minutes of Meeting of North Laine Traders Association held on 3 November 2009 at Komedia
Welcome: Sharon Thomas, Chair of the NLTA, welcomed everyone to the meeting which commenced at 6.15 p.m.
Apologies: Julian Englesman, Louisa Yuen and David Hall |
| Correspondence and meetings |
| Kevin Daly reported that he had recently attended a meeting of the NLCA who were celebrating the distribution of the 200th edition of The Runner. They were also in the process of setting up a Local Action Team to look at the problem of late night noise and anti-social behaviour as a result of pubs being open late in the North Laine. |
| Sharon reported that she had attended a meeting at the Council with Peter Stocker and Donna Rix-Martin to discuss the issues surrounding A-boards in Brighton as the Council wished to hear the traders’ viewpoint on their usefulness. The Council say that they are under pressure from disability groups to reduce the number of A-boards and street furniture in general in Brighton with some groups campaigning for a 2 metre clear pavement width (obviously not applicable to some parts of the North Laine given that the pavements are so narrow anyway). We put forward the case for retaining street furniture from our perspective stating that we believed that the current 1.3 metre pathway was sufficient and that problem areas should be looked at as individual cases. |
There was then a discussion about street furniture in Gardner Street as the Street Licensing Department at the Council had recently written to all traders, threatening to remove all A-boards, tables, chairs etc due to the overcrowding of the street at the weekend. Traders in general felt that this was unfair on those who were following the rules agreed previously with the Council that all street furniture would be placed in the road itself on Saturday and Sunday leaving the pavements clear for pedestrian use. It was felt that the Council should take individual enforcement action against those not complying who should be ‘named and shamed’. We agreed to make contact with the Council to ask them who was causing the problem in their view and to suggest that appropriate action be taken which did not penalise everyone.
It was also agreed that Sassco should be asked to move on illegal traders and flyer distributors who blocked the flow of pedestrian traffic. |
| Treasurers report |
Unfortunately, David Hall (Treasurer) was unable to attend but had provided the following information - that we currently have 104 members and £3,027 in the bank with £522 owing for the website. |
| Business Rates |
The scheduled increase in business rates for 2010 was discussed. The new valuations had just been sent out and all traders have seen an increase in their rateable value as the figures are based on pre-recession rents. However, it is likely that the multiplier used in calculations will decrease from 48.5 to 41.7. Although this is still to be confirmed, individual traders can check their estimated new bill on the Valuation Office website and there is also advice on Business Link. Some members felt that a letter should be sent to local MPS protesting against this increase which will affect some traders more than others. It was therefore agreed that those who were likely to incur a significant increase would provide details of exactly how much their payments would potentially rise so that a letter could be written to all Brighton MPs giving examples. |
| Map |
There was positive feedback on the new map which has now been distributed to all members, the Tourist Information Centre, NCP car parks, the Library and hotels. Any members who require more should contact their street reps. |
| Website |
The website has now been updated and looks extremely good with lots of new content. There is also now a Facebook page for the Traders Association which will act as a blog, so all traders are encouraged to join and it is hoped that it will act as a point of contact for potential new members. |
| Logo |
We are considering updating the logo and will look at some new designs shortly. |
| Crime |
| Unfortunately, PCSO John Sharman could not attend the meeting as usual. Concern was raised about some burglaries which had taken place at shops overnight in the area. Advice was being sought from the Crime Prevention officer which will be passed on to members. |
| NCP |
| We asked the NCP if they would reinstate their parking deal for North Road car park for the Christmas period. We have had no response to date. |
| Christmas |
| The Christmas lights would be switched on on 19 November. It was felt that previous attempts at organised late-night Christmas shopping had not been successful but that individual traders might want to make their own arrangements, depending on their proximity to the town centre. |
| Rent Register |
| Geoff Ellis will be doing some work on the rent register together with Ed Start so please contact us with any updated rent information which is crucial for helping members who may be undergoing rent reviews. |
| The meeting ended at approximately 7.45 p.m. and Sharon thanked Colin for the use of the room at Komedia. |
