Dear All

A reminder that Portobello Heritage Trust have their annual lecture at 7.30pm on Monday, 14 October in the small hall at Bellfield. It will be an illustrated talk given by Dr Jill Turnbull: William Bailey: From Glassworks to Provost. Poster here:  http://www.portobelloheritagetrust.co.uk/

If you live in a tenement, or upper and lower villa, as well as maintaining your own home, you and your fellow owners are responsible for the upkeep of the common or shared areas in or around the building. The scale of the problem of keeping common property safe and secure has been recently highlighted by an excellent Edinburgh Evening News report: https://www.edinburghnews.scotsman.com/lifestyle/homes-and-gardens/new-interactive-map-shows-edinburghs-masonry-falls-broken-down-street-first-time-699948 The Council can advise and help a bit, but the property owners share the responsibility for those common areas and for the potentially dangerous consequences of their inaction.  Advice here: http://www.edinburgh.gov.uk/info/20123/shared_repairs/798/shared_repairs_and_maintenance.

The first meeting of the new Portobello Community Council will take place at 7.30pm on Monday 28 October at the Baptist Church Café on Portobello High Street. The first meeting of the new Craigmillar Community Council will be on Tuesday 12 November at 7pm in The White House, 70 Niddrie Mains Road. The Chair, Secretary and Treasurer will be elected then and there is also is a possibility of appointing a new post suggested in the Scheme  –  an Engagement Officer to help raise the profile of your own Community Council.  There is still an opportunity to register as a Local Interest Group on either of these Community Council and get involved at any time.  Northfield/Willowbrae CC, which covers the Hamiltons and Durhams too, have yet to firm up their arrangements.  More about CCs here: http://www.edinburgh.gov.uk/info/20133/community_planning/730/community_councils. I’ve asked that the note on the role of the Engagement Officer go on this CC web page and I hope that happens this weekend or ASAP next week.

A unique cabaret night on Saturday 9 November when award-winning musicians, Malawi’s Davie Luhanga and Scotland’s Mairi Campbell, share a stage for the first time and fill Bellfield Hall in Portobello with sounds to remember. There’ll be time to chat, enjoy a plate of hot homemade food and a drink from the bar. Book a table with friends or come and make friends there ! Tickets available at Cove in Portobello or on Eventbrite https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/stekaskills-cabaret-night-with-mairi-campbell-and-davie-luhanga-tickets-70380557141?utm_campaign=new_event_email&utm_medium=email&utm_source=eb_email&utm_term=viewmyevent_button

The Brighton Place carriageway reconstruction work is on schedule to be finished by the end of November.  By the end of next week, the section from Lee Crescent to West and East Brighton Crescents will be completed with only the section to the south remaining.  There have been some issues with missed refuse collections in West Brighton, but I think we have ironed them out and management will keep a close eye on it, with the help of the contractors. I saw the truck find it’s way along there this morning.

While Brighton Place remains closed to vehicular traffic, Brunstane Road is closed too, under a temporary traffic regulation order for road safety reasons.  A majority of Brunstane Road residents have done their own neighbourhood consultation with a view to pressing the Council to make their residential street closure permanent and tackling the through traffic in the Joppa/Coillesdene triangle as well.  The aim would be to keep through traffic on the major routes, and off those residential streets, as much as possible. However, no Council can close public roads permanently without doing their own widespread public consultation, first of all.  That consultation will begin with a drop-in session to be arranged in early November to look at all the possibilities for change in this triangle of local streets.

Many thanks to a constituent who alerted me about traffic lights along the Milton/Duddingston Park corridors.  The networks team found a fault in the detectors on the approach to the Duddingston Park South traffic lights.  This meant up to 50 seconds less green time on the afternoon peak than the demand would normally trigger. The detector fault was repaired on 2 October and the Sir Harry Lauder Road/Milton Road detectors were also adjusted at the same time.  This has resulted in better traffic flow at peak periods for some of those 100,000 vehicles corning in and out of Edinburgh at peak periods. Many thanks to that observant citizen and road user, for a very effective and helpful complaint! 

When a loved one goes missing, even for just a few hours, I know how desperately worrying it is for family and friends.  People living with dementia tend to go missing more than most and it’s so important that they are found quickly.  The Herbert Protocol has been adopted across Edinburgh and it can help in a crisis.  Find out more here: http://www.edinburgh.gov.uk/news/article/2667/edinburgh_adopts_herbert_protocol_to_help_trace_those_with_dementia

I’m taking a break for 10 days from Sunday and will be back to work first thing Thursday 24 October. Remember you have three more Portobello/Craigmillar Councillors (Kate Campbell, Mary Campbell and Callum Laidlaw) who can take things up for you just as well as I can. My assistant Liz Moreland picks up anything really urgent that comes in for me and she is an Absolute Star.  Liz helps with the landline phones, calendars and casework for four other Councillors, not just me. I really do not know how she does it!

That’s all for now. 

Best wishes!

Maureen

Councillor Maureen Child

Labour Councillor Portobello/Craigmillar Ward

Office: 0131 529 3268

Mobile: 07718 666 481

Facebook Page: Maureen Child Standing Up for Portobello/Craigmillar

Twitter: @MaureenChild1