The Chairman to update the Panel on the Maidenhead Riverside Task & Finish Group meeting and the way forward.

The Chairman, Councillor Clark explained that the objective was to identify ways to make the most of Maidenhead Riverside as a community, leisure, artistic and heritage facility.

The Task and Finish Group had been held  to bring together residents, Community Groups and local businesses to discuss ideas and identify opportunities for an increased use of the Riverside area.

Many points were raised at the first meeting on 28 June 2017. A second meeting took place on 4 September 2017. At the second meeting the objective was to build and feedback on the points that were identified to make the most of Maidenhead Riverside as a community, leisure, artistic and heritage facility.

The points raised by attendees included:

·         The area was not welcoming enough, it needed to be more welcoming, have better riverside (including mooring) facilities and ideally have boat hiring facilities.

·         What is the Berkerley Homes proposal? It was understood that this was still in the development phase. The mooring arrangements were still being reviewed; following the new footbridge it was proposed that the opportunity for new link to Cliveden be investigated, albeit there will be some complex land ownership issues likely to be involved.

·         What moorings the Borough owned? The Borough owns the upstream Bray Boats area, along the Adopted Highway up to the area adjacent to  Woodlhurst and then from the upstream side up to Boulters Lock island An option  to foster an Edwardian Day as this is the history of Boulters Island and Lock. This anniversary event was previously held historically around Ascot Race Week.

·         Have art exhibitions along the river, “Arts on the West Bank”. Involve the photography club and have pieces on display but also to sell.

·         Steph James, Maidenhead Town Manager, suggested some events that it could be possible to have along the riverside including: an outdoor cinema, an afternoon of food, drink and entertainment and Gin in the park and others. Steph James suggested that locals should get involved and join in on the organising to help make initial events sustainable in future years.

·         David Scott, Head of Communities and Highways, gave an update on all the work in progress since the last meeting:

Ø  The Project Centre Ltd team has been tasked to carry out a review of the current signage and recommend on what could be improved, including cycle routes by October 2017. The signage would then be improved over the winter months.

Ø  Contractors had been asked for prices for lighting along the river and also for Christmas lights in the area. A number of options and costs were expected to come back in October 2017.

Ø  The Parking Team has been tasked to look at alternatives to address the impact of the height restrictions at Boulters Lock Car Park, in order to offer an alternative or and option for people who are rowing or canoeing.

Ø  We have just been made aware of the Boulters Lock Car Park being locked all day. This will be followed up.

Ø  RBWM is in dialogue, which is still ongoing, with the Environment Agency to discuss the state of the riverbanks and overgrowth of greenery and confirmation of which vessels on moorings are licenced. A resident informed the Group that it was one vessel in particular that was causing most of the mess and spill over on the footway. The resident would highlight the specific vessel to officers.

Ø  RBWM were looking at creating a local residents group to take forward all ideas in conjunction with Officers. Steph James has put in a bid for some capital funding for next year to support the relaunch of an events programme for 2018.

Ø  There would be more opportunity once the South Bucks side of the new footbridge opens up from Ray Mill Island.

Ø  The resurfacing of the road to the Island had been programmed for later in the year.

Ø  Further consideration by Highways will be undertaken  in relation to potential drop off points for coaches in the area.

Ø  RBWM are speaking to Network Rail about having a more proactive approach to maintaining the Sounding Arch / Railway Bridge.

Ø  There was no progress to report yet on the transport link options between the town centre and Maidenhead Riverside.

Ø  A Gateway Project programme was in place. This included a new pedestrian crossing between the petrol station and the riverside gardens adjacent to the A4, and to improve the A4 crossing to the Thames Riviera Hotel.

Ø  A capital bid had been put in for improvements to the river bank. It was noted that The Environment Agency had no responsibility; this is a riparian owner responsibility.

Ø  Officers speaking to Planning colleagues and exploring that if the Thames Hotel and the Thames Riviera Hotel were to apply for planning applications for flats, provision for a retail food and drink outlet could be included on the ground floor or similar.

The Chairman thanked David Scott and Officers for working through all of the points rose at the last meeting. This was a really good start.

Martin Knight, architect of the new footbridge suggested getting Berkeley Homes involved and having a wider debate with them on opportunities.

A resident suggested applying for the funding that was available for voluntary groups to use the Proceed of Crime funds. The cut off date was imminent. It was a Thames Valley Police standard advert promoting a Thames Valley wide scheme. This could include litter picking events or others to engage young people or other volunteers.

Other points raised by the Group included:

·         Developing safer routes for walkers and cyclists.

·         Encouraging some sort of cycle hiring scheme.

·         If an outdoor cinema is available next summer, have children’s movies in the afternoons in the summer holidays.

·         Martin Knight suggested getting the Maidenhead Sailing Club involved as located near by, he could be the lead.

It was Agreed Unanimously that PRoM be asked to form a sub group that could  join up with Boulters CIC,  along with  Councillor Judith Diment as the Ward Councillor,   Councillor Clark as Chairman of Culture and Communities Overview and Scrutiny Panel and Steph James as Maidenhead Town Manager both indicated their support to help to take suggestions  forward.

Steph James explained she would produce a year planner/calendar for all events in Maidenhead area. An additional meeting would take place in February 2018 to report on progress.

Alan Mellins suggested two points for the Group to think about:

·         There are a number of islands along the river that are currently overgrown and unattractive. It would be great to tidy up and make more attractive to at for all. He had previously heard of suggestions for a sculpture park perhaps.

·         The traffic on Cookham Road can get very bad. A one way flow route would reduce the traffic and increase space for more pavements for all the great plans for next summer. This could be a small section or a longer section, in the overall space from the A4 to the Boulters Lock, other shorter options included turning at Thames Hotel and various other alternatives.

The Group said they would consider these.

Councillor Mills reminded the Panel of when there was a Maidenhead Carnival where vintage buses were used to bring people from the town centre to Maidenhead Riverside where there were pop up snack bars, a concert and fireworks. It used to be a lovely event. It was good to hear that we were heading back that way.

Councillor Diment reported that Mick Jarvis, Chair, Boulters Riverside CIC had met with PRoM and had met with Steph James. A list of events had been put together. The Taplow side was still building and would be out of service for at least another year. There would possibly be a Marina style mooring area but would be expensive. Parking was still a major concern in the Maidenhead Riverside area. The Chairman highlighted that it would be great to have more events but not at the cost to residents amenities.

Councillor Stretton informed the Panel that the arches under the Sounding Arch could be utilised as a coffee shop. The space was currently used as storage. This would be investigated.