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Minutes of Meeting on Wednesday 4th September held in Nether Currie Primary School
Present – Jack Cairns, Mark Hutchison, Ian Ireland, Mairi Mitchell, Sheila Nicol, Callie Thomson, Jo Walton, Val Wardle. Mark welcomed everyone to the Meeting and asked if there were any apologies 1. Apologies – Jean Cairns, Barbara Chambers, Ann Ireland. 2. Minutes of Meeting of 5th June 2013 accepted – Proposed by Jo Walton and Seconded by Mark Hutchison. 3. Matters arising 5th June Meeting Dangerous Manhole – Callum Ross has this on the Schedule which is dealing with the drainage problem in the Park. Information Board was installed in August. Layout of map on board is to be checked. Helen Stockham has not been contacted re outstanding problems in park – Val Wardle to contact. 4. Treasurer’s Report. Ian reported that he had received a letter from Russell Easton, Chairman of the now defunct organisation PETRA (Pentland Edge Tenants Residents Association) in which he stated that he wished to donate the sum of £33.00.This was the balance of their funds at the winding-‐up of the Group. He would like us to purchase some fruit trees or plants in recognition of the work that PETRA had done over the years. Ian had written to Russell thanking him for the donation.
2 5. Park Update. Muir Wood Park has been awarded the Green Flag for 2013/14. Ian expressed concern at the way this news was conveyed to the Group – just coming out as an aside in a conversation with Craig Dunlop. He felt that there should be some official way that this information is relayed to the Friends of Parks. Replacement flower tub – Craig has stated that these were ordered in bulk when there was sufficient demand so we just have to wait for the replacement. In response to a request for some plants to brighten up the existing tubs Craig said this could be done in October when the Winter bedding plants were due. Wildflower Patch – this had been a great success and it was agreed that it should be repeated next year and possibly extended in size. In response to who would be maintaining this area it was said that the Council would cut down the flowers and prepare the ground next year. Willow Arch – Replacements for the willow that has not grown will be purchased in November when it is available. Information Board – This was officially unveiled on 15th August by Callie Thomson and Tyler Richardson, both pupils of Nether Currie Primary School. The Board gives a short history of the Park with some old photographs obtained from the library at Heriot-‐Watt University.
3 5. Park Update (cont.) Dog Notices – Mark had seen some “No Dogs” signs in a park in Portobello and he was asked if he could obtain some pictures of these with a view to submitting them to Craig. We would ask him if they could be installed in Muir Wood Park. 6. Nature Trail. Jo stated that the tree signs were due next week and were to be installed by the end of September by Council staff. There were 6 tree signs, 2 Nature Trail signs and 1 Orchard sign. Craig had ordered a large wooden owl carving to be sited in the woods. The Greenspace Trust has some money available for wooden sculptures. AOCB. Ian asked if anyone knew of an Auditor that could be contacted to audit our accounts as the one used last year was not available. Also if a new Treasurer could be found as he had agreed to only act as Treasurer for a short period. There are still 5 Scot-‐Mid vouchers available – these are for sale at £20.00 (value £25.00) and are valid until July 2014. Mairi asked if she could provide a wildlife report on bees to be included on our Website and she was told that this would be very welcome. Anyone who had any relevant item/report for inclusion on the Website is to be encouraged. The possibility of holding an Easter Egg Hunt on Easter Sunday 20th April 2014 was raised. The general opinion was that this should go ahead and would be discussed more fully at our next meeting.
Date of next Meeting -‐ Wednesday 4th December 2013 in Nether Currie Primary School
at 1845.
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