Agenda and minutes

to approve as a correct record and authorise the Chairman to sign the minutes of the meeting of the Board held on 16 September 2019;

SH.20/19        

The minutes of the meeting of the Salcombe Harbour Board held on 16 September 2019 were confirmed as a correct record and signed by the Chairman.

Members are invited to declare any personal or disclosable pecuniary interests, including the nature and extent of such interests, they may have in any items to be considered at this meeting

SH.21/19        

Members were invited to declare any interests in the items of business to be considered during the course of the meeting, and the following were made:

Ms Jones, Mr Marriage, Mr Plant and Mr Stewart each declared a disclosable pecuniary interest in all related agenda items by virtue of paying harbour dues to the Council.  As a result of the Deputy Monitoring Officer granting each Board Member a dispensation, they were all able to take part in the debate and vote on any related matters (Minute SH.3/19 refers).

a period of up to 15 minutes is available to deal with questions from the public

SH.22/19        

It was noted that one member of the public was in attendance in accordance with the Public Question Time Procedure Rules:

Mr Nigel Green (Kingsbridge Estuary Boat Club)

Mr Green informed the Board that he was a Committee member of the Boat Club and emphasised the importance of a good working relationship between the Club and the Harbour Authority.  In expanding upon the point, Mr Green invited Board Members to attend the next meeting of the Boat Club.

to receive verbal reports from Board Members who attend the Harbour Community Forums on behalf of the Board

SH.23/19        

The Board received verbal update reports from those Members who attended the Harbour Community Forums.  The updates were given as follows:

Salcombe Kingsbridge Estuary Conservation Forum (SKECF)

Whilst he had been unable to attend the last SKECF meeting, the representative informed that the next meeting was scheduled to be held at Kingsbridge Community College on 24 March 2020.

At this point, the Chairman invited the Estuaries Officer to provide an update to the Board.  In so doing, reference was made to:

-          the identification of a new seagrass bed at Snapes Point;

-          a project that was being undertaken by the University of Exeter on Harmful Algal Blooms (otherwise known as ‘red tides’);

-          the added focus and emphasis being placed on Climate Change prevention; and

-          water quality issues.  The Board was reminded that, in the event of Members becoming aware of any issues related to water quality, then they should contact the Environment Agency.

South Devon & Channel Shellfishermen

The representative highlighted in their update that the Fish Quay had been recently tidied and all on-site businesses were working well together.

In addition, the on-site CCTV had now been replaced and virtually all of the recent freezer issues had been resolved.  On this point, the Harbour Master informed that the final outstanding freezer issues were due to be resolved on Wednesday, 29 January 2020.

The representative hoped that the now established quarterly Shellfishermen meetings would be well received and well attended.

The Board reiterated the disappointment expressed by the representative that the application to the Maritime Management Organisation for funding towards the purchase of Personal Flotation Devices had been unsuccessful.

Kingsbridge and Salcombe Marine Business Forum

The representative informed that a request had been received from a local boat seller asking that ‘for sale’ signs be able to be displayed on boats in the harbour.  Following a brief discussion, it was acknowledged that this would be in contradiction to the Board’s Policy and Members therefore requested that the Harbour Master contact the Duchy of Cornwall.  In addition, the Board also requested that an update on this matter be presented to the next scheduled Board meeting for formal consideration.

Kingsbridge Estuary Boat Club (KEBC)

The representative did not provide an update to this Board meeting but did highlight that the Club was maintaining good working relationships with the Harbour Master.

East Portlemouth

The representative informed that he would provide an update to the Parish Council on the information that had been disseminated earlier in the meeting from the Estuaries Officer.

SH.24/19        

At the invitation of the Chairman, the Director for Place and Enterprise provided an update on the Harbour Office Project.  In extending his unreserved apologies to the Board, he advised that an issue had recently arisen with regard to discharging covenants on the land that had caused the project to be halted.

In the ensuing discussion, the following points were raised:-

(a)     It was confirmed that the showers would be in operation for the summer period and it was anticipated that the water pressure would be improved;

(b)     The Harbour Master gave an assurance that one of the primary objectives was to improve the public realm in that area;

(c)     In recognising that the timeframe for the project to be undertaken this year had now been missed, a number of Members wished to express their disappointment and hoped that the project could still go ahead in twelve months’ time;

(d)     It was clarified to the Board that the costs that had already been incurred (approximately 10% of the total project costs) would be charged to the Council and not the Harbour Authority.  Furthermore, a Member wished to emphasise that the reputational damage caused should be directed to the Council and not the Harbour Authority;

(e)     The Board strongly requested that the Harbour Office be restored and back in operation as soon as was practically possible;

(f)       The Director for Place and Enterprise committed to providing regular project updates to Board Members.

SH.25/19                    

Consideration was given to a report that updated the Board on income and expenditure variations against the approved Budget.  In addition, the report forecasted the year end position.

During the ensuing discussion, reference was made to:-

(a)   the revenue budget position.  A number of Members commended the budget position and thanked officers for their hard work in achieving a surplus;

(b)   credit card handling charges.  In reply to a question, officers recognised that, whilst the variance was high, the contract had been recently re-negotiated and were therefore confident that the charges would be less in the future.  The Chairman advised that, in the event of charges continuing to be high, he would request that the matter would be considered by the Council’s Audit Committee;

(c)   Security Patrol Fees.  The Board noted that the Harbour Master had recently met with the Council’s Procurement Officer with regard to the future of the Security Patrol Contract.  It was intended that an options report on the future of the Security Patrol service would be presented to a future Board meeting;

(d)   recharges between the Harbour and the Council.  A Member highlighted the need for transparency and officers confirmed that a breakdown of Harbour recharges between the Council and the Harbour would be included in the annual budget outturn report.

It was then:

RESOLVED

That the forecast income and expenditure variations and the overall projected underspend of £25,700 for the 2019/20 Financial Year be noted.

SH.26/19        

Members considered a report that provided an update on a number of recent issues that had affected the Harbour.  In particular, the report provided an update on: service performance; major projects; and any other issues that impacted upon the Harbour.

During discussion, reference was made to:-

(a)     the Moorings Policy: Council Tax versus Business Rates.  By way of an update, the Harbour Master advised that there had been positive feedback in response to the new Policy.  In thanking officers, Board Members felt that this feedback demonstrated the advantage of adopting a clear and unambiguous Policy;

(b)     the Incident Management Exercise.  The Harbour Master extended an open invitation to all Board Members if they wished to attend the Exercise that was due to be held on 5 February 2020;

(c)     the current procurement topics.  For each of the topics, the Harbour Master informed that:

o  Deepwater Mooring Diving - the procurement exercise was about to commence;

o  12 tonne Sublift – the Board noted that, due to the limited potential suppliers, this topic had been exempted from standard procurement legislation.  It was anticipated that there would be a six month build time for the new piece of equipment and it was confirmed that there was a re-sale value to the existing machinery;

o  Security – an Options report was to be presented to a future Board meeting;

o  Dredging – surveyors had been engaged and the surveying works had commenced in the Harbour before the results were compared with previous years; and

o  Harbour Moorings Barge – whilst the Barge was still undertaking its duties, the need to replace it was becoming imminent.  As a result, the Board noted that this matter would also be subject to a future report to the Board;

(d)     the merits of adding a performance measure about water quality.  The Harbour Master recognised the importance of water quality and was considering whether or not a performance measure should be added to the current list of indicators.

It was then:

RESOLVED

That the contents of the Harbour Master’s report be noted and approved.