Big Society or Community Spirit

Yesterday was quite a day at the water tower, if you count the removal of a stretch of barbed wire and metal posts as an achievement. I do, because it took some time for this to happen. Strangely enough the change is not that obvious to the passer by. Its change blindness said John H as he stopped to congratulate on the house programme win.

Have had lots of messages regarding the house programme but sadly our friends in the USA can’t view the programme. I need to secure a DVD copy somehow.

Yesterday morning I read Jeremy Clarkson’s article in the Sunday Times. I do love his writing style and it always makes me chuckle. This article was about David Cameron’s big society and it turns out Jeremy is a neighbour of David and has firsthand experience of what Big Society is all about. Their local village is in Chipping Norton, and they run their own indoor swimming pool. Every year now they run a fund raising event and as Jeremy explained, it is more than just keeping the pool open. On fund raising nights the man from the pub who donates a free dinner with wine gets to meet the man from the bookshop, and the woman from the florist gets to meet the kids from the local school band. As Jeremy sees it – anything with the word Big in it makes it sound like a promotion for a sofa shop and he prefers to call it small society to embrace everything good about community spirit.

As I went off to the Scottish Parliament that night I was reflecting on the barbed wire work and Jeremy’s article. I was also mentally planning for an event for the Red Cross Ball. I had met up with the ball organiser and Dawn, the hat and dancer from the TV programme, at Prestonfield House that morning. Dawn is donating a hat to the event and also performing her tasteful burlesque dance routine at the opening. We are all excited about the big event – 5^th March if anyone wants to take a table, contact me. Gerry and I always donate a dinner (like the man in the pub at Chipping Norton) and over the years we have raised a few pounds for good causes. Perhaps 2 of the best were The Rocking Horse Ball when the dinner event was “sold” three times and at the 3^rd time I asked the auctioneer if she would mind waitressing. She said yes. Another which we didn’t attend but donated to, was an event in aid of The Queen Mothers hospital in Glasgow. The lucky winners came along in their best Glasgow finery (Issey Myake is all Gerry can remember and he thought some of the shoes might have cost £200. Put an extra zero onto that G). The group had a great night – apart from a knife and fork for their soup – long story – another day, but we asked out of interest, how much had they bid? “Ah well it got serious wee man, with a consultant sort of chap who thought he could outbid us. We don’t give up though”. Yes but how much – how much. Turned out to be £9,000 and there were only 10 people there. I suddenly got nervy that night and then remembered their dinner was done. I relaxed for a bit and then remembered we had given them a knife and fork to eat their soup. Only Glaswegians could not ask for a spoon, but use a fork to scoop out the bits in the Tom Yum soup and pick up their bowl to drink the soup. They thought it was some posh Edinburgh way to eat soup.

I arrive at The Parliament and after the security check, glass of wine, pile of papers and much hanging around on my own, I met a dark haired lady from Glasgow. We were both there for the Rare Diseases event. It’s annual, sometimes on Feb 29^th – a rare day – or the 28^th, but this year it was a week early! I chatted and heard quite quickly she was there because her son died 2 weeks ago from a rare disease. Her husband died 1 year ago and he carried the same defective gene that affected her son. Amazingly she also carries the defective gene and has been asked if there was any possible family connection between husband and wife because of the chances of 2 people having this gene defect. She has a daughter and twin boys. Boy this is complicated now. What are the chances of a recessive autosomal gene transmission to the surviving children? If you all remember school genetics XX and XY there I was drawing out the combinations but really – what do I know? Certainly not enough. Go see your consultant I said. But they only diagnosed it in Australia she said. It can’t be done at Queen Mothers Hospital. QMH – the very place which raised 9K from a dinner at our wee restaurant. I gave her my details and whilst I can’t work out the Mendhelsons Peas genetic recessive chromosomal inheritance blah blah stuff anymore I might just be able to help out with a fund raiser.

To recap – Prestonfield this morning and the Red Cross Ball – barbed wire and metal post removal for beautification of Cemetery Road has taken over a year to achieve – Scottish Parliament and Rare Diseases event at night and reflection on a 9K dinner event at the water tower restaurant. Well that leaves a big gap in the afternoon! Not in the Goldwyre household though. Oh no. We ran off the latest letters from the planning web site and well, at one point I fell off my chair. I have to commend Mrs Bowie on one bit about Elm Trees. She states that the tree officer told her that the Elms will die off anyway because they are diseased and might as well come down, and then, in brackets, - "I do hope my doctor doesn’t use the same approach!" I really appreciated this bit of humour in an otherwise gob smacking letter of 7 pages to object to a sitting out area, a fence, steps and path widening.

Yes I am back to planning. Sorry. The latest letters amount to 2 from Mr and Mrs Bowie in objection and 1 from Dr Nancy Mclean to support. All are local residents. In the Bowie letters it actually questions the viability of our wee restaurant and suggests that our new house is really being used as a supplement to the restaurant. In fact, Mrs B has observed Gerry teetering across the road with armfuls of crockery. This has tax implications you know. What about the 9K fund raised Mrs B - how does that sit with your question on the viability of our restaurant I wonder?

Dr Nancy documents the condition of the ground that we own, in the 1960’s and 70’s. Cemetery Lodge was a dull stucco clad little bungalow, all around the entrance to the gates was unkempt, and the drying green opposite was a shambles of rusting iron bedsteads, old tyres and a dumping ground of rubbish – all overgrown with nettles and brambles.

I guess we have transformed the place but not everyone appreciates the transformation. I think the new fence doesn’t look good from the viaduct myself but it’s a lot better than the metal one behind it and at least the ivy will grow on the wood where it couldn’t take hold of the metal. Trees have been removed but I’m not going over that lot again – there is no intention of growing new trees to the maximum size, permitting them to be removed again to maintain a view. I hadn’t really thought of that but you make an interesting observation Mrs B. I think most people know me better to state such a thing. Oh and no pole stage trees have ever been removed from area 10 I can assure you Mr B. Going back to Dr Nancy’s letter – a major scar on the Northside of the embankment was caused by a landslide of the path(!) on which we could walk behind Eskview Villas – this took away trees and shrubs – the remaining entrance to the pathway was highly dangerous unprotected area, past which we had to guide our children.

Now I am trying to do something about this area having bought a liability off the council. It would be really nice if Big Society got together on this one and maybe we could open up a walkers path as part of the source to sea route. I’m keen – are you?

I couldn’t begin to summarise all the points raised in the Bowies letters but I’ll post them on our wall for locals to read. They attack the usual aspects – overlook, tree removal, the feu disposition conditions, sale of woodlands in general, heights of fences, bin stores disguising a garage, steps in the bank enhancing the risk of more illicit landscaping, a wooden wall that serves no structural purpose (it’s a screen Mr B and if I take it away it will look horrible) and doesn’t even reach the ground (it’s open Mr B to allow water and soil to have free movement). Oh sorry, I have been pulled in to writing something. I must stop.

Just one more – the damming bit – the Estates Dept have given notice to the developer (!) to REMOVE all the structures covered by this retrospective planning application and also part of the house. Well that’s interesting indeed as well as not being true. I do hope our local councillors’ check out this statement. I wonder – could this be described as libel? I think it has to cause harm – we shall see.

To end, we have a happy article in this weeks’ local news after the house programme. The photographer just dropped in to give us a copy of the paper and the photos. How lovely. Here is one of the best photos and well done to an ex colleague Diane Innes, a part time photographer – she has been published in last months’ Photography Monthly.

Here’s to Big Society or even Community Spirit.

Something Lighthearted But Lovely

Written by Regina Brett, 90 years old, of the Plain Dealer, Cleveland , Ohio . 

My favourites are in bold text.
     
     
        1. Life isn't fair, but it's still good.
       
        2. When in doubt, just take the next small step.
       
        3. Life is too short to waste time hating anyone.
       
        4. Your job won't take care of you when you are sick. Your friends and
        parents will. Stay in touch.
       
        5. Pay off your credit cards every month.
       
        6. You don't have to win every argument. Agree to disagree.
       
        7. Cry with someone. It's more healing than crying alone.
       
        8. It's OK to get angry with God. He can take it.
       
        9. Save for retirement starting with your first paycheck.

     
        10. When it comes to chocolate, resistance is futile.  
    
        11. Make peace with your past so it won't screw up the present.
       
        12. It's OK to let your children see you cry.
       
        13. Don't compare your life to others. You have no idea what their
             journey is all about.
       
        14. If a relationship has to be a secret, you shouldn't be in it.
       
        15. Everything can change in the blink of an eye. But don't worry; God never blinks.
       
        16. Take a deep breath. It calms the mind.
       
        17. Get rid of anything that isn't useful, beautiful or joyful.
       
        18. Whatever doesn't kill you really does make you stronger.
       
        19. It's never too late to have a happy childhood. But the second one is up to
             you and no one else.
       
        20. When it comes to going after what you love in life, don't take no for an answer.
       
        21. Burn the candles, use the nice sheets, wear the fancy lingerie.
             Don't save it for a special occasion. Today is special.
       
        22. Over prepare, then go with the flow.
       
        23. Be eccentric now. Don't wait for old age to wear purple.

        24. The most important sex organ is the brain.
       
        25. No one is in charge of your happiness but you.
       
        26. Frame every so-called disaster with these words 'In five years, will
              this matter?'
       
        27. Always choose life.
       
        28. Forgive everyone everything.
       
        29. What other people think of you is none of your business.
       
        30. Time heals almost everything. Give time time.
       
        31. However good or bad a situation is, it will change.
       
        32. Don't take yourself so seriously. No one else does.
       
        33. Believe in miracles.
       
        34. God loves you because of who God is, not because of anything you did or
             didn't do.
       
        35. Don't audit life. Show up and make the most of it now.     
 
        36. Growing old beats the alternative -- dying young.
       
        37. Your children get only one childhood.
       
        38. All that truly matters in the end is that you loved.
       
        39. Get outside every day. Miracles are waiting everywhere.    
  
        40. If we all threw our problems in a pile and saw everyone else's, we'd
              grab ours back.
       
        41. Envy is a waste of time. You already have all you need.
       
        42. The best is yet to come...    
  
        43. No matter how you feel, get up, dress up and show up.
       
        44. Yield.
       
        45. Life isn't tied with a bow, but it's still a gift."
      
            

May The Best House Win

Thank you to all the girls - Dawn, Gail and Kay. It was quite an experience.
For anyone that missed the programme you can catch it on ITV1 Player on the internet. Its all out now - the hats, the dancing, the naked daquiris and the piano.

Dahousie Crescent

I fear I may be turning into a planning warrior - similar to an Eco warrior? Maybe it is because of knowledge gained these last few years and maybe it's because I am a community minded individual and always have been. Just been a tad too busy in the past with work commitments to the Health Service.

Speaking of which, I recently met up with a hero of mine. Paul De Sousa of Roslin Cells. I met him when he needed advice with a clean room out at the site where Dolly the Sheep was born. No she wasn't born in the clean room.......it's just part of the site. Did you know why Dolly was called Dolly? Well it is because they used a mammary gland cell in the cloning process and we all know which famous female singer is called Dolly and what her striking attributes are. Anyway, Paul is my hero as I said. Hailing from Canada as a researcher he came to the UK to push forward the frontiers of medical and scientific research for the good of all. I was there once. As a youngster I walked down Ellens Glen Road, saw this bizarre building called The Protein Fractionation Centre, knocked on their door and chatted to the Production Manager of the time. I was awe struck and wanted to work there; immediately. Three weeks with the Bank of Scotland had done nothing for me as a school leaver who didn't know if she wanted to be a nurse or a physiotherapist. Get a job in the bank said my sis. That way you get a great deal on your mortgage. What’s a mortgage said I but went off and took the job whilst I pondered. These were the halcyon days though when one could wander into a building and ask for a job and get one. And so I became a junior lab technician and I just loved it. The gloss came off - doesn't it always.......and by the time I left as the Quality Assurance Manager I was pretty washed out with regulations. Became a fan of Quality Management though and especially Risk Assessment in the broadest sense.

Paul had a collaborative project with the Blood Transfusion Service and I was sent out to help him with coping with the regulators for his clean room. I hope I helped. Now I am hoping to get involved in some useful area of stem cell work. Maybe with more direct patient contact than I had in my last job and I am looking forward to seeing how this might evolve. Been to 1 conference already and 2 more are booked. The subject matter is fascinating and sometimes controversial. Hmmmmmmm.

I am digressing as usual. Can't help it. My nephew bought me a Nintendo for xmas and I am doing brain training. I think the neurons in my brain are dying off like everyone else's but the connections that are still there are firing off on far too many tracks for my own good. Some nights my head hurts.

Let’s get back to Dalhousie Crescent.

This is another planning story but subtly different to my own. 13 houses were built here about 10 years ago. They are beautiful houses although very up market and maybe not my style. Too formal for me with gardens and a garage and all things "normal". I hope no one is offended by that, I know many people could never live in my house because really, it is me that is not "normal".

When these houses were going through the planning process at the time, 1 house was “knocked off” by the planners to leave a large open area as amenity for all the homes on the site. The open ground being retained under the ownership of the green belt trust. (I am assuming then that all these houses were built on green belt land? I'm not sure but if they are and if the argument for not building on green belt can be considered, then this development is a good example of fair use of green belt - IMHO).

So everything went according to plan and the kids on the Estate use the open ground and the families use it for firework events and summer parties. Excellent. Then in Nov last year a fence was out up around the site and the home owners learned that 1 householder on the Estate had purchased the ground from the Green Belt Trust and now he owned the land. They put a fence round it to stop the rubbish piling up on the ground and that should have been it. But - there was planning condition that the ground was not to be assigned to any one house and not individually fenced. There were no factoring conditions.

The fence was a breach of the planning condition and so the new owners put in for retrospective planning permission. This was refused. Reasons being non compliance with the planning condition and the fence being inappropriate in the overall setting. The owners have appealed. This is where it became interesting because the appeals all used to go to the Scottish Office. Some still do - if ones application has gone to committee in the first place. But if it didn't need to go to committee and was dealt with by the planning group only as a delegated matter, then the new government guidelines are that the appeal goes to a local review board.

So we have a new local review board in Midlothian and it comprises 8 local elected representatives and at any time there must be at least 3 people present for a review to take place. At least that is what I have gleaned thus far. It is early days but I must say that I personally think the Scottish Office appeal route was a good system and it’s a shame it has been changed. I guess the positive outcome though is saving money and time.

Looking at the on line system then for the Dalhousie issue, there was nowhere to lodge a support for the neighbours affected by this fenced off area. I contacted the planning department and they said that they could take comment up to 8 days before the final review meeting so there was plenty of time. I have drafted my letter supporting the concerned neighbours and will submit it shortly. If anyone else is reading this blog that came to community council and has a view, then please write as well. The person to write to is;

Mhairi-Anne Cowie

Planning Officer

Midlothian Council

 Fairfield House

8 Lothian Road

Dalkeith

EH22 3ZN

First Letter of Support

This letter has been sent in to the Planning Department today. It is from Kirsty Towler who was the planning officer in Midlothian when we renovated the water tower. That wasn't a straightforward renovation with both MC and Historic Scotland included in approving the works. Hard to believe we are where we are now over development in our woodland garden. But I wonder, if we hadn't taken on the water tower, where would we all be today?

Kingsley Drinkwater
Senior Planning Officer
Midlothian Council
Planning, Development Management
Fairfield House
Dalkeith
EH22 1DN

Dear Mr Drinkwater
Planning application 10/00694/DPP
I am writing in support of the application of Gerry and Susan Goldwyre who are seeking planning permission for some decking with storage beneath, a fence with bin store, and works within the woods including steps and rails.

I have known the site for many years since 1986. I am very familiar with the area, the site history and I am fully aware of the works that have been carried out. None of the works which have been carried out are harmful or in any way detrimental to the character or appearance of the conservation area. They have no adverse impact upon amenity. At worst the works are neutral in effect. While the application may have been retrospective that fact does not make an inherently acceptable application unacceptable nor does it make unacceptable works acceptable simply because the works are there.

To my mind retrospective applications are very useful as they permit reasoned judgement of the scheme. The application seeks to retain what is there; any judgement must be less subjective than it may otherwise have been as it relies upon seeing the development.

The application concerns only a small number of relatively minor matters of very limited effect. The cottage has been approved and the formation of a garden is authorised. The cottage has given rise to a lot of good publicity for Midlothian Council. It will no doubt continue to do so, just as the Water Tower conversion brought great publicity for Midlothian.

It is not unreasonable to expect a boundary fence to be required to provide privacy while the hedge is growing within the site – the hedge is of course within the site and not outside as the misinformed objector states. The hedge will have no blocking effect on the path. The fence is wooden and untreated; it will silver in time and will be in harmony with the house. The bin store behind is not visible and not harmful in any way.

The works to stabilise the bank are necessary, as are the paths, steps and guard rails. Gerry and Susan Goldwyre have carried out an enormous amount of planting over the years they have owned the land. The land is in far better condition that it was before they acquired it. They are actively managing the woodland. No active management was previously undertaken.

The raised deck is small and made of glass and timber. It will in time become less visible as new planting takes hold in an area which has always been bare ground. They should be commended and not criticised. Their planting has been informed by professional advice and has been carried out with full agreement and knowledge of Midlothian Council’s Tree Officer. They have not removed trees other than in accordance with the woodland management plan, where they have been dead or where agreement had been obtained. They have not destroyed woodland but created it.

There has of course been erosion of the woodland. It is clear from the land owned by the Goldwyres that the discharge from the tennis court has eroded the bank and continues to do so. The impermeable surface gives rise to a problem on the bank as does the ineffectual foul sewage arrangement. The threat to the bank, its stability and the trees is clear for all to see.

I have been very conscious during the last few years of the rather hysterical and  ill-informed comments from objectors. The actual facts seem to be ignored by the objectors and they rely on surmise and innuendo. The Eskbank Amenity Society appears to have mounted a personalised and un-neighbourly campaign which deviates from planning policy. The campaign appears from my position to be motivated by malice rather than any other motive. The EAS appears to want to revisit an approved permission for a house that has already been granted and implemented. That cannot be done. The matter of the sale of the land is not a planning concern and it is wholly inappropriate for the EAS (or anyone else for that matter) to introduce such matters as the Society has previously done in a lengthy letter submitted to Midlothian Council last year. My personal view is that the EAS appears to have lost sight of the issues, has singularly failed to be objective and is apparently being used as a tool by post holders to mount a shabby smear campaign against
neighbours. It is of course only the planning matters that should be considered and only the merits of the proposals which form the current application.

Before the Council now are only those small matters which are the subject of the planning application. The Council is not considering creeping development along the bank of the river, it is considering some minor developments which elsewhere would be considered to be permitted development. The Council has approved fences in the Conservation Area previously; in fact the Council has approved some fences which are far more strident in terms of their effect. Decks have been approved elsewhere in the Conservation Area and as to path and steps the Council itself has formed such paths and steps elsewhere along the public rights of ways and paths within the Conservation Area.

The application should be approved.

To do otherwise would be unreasonable.

Yours sincerely


Kirsty E Towler
MA Hons., M Phil., Dip Urban Design, MRTPI

Susan Goes On the Offensive

Susan Goes On the Offensive

Well nothing new there some might say. Linda B is you are reading this, you know the form as an innocent bystander in past times with my old boss. Don’t push me without justification or I’ll bite back.

I am from the Borders. Born in Galashiels, dad from Peebles. My great great grandmother on my mum's side lived and died in Cemetery Lodge cottage; her last years must have been spent watching the water tower being built. I have an affinity with my surrounds. Last month I picked up 100’s of beer cans, dog poo bags and discarded garden plants at the bridge in Cemetery Road just off the public footpath. I don’t own the ground, I just wanted to take away the unsightly crap. It was a horrible job. I’m not looking for any pat on the back, just stating a fact. Lots of people pick up litter.

I have joined the Midlothian Paths Team because I wanted to.  I have designs on getting a large grant for SUDS (that’s sustainable underground drainage systems) for the tennis courts to prevent any more damage to the surrounds. If the tennis courts were to be “built” nowadays then SUDS would be part of the process. But these courts are 100 years old and no such requirement was necessary at the time.

And so, what has happened? Well Professor J T M Stevenson of the Esk Valley Trust has written that the appearance of the bank of the river has significantly changed and wants to prevent “multiple repetitions to this type of development, nation-wide”.  Mrs Duthie, also of the Esk Valley Trust, endorses these views and states that comments have been made by professionally qualified people in the disciplines of engineering and geosciences. Interesting.  How much, I wonder, do these professionally qualified people understand and have they taken a balanced view? I think not since my requests to visit the area and listen to my story seems to have fallen on deaf ears. I’ll keep trying in the interests of establishing fact and truth.

Let’s explore the “significant change”, as stated by the prof, to the river bank. I have posted many articles in this blog that show the history and the change to this woodland. The new house called RP9 (for good reason) probably represents the most significant change and any new build would have supporters and objectors no matter what (consider the Scottish Parliament – I actually love it, my sister hates it and we all know about the cost!). So the house represents a change, it has full planning permission and I guess some people will just have to live with it. If it sets precedent for further development on the Esk then I’m sorry – there’s not a lot I can do about that and I know that Mr Ian Johnson answered that Q last year in response to yet another enquiry about developments on the river bank made by the Eskbank Amenity Society.  His answer was

There is no basis to assume that the circumstances at the site to which you refer would have any bearing on the "future protection of the North Esk RiverValleys and their ancient woodlands."

How many times, and in how many ways, can the same Q be asked? I wonder; and let’s just make clear at this stage, this recent query on significant change and the possibility of precedent has not come from a planning application for the house build – No – it has come in as an objection to the fence, steps, path widening and replacement sitting out area, constructed after the house build for which retrospective (not uncommon to have these things retrospective) planning has been applied for. Most local people who are reading the literature on the fence (I am copying all objections for all to read) are having difficulty understanding this because they cannot understand what the fuss is about. They assume it is all about the house which would be understandable perhaps. Interestingly and as an aside, someone from the local area (let’s call him Mr A) is pouring over the house plans and looking for any minor discrepancy and having found one such non-material discrepancy (that’s a planning term non-material which means insignificant) has asked to have this current application withdrawn and be re submitted to include this minor discrepancy. I have my suspicions on the ulterior motive on this one but the principle that this person hopes to get across is to show “creeping development”. This is a pretty self explanatory term but one must abide by the rules and so far, with this retrospective application, that is what I have done. I suggest Mr A you do the same. I will not have this application withdrawn. You will have to use another tack. Imagine spending your time looking at the minutiae of a new house build in the hope of finding something to add weight to an argument for creeping development. You could have done this ages ago but you have waited ‘til now. Oh and it’s especially notable when a sitting out area has been constructed by another local person (without permission) in their garden in a conservation area. Have I raised an objection – yes, but I withdrew it the next day. Childish – yes. Understandable – I hope so. Is this other sitting out area creeping development? I don’t think so. Is mine?- No.

Let’s play a fair field Mr A. I played outside left in hockey for years – what sports did you play? I learned to use skill and camaraderie to win a hockey game – how did you get on?

So let’s move on to the professional competency to judge the appearance. I posted a picture of the view of the river bank taken in the 70’s. It quite clearly shows a scar area on the slope. It is significant. There have been reports of land slippage and I remember one guy at the FOIP event in Nov 2009 telling me that the local authority at one time placed pieces of glass tell tails around the foot bridge as a way of detecting land slip in this area because of concerns. I think this may well have been one of the reasons why the liability of the ground was offloaded when the council sold us the ground as our garden. It is a liability so hey Mr Professional, come and see it yourself and let me tell you more, and you can pass on your knowledge of ground geo physics and architectural understanding.  That might compliment the advice documented in our woodland management plan of year 2000 from Mr Donald McPhilimy - the professional that I paid to assess the woodland at the time.

So how are things now at the area above the bridge? The slope area looks significantly better than a year ago. This is the area where the power line crosses and the works in this area are beginning to bear fruit. The regeneration tree species is Elm and there is a mass of twiggy coppiced tree growing in an area where it has been cut back for years previously. The open area under the line has new planting of the type that is not epicormic and doesn’t need to be cut back. That’s called taking a long term view to woodland management Mr Professional so again, please come on down and see for yourself. Oh and the power cable – its state of the art Ericsson Cabling and I hope it means the width of cut underneath it is reduced from the cable that was there previously (that is what I was told but I have nothing in writing). I made all this happen with Scottish Power and MC for the greater good and with a long term view. It took me 10 years to get this to happen and although the house build was not the reason for the final push to make it happen, the house build certainly spurned action and provided the access opportunity. For some relevant readers - I have no desire to improve my own view by having the power line moved – I already have this view! From lots of places. Remember I own the water tower with a balcony that overlooks the park......

So that’s the first part of the river bank that I made a significant difference to. What next – shall I move on to the fence cladding on top of rusting corrugated iron, at the back under the tennis club that is topped by the tennis club with green netting. Well again – come and see it. There is a new wood fence along a significant length of the old tennis fence. I know what will look better in the long run. Let me see; rusting corrugated metal versus pine wood which will naturally fade to silver-grey. You decide. At the moment of course it looks rather new and no – I won’t be painting it dark green or brown only to have the paint peel and require regular maintenance.

Let’s move on from the outside deck of the house towards the sitting out area. An open area of ground. No trees were ever in there. It looks a bit barren at the moment since the house build has only just finished and this area is ear marked for planting. That will be native woodland plants in an area that never had any tree cover before. That’s correct, I have repeated myself saying that there were no trees in this area before.

The sitting out area and store. It’s made of the same wood as the fence and the house for that matter. The glass is just stunning. It looks a little stark at the moment but it will fade. There were no trees taken down in siting the structure. There was a dead Ash behind it and this was removed previously with permission. What great wood that has made for the fire this year because this Ash was felled about 4 years ago now and it burns really well.  The Ash stump grows a mass of shoots every year which I cut back. What a beautiful sight when the new growth comes on. Just stunning. Some new native planting (to replace the bamboo which I have finally gone-off, and its not native) will be put in this year. I am so looking forward to doing that. The sitting out area though because I digress as usual, is a wooden structure and it is not a building in the sense that a building is understood by the public to be a house or a larger structure. It is development in planning terms though and for those not up to speed, a development in planning terms is anything at all that is fixed to the ground. I would have requested permission for the replacement developments in our garden ground some time ago had it not been for the very upsetting interferences last year that resulted in distraction and application of energy in other directions. It’s all in this blog on the earlier pages. Our lunch club chat usually ended with “you just couldn’t make this up” because I tell you, some people have had their fingers burned in both fire and caustic this last year.

There are other issues with the sitting out area but for the purposes of this blog site this will have to remain off-line for the moment until a legal situation is addressed. I expect to blog the outcome in due course and it should make very interesting reading.

What else. Oh the path broadening and an area of wood placed to hide the triangulated section from public view. Well this is the area of land slip. It is significant and the long term outlook will be the loss of the tennis club corner. That might sound melodramatic but I am on this Earth to make a difference. What about you? If the owners responsible for the runoff are not prepared to address the situation then there is little I can do. The best alternative is to broaden the path. It is of no benefit to the land slip but it does help me stay safe in walking round this corner. To do this we used up old Gazebo “I” sections to create a wider path. It is not long term but it does the job for now. To disguise the rather ugly works the weathered boards from the gazebo were nailed on and left open to allow soil and water to percolate through. It’s not brilliant but it’s a start. Oh and up until 5 years ago there was the ugly grey plastic pipe in this area that fell off and was never replaced. It never carried any water anyway but interesting that the “ugly” appearance of this pipe was never mentioned.

Getting back to the woodland itself, at one time the path on this land was available to the public – it was a short cut and it was blocked off by MC. I would like to keep the path. This is what I have done. The sight from Ironmills Park will show change but I’m sorry – for some things to be protected there has to be change. It is not that ugly and it will improve as ivy takes hold. Below this path widening section is the very clear scar evident in the 70’s picture. On Monday I moved significant amounts of loose soil down the slope onto a wildlife wood pile below. I created some “terraced” footholds in the wet soil and cleared any rubbish and dead wood from the slope. I raked it down. The blister on my hand is significant. I then re planted the willows that have not taken in this last year (Wind? Rain? Land movement? I don’t know) and planted 5 larger willows, 3 med size Beech, 1 Ash and I have an Alder tree still to plant. Oh and a few holly still to purchase and plant. A few of these plants have gone in to an area that always had some tree cover but the vast majority are on the slope where no tree cover ever existed before. I’m not even sure of their chances of survival because of the run off issue but I decided to go ahead and plant anyway because it is taking so long to get a solution to the tennis club lack of SUDS problem. So Mr Professional engineer if you know anything about land slip and water and SUDS – I would love to talk to you. And while you were here you could look at the scar from the tennis club septic tank that is no more because it became blocked and took a large chunk of hillside with it when it fell away. That must have had a significant impact at the time.

Staying on this area of the river bank; have you seen the green plastic tubes anyone? I think they look horrible but they are protecting the 100’s of understory planting that was carried out years ago. Some of these were Beech and Rowan which seem to be doing particularly well in this area. In another 5 years the change will indeed be “significant”. I wonder if it will make depressing reading then?

For readers wondering what on earth is Susan doing I would like to highlight the fact that the recent concerns about the river bank were previously raised by the Eskbank Amenity Society last year in an 8 page letter to MC. The issues being raised yet again were addressed by Ian Johnson at MC and I copy from his letter once again.

The site has been visited on a regular basis by the Council's landscape officer who

has discussed the replacement planting arrangements with the owners.

On the final page of your letter you refer to matters under six bullet points, on which I

would offer the following observations. The first two are a matter which were part of

the overall assessment of the planning application. I do not agree with the assertion

in the third point that there is "ongoing destruction". The fourth and fifth points can be

achieved through landowners undertaking woodland management of their land. This

would also be relevant to point six although I do not accept the assertion that the

North Esk River Valley Woodland has been "damaged”

I hope everyone is getting the message. Or is there some barrier to comprehension or some bias in some-one’s own agenda or maybe even, a desire to use the house build at Cemetery Road to further one’s own aims? Whatever it is believe me I will not sit back and accept nor keep quiet and hope you all go away. I am too feisty for that.

I am going to be 53 soon. I am feeling old! I reckon I have a good few years of extreme gardening in me yet though and the woodland is my baby. I will leave it in a fit state for the next generation, I will not sit back and accept harmful letters posted in an objection to a planning application and keep quiet. I will fight my corner and my DNA is from a robust stock. I am a Biologist. I am not an engineer. I do wear people down and I will get the SUDS thing fixed one day. I will progress this year with my positive agenda (Yeah I read the 7 habits of successful people as well) and no-one will stop me by using the threats of precedent and National awareness. I welcome National awareness.

Just arrived in the post today – Lothians Local Biodiversity Site Survey request as part of the winter survey programme. We shall agree to the survey (of course we will) and we get a Biodiversity report in return and it is part of a larger survey for this whole area. Now that’s positive.

Hope the next time you see discarded beer cans when you are out walking in the countryside that you pick one or two up and bin them.  And if you are going for a walk in any woods, try for Lord Ancrums’ wood in Newbattle where the Forestry Commission have created new “motor way” paths through the woods to allow better access. Now that’s significant change which the community council fought against. In the knowledge that the EAS supported these concerns as well apparently. But Mr A, when I met you last year and asked you, your response was “what woods Susan? I don’t know about that?” and no letter of objection has ever appeared.

Well that feels better.

Thanks for reading.

Susan

Esk Valley Trust

Today we have a letter from the Esk Valley Trust to Midlothian Council with regard to our planning application. I have put a copy on our fence display outside our house.

Now the EVT is a wonderful organisation set up to protect the countryside in Mid and East Lothian and I am all for them. I met their secrtary Winnie Stevenson at an AGM for Friends of Roslin Glen last year.
They never wrote to object to our house build but they have written about our application 10/00694/DPP for the external structures around the house. I'm not sure if it is an objection to the application because it starts off;

"I am writing on behalf of the EVT to object to the granting of retrospective permission for the above development"

Remember structures are development in Planning terms so this is about the fence, the steps, path widening and a sitting out area/store. What is interesting is they are objecting as if something has already been granted. Do they know something that I don't?

This aside, the letter states the concern that these developments have taken place in a sensitive area and the approval may set a precedent for other works that will threaten other sites in the river valley. It then states that the planning history is well documented and makes depressing reading. Well every one to their own opinion but I guess I wouldn't use it for bed time reading myself. Is it depressing because they are concerened about precedent or is it depressing because they find our house build so terrible but yet no objection appeared at the time? who knows. There is a reference to communication about Land Use Strategy so maybe we are a part of some larger concern.

The last paragraph though makes clear the importance of our application in their eyes - 

" We believe that every effort must be made to limit the damage in this particular case but, more importantly, we feel that this issue should be addressed at a national level"

Gosh - national level. Maybe this will help Jo who always asks us "why are you two so important?"

I guess it all comes back to the image of this woodland in the eyes of those who have chosen to only look more closely this last year and why I established this blog site. This woodland is not being destroyed - it is loved and is being cared for. Read the blog.
Yesterday I planted Beech, Willow, Holly and Alder on the bank; many of these additions in the area that has been barren for as many years as photographic evidence is available for. I have planted 100s of understorey plants - all native and all with a long term plan to leave this earth feeling I have contributed to the protection of this small parcel of land.

I invite the Esk Valley Trust to visit me and discuss.