DRAFT MINUTES
Meeting Tuesday, 10 February, 2015
7 pm, ASDA, Summerston
1. The Chair opened the meeting and welcomed members. Apologies were read out and accepted.
2. Minutes of 9 December, 2014. The minutes were approved.
3. Matters arising from the minutes. It was agreed that in the future draft minutes could be circulated and posted on the park notice board as soon as they were available, although they would not be officially approved until the next meeting.
4. Update on general current activities:
a. The wetland area. After extensive consultation, LES have decided to create a smaller body of water within the wetland area which will be about 8×8 metres in extent, with its own berm (earth walls), and under 18” deep, which will be designed to last most of the season, so it will be able to support a frog population.
In answer to a question about water on Caldercuilt Road which appears to leak from the track area (not the wetland area as might have been expected), Glasgow Life said they would look into this.
b. Planting plans for the Caldercuilt Road border. A group was designated at the last meeting and lists of appropriate native plants were circulated. Anyone who wishes to contribute to the choice of plants should speak to co-chair NH by the end of February.
c. The RSPB has contacted us to ask for help with their house sparrow project. There are a few house sparrows in the neighbourhood but not the numbers previously seen, and this may be due to lack of appropriate food (seeds) as well as fewer nesting places. In consultation with LES they have chosen a south-facing slope in the Park where they will plant seed-producing wildflowers, and would like our help in maintaining this area. This proposal met with approval by the members, who asked if data from the recent RSPB garden birds survey in this post code area could be released so we could get some baseline information to compare sparrow numbers before and after this planting.
5. Update on proposed future projects:
a. A proposal for funding a portacabin in the bowling green area has been submitted to Awards for All. Awards for All have come back with a query about whether FOMP has a lease on the land. This has been discussed with Glasgow Life, and a response sent to Awards for All. If the bid is successful FOMP will need to enter discussions with Glasgow Life on a number of issues relating to insurance and the supply of utilities.
b. We have been asked if Maryhill Park could be the new home of the Maryhill Martyr monument, a monument to a young calico worker, George Miller, who was killed when participating in industrial action in 1834. This was donated by his fellow workers, stood in the Maryhill parish church yard and was a listed monument, but since the destruction of the church building it has been in storage. The Park would be a fitting place to re-erect it. LES propose putting it up near the Caldercuilt Road gate in a well-constructed new setting which will enhance that entrance.
[Addendum: We have now been informed that, after discussion with other Development and Regeneration Services Officers, there is a proposal for the former church site on Maryhill Road that has a condition attached for reinstatement of the Martyr’s Monument. So it looks as if the Park will not be getting the Monument.]
6. Volunteers Update. The volunteers meet on Sundays 2-4pm. BC reported that at present they have been clearing up the banks on the Maryhill Road side of the tennis courts and bowling green area, and next will work on the big evergreen bed on the right as you walk up the Lime Alley from Maryhill Rd.
7. Any Other Business.
a. SK reported that ASAP, the after-school organisation he runs, has some spare funds which they will use to spray the tennis courts and running track to keep moss and other vegetation down. He was asked not to spray nettles, etc., which provide food for butterflies (“eco-spraying” was advocated). There was also a discussion about how to get the nearby schools involved in using the tennis courts.
b. ASAP also asked for FOMP support for a proposed corporate community responsibility day when employees are sent out to help in the community.
c. NH reported on MyParkScotland, a website which will serve as a forum for Friends groups in Glasgow and Edinburgh. He will attend a fund raising seminar organised by My Park Scotland on March 12. FOMP also has a list of future projects for which we may wish to seek funding and these will be uploaded on to the MyPark website when it becomes active.
8. Date of Next Meeting.
The next meeting will be on Tuesday, March 31, at 7pm, venue to be announced later.