Osprey Village Inverurie Residents Association

Minutes of the Osprey Village Inverurie AGM held at Inverurie Town Hall on Wednesday 29th April 2015
at 7.30pm
Present
Committee: Carol Reid, Sarah Thornton, Sue Yannaghas, Anne Gibson
PMC: Richard Burnett (Customer Services Director), Brenda Troup (OVI Property Manager)
13 Attendees (sign-in sheet 11 attendees recorded)
Apologies: none received

Welcome and Introductions

Sarah Thornton (Chair) welcomed attendees, made introductions and ran through a summary of the
agenda. It was highlighted that attendee numbers would not provide the quorum required for decision
making and voting this would have to be carried out at a second meeting, likely to be the next
committee meeting (date of meeting now confirmed as Wed 13th May, St Marys Church Centre,
Inverurie 1930 hours).
Communications Update
Anne Gibson provided a reminder of the OVI communication portals, including Facebook page, website,
and regular newsletters. Anne also reminded attendees that the majority of enquiries will be noted and
taken to the next Committee meeting for discussion and action. However urgent enquiries may be dealt
with more quickly and should ideally be raised directly with PMC in the first instance.
The Committee as ever, is open to any suggestions for improving its communication with residents, and
suggestions can be fed through the Facebook page and website.
Playpark Area/Recreational Facilities
The committee confirmed there would be no external (ie. Council) provision for improving the
development play areas. A kick-off meeting between the committee and PMC to look at options for
improving these facilities is set for late-May/early June (date to be confirmed). However the committee
is aware that likely restrictions will be space and cost. Updates of progress will be posted on Facebook
and the website. The committee confirmed that no decision will be made on the play areas without prior
consultation with and approval from proprietors.
Anne met with Council members recently to obtain an update on plans for Uryside Park (land between
Osprey Village and the retail park). Please find notes of the meeting below. Details of the public
meeting to discuss the Wetlands Area will be posted on the OVI Facebook page and website.
Uryside Park
Proposal.docx

Maintenance Charge
Brenda advised that the general budget has increased by 0.29 per household. This increase primarily
covers annual play-park checks (a legal requirement and will be over and above the regular checks which
Scottish Landscapes will do), an allowance for any increased grounds maintenance charges through the

year, and usual PMC charges at 3%. Very little change in the way of postage and meeting charges.
PMC confirmed no major issues around arrears with monthly charge payments. Osprey Village classed
as a good development in terms of payments being up to date, however PMC will always continue to
pursue outstanding payments.

Election of Committee Members

Sue asked the current Committee members present if anyone wished to step down from the
Committee. There were no requests to step down. Sarah Thornton and Sue Yannaghas confirmed they
were happy to continue as Chair and Secretary respectively for the next year. No other volunteers for
these positions were identified. Anne Gibson and Carol Reid were happy to continue as
Communications Officer and Deputy Chair - again no other volunteers identified for these positions. The
committee as it currently stands was therefore proposed by John Watson and seconded by Adrian
Stewart. A majority show of hands voted the committee in. The committee will be voted in at a second
meeting due to the lack of a quorum at the AGM.
General Feedback Session

Road/Traffic Issues. It was proposed that speed bumps should be considered for all routes within
the village. However it was highlighted that the Council wouldnt consider speed bumps on a bus
route. The Council is due to conduct a traffic survey on the development which will allow them to
review the current speed limits on the development and whether these are appropriate, and options
for further traffic calming measures eg. flashing speed limit signs. It is likely that with the ongoing
development of houses in and around Osprey Village, the speed restrictions along the B9170
Inverurie to Oldmeldrum road will be extended. Safety concerns were raised regarding the removal
of the filter lane (but filter markings remain), at the Uryside Drive entrance. PMC confirmed it would
be unlikely the Council would do anything at the moment, but agreed the eventual plan will likely
include more traffic islands and an extended speed restriction.
The provision of some sort of crash barrier was suggested as a safety precaution to protect houses
at the bottom of the roadside embankment. It was agreed however that this wouldnt be necessary
on a straight stretch of road, and with the proposed traffic calming measures referred to above.

Parking at Osprey Village. Several residents expressed concern about parking at the village, with
cars parking on the roads and causing issues with passing and visibility, particularly at areas where
roadways have already been narrowed for traffic calming measures. The option of double yellow
lines was discussed, but it was felt that agreeing where to put these would be too complex, and the
likelihood of residents being unhappy at having double yellow lines outside their properties. It was
agreed that double yellow lines could be considered for areas where there is poor visibility and
where it is particularly unsafe for vehicles to be parked eg. brows of hills and corners. Carol to
follow-up with the Council.

Grounds Maintenance attendees asked PMC to confirm that grounds maintenance was
continuing as some areas looked in need of attention. Brenda confirmed Scottish Landscapes were
doing works in phases and would be chasing up any outstanding issues. PMC confirmed plans are
in place to replace several broken and/or damaged trees.
PMC have been in contact with Barratts regarding the poor state of landscaping at the village
entrances, and the embankment areas between the houses and road. Both areas have been left in
an unacceptable condition following construction works. Barratt have agreed to rectify these issues
but no timeline provided.

Uryside Drive/Peregrine Drive Landscaping. Several options were considered by the committee
and PMC for improving this area of landscaping. Some plants have not taken well and some have
been damaged due to people taking shortcuts through the area from the road to the houses above.
Options considered included replanting with suitable shrubs, turfing the whole area, and laying
pathways. Quotations were obtained with the turfing and pathway options proving quite costly.
PMC also advised there were issues with making changes to the original development plan. As a
result and with PMCs advice, it was agreed the replanting option would be best, bearing in mind
costs would be shared across all proprietors. PMC confirmed they would be looking at suitable
planting to try and prevent people taking shortcuts. The committee also asked about some sort of
signage, however PMC advised that if people insisted on taking shortcuts, signs wouldnt stop them.

Committee Communication and Aims. A concern was raised that some website enquiries were
not being discussed at committee meetings and were therefore not necessarily minuted and
communicated to all residents. In order to avoid delays in responding to email enquiries, the
committee will conduct some business sharing, reviewing, investigating and responding to more
straightforward queries via email in the same way as it would in a committee meeting. However
this does mean the loss of some transparency and communication to the wider development
population as these reviews and conclusions are not formally minuted. The committee will look at
how it can improve on this going forward.
The committee would like to take this opportunity to reiterate that it exists (as per its Constitution)
To safeguard and promote the interests of residents in the Village on all matters concerning the
amenity of Osprey Village. The committee therefore acts in what it believes to be the best
interests of majority of residents, and seeks advice on issues and potential solutions, from PMC.
Clearly there may be occasions where a decision will not meet with every residents approval, but
the committee always tries to find balance in its decision-making. Any resident wishing to query a
decision made by the committee, is very much encouraged to do so.

The meeting ended at 20:05 hours with the Chair thanking Committee members, PMC and residents for
attending the AGM.

Circulation of Minutes
Committee, PMC and Osprey Village Inverurie (OVI) Website.