LATE last year, I wrote to the Roads Department about the flooding which affected the cemetery and Heritage Centre. They installed an additional drain on North Deeside Road and cleaned the others out, and I was delighted with their prompt response. This month, I have written to them about snow clearance. I pointed out that the only clearing, which seemed to get done (eventually) was that which could be done by machine. Where sand could only be spread with a shovel it was left undone, and some steps and paths became very dangerous.
I also asked for some more sand bins. Again, I got a prompt and helpful letter back. As you will have read in the papers, the Council is carrying out a review of winter maintenance, and I hope vital paths will be given a higher priority rating after this. Less satisfactory has been the Council's response to requests for better signage on Burnside Road and Bucklerburn Road.
A year or two ago, the paper mill stopped taking the Council's waste paper, and some went to landfill. This became widely known, and put some people off collecting their waste paper. The problem did not last long. Unfortunately the Council did not tell us when paper started being processed again. Please keep on recycling as much as you can.
When we get our next heavy snowfall, look upwards! No, not to see how much more snow there will be, or to express dissatisfaction with the heavens, but to assess how effective your insulation is. If the snow on your roof melts quicker than other people's, then you need more loft insulation. There may even be grants for some householders to put this in. Houses with slate roofs lose heat more quickly than tiled ones, and may need more insulation.
Lastly, I would like to talk about communication. If you want to put your views across, it is no good grumbling amongst your friends. You must tell those who can influence decisions. Some time ago I tried the experiment of stopping my surgeries, because people seemed to prefer phoning me to coming along to meet me there. Since then I have had only one complaint. Are the rest of you happy about this? If not, tell me! Similarly, if you are concerned about a planning decision, you must write in to the Council's Planning Department in good time. It is no good grumbling afterwards. And if you did not want the bench removed, you could have told me and the Police. We did gather views indirectly, from shop staff and others, but direct communication is much more reliable. So keep in touch!