LOCAL DEVELOPMENT PLAN
Local Development Plan
Elie & the Royal Burgh of Earlsferry : March 2024
- Designated time restricted parking spaces in front of shops in Elie High Street.
There is a need for 6 (one hour) time restricted parking spaces in front of the shops on the South side of Elie High Street. This would enable accessible parking for all. The lack of parking makes supporting local businesses increasingly difficult for our more mobility challenged neighbours.Parking is obviously more scarce in the busier summer months but is becoming increasingly so at other times e.g. weekends and nice weather bringing out beach visitors and coastal walkers who park for the whole day.
These spaces should be clearly marked as being time restricted. They will play an important part in enabling older and other local residents to access the shops and avoid excessive walking distances. They will be sited alongside the existing disabled space which is available outside the chemist shop.
The restriction would apply between 8.00 - 18.00 during the tourist season, leaving spaces available for overnight parking. The agreement of neighbours and shopkeepers has been sought and obtained.
- Provision of an accessible pavement in Elie High Street.
Currently, cars frequently park in such a way outside the shops on the south side of Elie High St, that the bonnet of the car encroaches onto the pavement, thus restricting access along the pavement.
To assist wheelchair users and others with mobility impairments, posts should be placed on the road by the pavement outside the shops on the south side of Elie High St. to ensure an accessible pavement width for disability scooters and wheelchairs and facilitate access to the shops. They will provide a level of separation between the cars and the pavement.
Posts should have a band applied that tonally and colour contrasts with the environment. This will help vision impaired people avoid obstacles they might walk into or trip over.
The posts will minimise any negative impact caused by the parked vehicles on pedestrian access to the shops.
- Traffic management Plan
A review is required of the Traffic Management System in the villages with a Traffic Management plan developed in collaboration with the Community Council following a walk round of the area. The walk round the villages will enable the identification of the Wynds which are currently in a substandard state and require to be repaired.
The plan should include the introduction of a 20mph speed limit throughout both villages.
National and international studies show that lowering the speed limit from 30mph to 20mph reduces the number of casualties. This is recognised by bodies such as the World Health Organisation and the UN General Assembly recently mandated 20mph as the right speed limit where people and motor vehicles mix.
Reducing speeds to 20mph could result in an average increase of 1 minute per journey, balanced against saving up to 9 lives. 20mph limits also cut unnecessary acceleration and braking and improve traffic flow.
Also, Speed Indicator Display equipment such as the Messagemaker Displays at the entrances to the villages would secure the roads and keep the public safe.
Speeding is a nationwide issue that causes increased accidents, noise pollution, and air pollution. Vehicle Activated Speed signs are popular traffic management solutions in reducing vehicle speeds to create safer and cleaner roads.
Messagemaker Displays offers a wide range of LED road safety signs. In this range there are 3 main types, ideal for Parish Councils, Town Councils, Industrial estates, Car Parks, and more. They can be powered by battery, solar power or 230-volt mains power and will flash up the speed of drivers approaching the village.
There are 2 preferred options which display the speed of the oncoming vehicle:
SPEED INDICATOR DEVICE (SID) – Displays the speed of any oncoming vehicle travelling over the speed limit along with a “SLOW DOWN” message.
SMILEY ACTIVATED MESSAGE (SAM) – Displays the speed of any oncoming vehicle along with a red ‘sad face’ for speeding vehicles, and a green ‘smiley face’ for vehicles travelling within the speed limit.
The villages have been asking for a number of years for this to take place.
Creation of pavements at entrances to Elie
The introduction of a new Gateway at each entrance into Elie with a raised platform which will help reduce the speed of vehicles entering the village. The raised platform at the St Monans end of the village should be put in place to the east of the entrance to the new housing development.
- Woodside Playpark
The local Playpark group which is a sub-group of the Elie and Earlsferry Community Council would like to see new equipment installed at the local playpark in Elie. The intention would be for the playpark group to co-design the play-park area in collaboration with the relevant team at Fife Council and be involved in the decision-making process regarding the most appropriate equipment. However, little progress seems to have been made in relation to this. The new Playpark will benefit all homeowners in the village and holiday makers alike.
- Treatment of disposal and wastewater
Scottish Water has confirmed that there is ‘insufficient capacity in the Elie Septic Tank to service the new housing development’ and stated that ‘a growth project is required to increase the available capacity’. The Community Council would welcome a growth project to increase this capacity to deal with existing pressures on the system and allow for development in the village. The Council would also wish to be provided with information on the growth project in advance of the commencement of building works.
It is noted that provisional terms have already been agreed with developers for both Wadeslea and the Grange and it is anticipated that they will submit Reserved Matters applications with Fife Council later this year.
The Wadeslea development is expected to provide 30 affordable houses split between social rented housing, mid-market rented housing and discounted sale with a 'rural housing burden' attached to the title of the property. More on rural housing burdens below.
The social rented housing will most likely be offered through Kingdom Housing Association and members of the community are encouraged to register their interest directly with Kingdom HA.
The mid-market rented housing and discounted sale houses are to be offered through a new company possibly known as the Elie Affordable Housing Company. The mid-market rents would track the Local Housing Allowance rates which are published annually by the Scottish Government and can be accessed here.
Rural Housing Burdens are a relatively new concept whereby affordable housing is sold at a discount to what the property is worth with a burden on the title of the property ensuring that the property is the purchaser’s principal place of residence, that the property is not let out and cannot be used as a holiday home. The rural housing burden obliges the purchaser and any subsequent purchaser to offer the property back to the Elie Affordable Housing Company at the same discount to what it is worth at the time of any future sale.
Feedback from the community would be gladly received over who should be given priority for the affordable housing? Who should we be trying to attract into our village? Families with young children, existing residents living in inappropriate accommodation, retirees from the local area, those with a family connection to the area but who are perhaps unable to afford a house in the village? We could possibly put together a Local Lettings Initiative to give certain people meeting the criteria priority for the affordable housing. More information on Local Lettings Initiatives can be found here.
To a certain extent who the houses are aimed to provide for will dictate the size of the houses, but feedback is also sought on the split between 2 bed, 3 bed and 4 bed affordable houses.
Angela Anderson:Chair of Elie & Royal Burgh of Earlsferry Community Council
12 March 2024
