90 Shipston Road
Stratford-upon-Avon
Warwickshire
CV37 7LR
Tel: (01789) 294443
Email:
20 March 2004

Dear Chalet Owner

TPHHOA Annual General Meeting: 11 April 2004

If you are no longer a chalet owner, please let me know and I’ll have your details removed from our database. The easiest way to contact me is via the email address above.

The next Annual General Meeting of the Trewent Park Holiday Home Owners Association will be held at the LampheyCourtHotel at 10.00 am on 11 April 2004.

The agenda for the meeting is attached and you will notice that it includes an item related the recent decision of the site owner to charge for refuse management on the site. It also includes a matter which is yet to be raised by the site owner relating to the replacement of the TV aerial infrastructure. Though this is yet to be sorted out, it is also likely that this will result in additional charges having to be met by chalet owners.

I have also attached some notes regarding the refuse issue which may help inform the debate. Minutes of the last meeting can be found on our website ( though a few copies will be available at the meeting.

We currently need a volunteer to take on the role of Secretary and I think Anthony would appreciate an offer from someone willing to take on the role of Treasurer. I will be looking for volunteers at the meeting, and if I get none, you could be looking for a new chairman too!

In the light of the above and the developing situation on the site, I would urge all chalet owners to attend. If you are not yet a member, now would be a good time to join – it’s only £10 per year.

Regards

Jerry Gould

Chairman

TREWENT PARK HOLIDAY HOME OWNERS ASSOCIATION

ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING

LAMPHEYCOURTHOTEL

10.00 am11 April 2004

AGENDA

  1. Welcome by Chairman(Chair)
  2. Apologies (Chair)
  3. Minutes of meeting of 26October 2003(Chair) – available on the website ( though a few copies will be available at the meeting for those without web access.
  4. Matters arising (Chair)
  5. Election of Secretary (Chair)
  6. Treasurer’s report (Treasurer)
  7. Location and Timing of Future Meetings (Chair)
  8. The Web Site (
  9. Refuse collection and disposal (Chair)
  10. Sale of the site (Chair)
  11. TV Aerial provisions and maintenance (Chair)
  12. Site maintenance issues (Chair)
  13. Proposed changes to Memorandum and Articles (Chair) – available on website
  14. Any other business(Chair)
  15. Date of next meeting (Chair)

N.B. If you speak at the meeting, please start by stating your name and chalet number.

New / potential new members and those who owe fees for this year – please complete the attached and hand to Anthony with your annual fee (£10) at the meeting.

ANNUAL MEMBERSHIP FEE (Due annually in January)

Will any new membersand those who have not paid this year, please complete the following slip prior to the meeting, and attach their £10 annual membership fee and hand both to the Treasurer at the start of the meeting.

Holiday Chalet No.:______Cheque No.______

Name:______

Home Address:______

______

Telephone No. (Home):______Telephone No. (Work)______

Telephone No. (Mobile):______Email address:______

Refuse Issue

Letter from Roger Hunt regarding the future management of refuse on the site

The facts as I see them are (after consulting a number of experts and the Council):

1) Roger and chalet owners both have obligations under the lease and neither partyhas any obligation to do anything that they are not obliged to do not even Roger whether he a makes a large profit or a loss for that matter from the site fees.

2) The lease is badly written and has a number of areas of ambiguity, but there is nothing that appears to make it an obligation on Roger to do more than provide a refuse shed. The phrase "facilities for the disposal of refuse" could mean anything or nothing, but doesn't appear to increase his obligations in any substantial way.

3) If we want to fight the issue in the courts, we first need the approval of a majority of paid up members and second a lot more money than we have in the bank.

4) Local authorities are obliged in law to collect "domestic" refuse free of charge and are "not permitted" to collect trade refuse for free. Anyone who is paying business rates (NNDR) has made a decision that they are occupying a premises as a trader and must in law pay for their refuse to be collected.

5) Those of us who are paying normal domestic Council Tax (£425 from April after the 1 month reduction) are paying more than those paying business rates (max. £271 but currently reduced by at least 50%). So until now we have"in effect" been subsidising the costs of those paying business rates who have not actually been paying for their refuse collection. In fact, Roger has been paying the trade collection costs of the chalet owners who are paying business rates because the Council has only been prepared to pick up the refuse from the site if Roger uses special white sacks which the Council provides at a charge which reflects the cost of collecting mixed refuse (domestic and trade) from the site. Rogers cost’s are probably around £2,500 at the moment (incl. sacks at £720 plus labour and incidentals)

6) Whilst the Council has refuse freighters that can uplift large Eurobins, they are not permitted (by Council policy) to collect from more than one point on the site (this should be the highway but they have been prepared to accept the refuse shed location) and can only collect once per week. Roger is therefore correct in his assertion that Biffa is the only practical supplier of the service that he is proposing. Furthermore, the Council's uplift price per binper empty is £7.16 with a 13p per day rental for the bins, so even if they could undertake the service, it would cost more.

7) Over the next 3 years Landfill Tax is due to increase from £35 per tonne to £70 per tonne and the taxis reflected in the Biffa (and Council) collection price, so the cost will rise more quickly than RPI in the future.

8) We appear to have no right to see Roger’s accounts – we have legal opinion on file to support this view. In any event Roger’s entitled to make as much money as he can out of the site as long as he meets his obligation. The key issue is whether he is meeting his “legal” obligations.

9) We could refuse to pay Roger, but then what? Roger isn't going to back down. Why should he. He hasn't got anything to loose.

Lot's to think about. And, by the way we have no Treasurer, no Secretary and I’m beginning to wonder why I bother.

Jerry