Thanet council leader Cllr Rick Everitt has appointed a new Cabinet member to focus solely on parking issues in the district.
Viking ward Labour councillor Kristian Bright has been appointed for the role meaning Thanet council now has seven Cabinet members.
Highways responsibility – including road maintenance – sits with Kent County Council but the district council oversees on-street parking on KCC’s behalf and also manages its own car parks.
Cllr Everitt said: “Parking is a big issue for many residents in Thanet, whether that’s the impact of visitors around the coast, the level of enforcement activity or the condition of some of our car parks. The council is also carrying out a major parking review and significant works are required at Mill Lane in Margate and Leopold Street [Royal Harbour] in Ramsgate.
“Kristian has made a big impression in the year that he has been on the council and I am certain he will be a valuable addition to the cabinet line-up. He will also bring a Broadstairs perspective to the table, and I am looking forward to working more closely with him.”
Cllr Bright said: “We know that residential areas, particularly those nearest our beaches, have often been negatively impacted by inconsiderate parking so my aim is to work with officers on a joined-up approach, which might involve increased enforcement, better signage and improved alternative transport options.
“Outside of seasonal issues, I will be looking at how we can improve safety and traffic flow in our town centres by maximising the convenience and use of our off- and on-street car parking assets. I will also explore how we can work more effectively alongside Kent County Council via the Joint Transportation Board.”
Parking was previously part of the “neighbourhoods” cabinet portfolio, which is held by Cliftonville West Labour councillor Heather Keen. It includes community safety, the youth council, multi-agency and regulatory services, cemeteries and the crematorium. The portfolio will now be renamed “community”.
Cllr Everitt said: “By removing parking from Heather’s portfolio, I intend that she will be able to help the council to build on the significant work we already do to support the more disadvantaged members of our community. I know she is passionate about these issues.
“This cuts across a number of portfolios and includes things like benefit take-up, housing and energy-saving initiatives, but I believe there is more we can do with additional focus and that this is one of the differences having a Labour-controlled council should make.
“A council can have up to ten cabinet members in total, but we believe seven is an appropriate number for Thanet.”
However, Thanet Greens believe the remit for the new role is too restricted.
Thanet Green Group spokesperson Cllr Tricia Austin said: “We wish Cllr Bright well as a Cabinet member, but are concerned about the limited nature of his new role. Our group proposed broadening its remit to deal not just with parking in isolation but with travel and transport generally across the Isle – but sadly Cabinet did not take this on board.
“In our view, the new Cabinet role should crucially address road safety, but also encompass public transport and Active Travel, working with KCC, as well as parking, including the vexed issue of pavement parking that causes so much distress and inconvenience.
“An expanded role of this kind could have helped address several related issues that directly affect residents, as well as making Thanet more welcoming for visitors. Trying to tackle one aspect without considering the rest seems to us short- sighted and simplistic.”
The additional Cabinet post will mean more funding is needed for the councillor allowance scheme.
A report to councillors says: “Democratic Services have been informed by the Leader of the Council that he will be making Cllr K Bright a Cabinet member with a portfolio of Parking from the date of the Annual meeting of Council.
“Currently there are only four Cabinet Portfolio Holder special responsibility allowances (SRA). In the event that Council agrees to the additional allowances, then the allowances scheme would need to be amended to increase the number of Cabinet Portfolio Holder SRAs and consequently the number of opposition spokespersons both by one.
“An additional Cabinet Portfolio SRA is £9,306 and an opposition spokesperson SRA is £3,278.
“Adding these amounts to the total means the allowances scheme would increase by £12,584 taking the total cost to £448,019.”
An alternative would be to combine the current four Cabinet Portfolio Holder SRA’s and divide that total by five, giving a lower amount of £7,445 each. The same calculation for the opposition spokesperson’s roles would give an SRA of £2,620.
However, the report, which will be discussed at a council meeting tomorrow, does not recommend lowering the rates.
