Full Minutes of Community Council Meetings are posted on the Community Council Page once they have been approved and can then be viewed or downloaded.  In the meantime, a summary of main points or decisions taken in recent meetings follow:

• PC Scott McDowall currently on Paternity Leave:  Congratulations!
• 1x Shoplifting – Detected.
• 1x DUI
• ASB generally down;
• Overall crime down 20% over the past year.
• Drugs dog had been in the village on 29 January, but nothing found.
• Sgt Emma Dodds transferring to Newton Stewart.
• Bollard, previously referred to, seems to have been looked at by DG First, but not repaired.  Cllr JD will chase up.
• Dog fouling:  Enforcement Officer to visit, also bags to be supplied.  Problem thought to be getting worse, on the whole, in village, not helped by a shortage of bags at Library in last few weeks.  Cllr JD confirmed D&GC have taken decision to supply bags but not dedicated bins;  ordinary bins can be used.  This highlighted a shortage of bins of any sort.  Cllrs agreed to look further in to this.
• NHS situation report, including Public Meeting with Helen Tucker, the independent consultant who has been engaged to look into the whole question.  Cllrs JD and GD (and, by proxy, Cllr JS) remain supportive of the position adopted by Thornhill CC and, indeed, the approximately 60 members of the public from a number of neighbouring communities as well as Thornhill, who attended.
• CC voted on whether we should contribute £3,000 towards the cost of instructing Helen Tucker.  Explained that, upon further CCs voting to contribute, Thornhill’s contribution might ultimately be less than £3,000.  Passed unanimously by all CC Members present and voting;  one abstention.
• Mrs Adam’s Bequest/Possible acquisition of Duke William Building:  Next steps would appear to be preparation of a Business Plan.  Content of this depends on the price at which the building could be obtained from D&GC.  Gavin Stevenson has apparently ruled out a nominal £1, but has not given an indication of what the figure might be.  Cllrs to revert to Gavin Stevenson to try to get a clearer approximation of what figure would be sought.
• What is needed, however, is a group, not necessarily of CC Members, though CC should have a presence on such a body, of user groups (Scouts, Junior footballers, Scottish Country Dancers, etc), who will have a genuine, and continuing, interest in this facility, who will take the development, and subsequent management, forward.
• Important, also, to work in co-operation with existing Community Centre, so that the facilities complement each other, and do not compete.
• Public Meeting on this (poss. with guest group from Douglas (Lanarkshire), who have recently opened similar facility) and that interested parties should come forward and commit to taking this on;  failing which monies would have to be deposited until the time when such a group could be identified.
• Community Centre Playpark upgrade:  completed grant application form for this.  £9,995 sought.  Estimates obtained.
• Buccleuch Estates have submitted Planning Application for tree pollarding, pruning etc in Drumlanrig Street;  E&W Morton Streets.  Scheduled to start about 16 March.  Some advance notification of this already on CC board and on Website.
• CC’s objections to Auction Mart application submitted as previously discussed.
• Gala:  All proceeding according to plan;  ‘Strictly’ event in the next week:  has been sold out from an early stage.
• Proposals (at very early stage) for replacing existing CC Noticeboard.  Existing board possibly too small and, although intended only for official CC material, gets used for a number of other things as well.  Maybe no bad thing, but we need extra display capacity.  Consider purchase of a Digital Display System;  basically a TV like device that can be programmed to display a slideshow of notices, pictures, extracts from the Website etc.  Much of the information we put out goes on the Website but that there are still many people in the Community who cannot, or do not want to, access the Internet.  Possible locations under consideration.
• CC had attended meeting re the recent HMIE inspection at WHA.
• Winter Resilience:  Emergency Planning Dept have finally come back to us  with an award of most of the items of WR equipment we had asked for.  Once it arrives and the volunteers have met and sorted out what will be kept where, we can put plan into action and also see about what additional equipment CC might purchase.  There are approx 10-12 volunteers on the books at present.  When more appear, further applications to D&GC can be made.  CC will be keeping a mobile phone to receive enquiries etc and will deploy volunteers as much as possible.  We also need to keep reinforcing the message that we are not offering a clearance service, as such.
• Mrs Jane Bailey co-opted  unanimously as a Member of the Community Council:  and very welcome.
• Day of the Region 2012:  (see Thornhill website, also www.dayoftheregion.com ); another Day of the Region (actually a weekend, 6&7 October) will take place this year. Only Kirkcudbrightshire area participated last year, but LEADER, sponsors, keen to involve other areas of D&G.  Some suggestion from LEADER that Moniaive, Penpont & Sanquhar had expressed interest.  Moniaive known to have discussed at recent CC meeting;  details awaited.  Draft letter to neighbouring CCs, businesses and organisations ready to circulate, inviting interest.
• DONM:  Monday, 19/03/2012