The Committee received and considered the report of the Operations and Estates Officer and correspondence from the Rotary Club. The Chair said that members had informally discussed an idea of a memorial for Covid-19 Victims and the volunteers.
Members proceeded to debate a suitable location. The Officers pointed out that the Council would inherit the ongoing maintenance cost of such a memorial. A member commented that she felt that the Committee was talking about two different things – a memorial to those who had lost their lives and a thank you to volunteers. She felt that the two didn’t need to be together and that a memorial bench could happen quite quickly.
There was also some discussion about convening a working party. The Town Clerk advised that as it had been agreed not to have working parties, perhaps a group of councillors could work together and then bring back a proposal to a future meeting.
RECOMENDED:
1. that the report be noted;
2. that the siting for a bench, tree and planting in conjunction with Rotary be delegated to the Operations and Estates Officer to progress;
3. that the Town Council Offers £1,000 match funding to Rotary (bearing in mind the ongoing maintenance costs);
4. that a group of councillors discuss ideas for a tribute to volunteers and bring them back to a future meeting.