Letters - Bexhill Observer

Can he explain?

SO Labour councillor Maurice Watson thinks Next Wave “is money well spent” and “is very, very good”. He will have to hope his constituents in Sidley agree with him, or his time as a concillor could be of short duration. Perhaps he should be one of the councillors at the planned public meeting preaching to the unconverted like myself, so he can explain exactly what is good about it. The number of Conservative councillors who have remained silent on this issue should give him pause for thought!

Total cost of shelters

YOUR readers may remember that when the competition to design the new shelters for the West Parade promenade was announced in June 2009, the Design Competition Brief was adamant that:

Scrutiny undervalued

Re Services Overview & Scrutiny Committee meeting 6th February 2012

Just take them down

I HAVE just found out the cost of these so-called shelters along the West Parade. They would not shelter a horse in a field. At £60,000 each they are disgusting, unattractive and a blot on the seafront of what used to be a lovely walk. The council would have done better if they had bought four of Skinners’ summer houses for £3,000 each, or a bus shelter. Just take those eyesores down. The seafront would look nicer without any.

We give up on system

RE ‘Desperate’ Need For Homes Is Highlighted (Bexhill Observer February 10): I’m getting in touch with you as you asked at the end of the article: “What do you think?”

Mind your spelling...

IN my youth I found that there was one noticeable thing when you dictated your address over the phone for a posting to your house.

Hooray for councilllors

Hooray for the local Bexhill councillors who spoke up at last week’s Overview and Scrutiny Committee at the Town Hall. They were discussing a report on the Next Wave project and its faults. They spoke of the arrogance of officers in the face of public concern and the poor quality of some workmanship. Cllr Paul Lendon stated that public complaints about the scheme had been the main issue at the last election. He was supported by Cllrs Earl, Lea, Williams, Prochak and others, and a vote was carried for a meeting over these issues.

Local charity reboots

ON behalf of Homecall I would like to thank Bexhill Lions Club for enabling our charity to purchase a new laptop computer.

Joy of brass music

CONGRATULATIONS to the performing arts department at Bexhill High School, and staff Katy de Braux and Phil Baxter, for organising a wonderful Bold as Brass event on Saturday February 4.

Inspirational evening

I HAVE just returned from an excellent evening of entertainment at Bexhill High School.

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Another slam dunk?

HERE comes another slam dunk - this time in Little Common (proposal for 275 new homes). After attending the exhibition it would appear that this company had already approached all the varies public bodies prior to the exhibition, and if they have already purchased the land, I doubt that they will give up with this proposed development regardless of what objections the local residents make.

Digital changeover

I NOTED with interest last week’s editorial in the Bexhill Observer relating to the digital changeover that is taking place in Bexhill at the end of May this year. Homecall have arranged for a representative from Action in Rural Sussex to give a talk to their clients and volunteers in order that they will all be ‘digital aware’ at the end of May. Although the talk will be aimed at those with a visual impairment nevertheless the general principle, with regards to the digital changes that will take place are the same for everyone with a television set living in the Bexhill area.

New face at Barby’s

I HAVE a new manageress starting at the shop in St Leonards Road from February 13. Her name is Kim, so I would love people to go in and say hello and make her feel welcome. We will be open every day from 9.30-4pm, and there will be no more closing on Wednesdays and Friday afternoons.

Campaign for EU referendum

I HAVE seen that the People’s Pledge, a new all-party campaign for a referendum on EU membership, will be holding referendums in individual constituencies where the local MP has voted against giving a direct say to who governs Britain. The Scottish people will soon have the chance to vote on whether or not they wish to remain within the UK, but the British people collectively are to be denied a vote on whether ultimate power over our lives should reside in Brussels or Westminster.

Bexhill Museum thanks volunteers for giving up their time

ON BEHALF of my fellow directors I would like to take this opportunity to thank the 80 plus volunteers who last Saturday attended Bexhill Museum’s Volunteers’ Day; a special event to thank every one of our volunteers for their continuing contributions, to unveil new exhibitions and to introduce our plans for 2012.

Horrified by air gun report

ALONG with your other readers, I was horrified and angered to read of the cat targeted by air gun yobs.

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60th birthday choral concert

BEXHILL Choral Society (BCS) celebrates its Diamond Jubilee this season, and due to a grant from Rother District Council, some generous donations from within the society, and some fundraising events, we are putting on a 60th Birthday Gala Performance of Great Choral Classics in the De La Warr Pavilion on Saturday May 12 at 7.30pm,

Who’s in charge here?

I WOULD like to know if a project as costly as the Colonnade is overseen by anyone who takes responsibility.

Poem dedicated to town’s mayoress

TOGETHER

Gritting woes

DESPITE problems last winter with buses slithering all over the Old Town stretch of De La Warr Road, East Sussex highways department did not seemed to have twigged that this is part of the main Hastings/Eastbourne bus route.

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Equal rights for all

READING an article in The Resident recently, made me realise, Pebsham residents must indeed count themselves as fortunate to have Charlie Clark as their councillor. His efforts to protect and help all needy members in his ward, whatever their age, are to be applauded.

Totally irresponsible

THE proposal for Little Common by the Marchfield Group is totally irresponsible, and has already affected property prices in various parts of the village.

Parking charges

RE: Bexhill Observer February 3 page seven:

Thank you from charity

THROUGH your paper I would like to thank the people of Bexhill for more than £1,000 that has been raised for Macmillan Cancer Support in memory of John Burke,, who sadly died in December 2011.

Nightly disturbances

I AM writing in response to a recent letter by a Bexhill Observer reader. I am a neighbour of the London Road hostel run by Sanctuary Housing for young homeless people. I have been subjected to almost nightly disturbances including shouting, swearing, smashing of bottles, foul language, fighting and use of the road works as missiles. There can sometimes be as many as 15 young people clustering in and around the hostel.This behaviour often goes on until the wee small hours, sometimes as late as 5am. I would like to ask who is responsible for these young people?

Dormice puzzle

I CAN’T be the only reader who was puzzled by your report last week that the proposed Bexhill Hastings Link Road is to be provided with “dedicated tunnels for dormice”. After all, dormice normally move about only from tree to tree, seldom descending to ground level (except when hibernating) and are most unlikely ever to go underground. On making enquiries about this, I find that in places where dormouse populations have become isolated as a result of tree felling (their habitats consequently becoming fragmented) aerial “tunnels” have sometimes been constructed to enable them to negotiate gaps of a few metres between trees. Perhaps it is “tunnels” of this sort that the promoters of the scheme have in mind? If so, the proposed “tunnels” would need to be much longer than those I’ve mentioned, hardly attractive to dormice, still less when the roar and dazzling lights of traffic are passing to and fro below them. Do the promoters seriously think that this dubious concession to wildlife would do anything at all to reduce the severe environmental impact of the proposed new road? It’s not surprising that this bizarre measure was greeted with laughter when announced in the House of Commons.

Thank you for kindness

I AM hoping that by writing to you I can convey my gratitude to everybody within the town for their kind words, support and generous donations in light of the tragic death of my husband, Anthony Willard.

Outstanding care

THROUGH your newspaper may we say a heartfelt thank you to Doctor Dixon, our district nurses and staff from Care at Home, Little Common, for their outstanding care for my husband, Colin, during his long illness.

Sixty glorious years

QUEEN Elizabeth II’s attaining of 60 years on the throne cannot pass without comment, and so I have written the following poem, Sixty Glorious Years:

Parking charges rise?

BEXHILL residents should know that on Monday, February 6, Rother District Council’s Services Overview and Scrutiny Committee will consider a recommendation that car parking charges be increased and the hours of operation extended.

An identical figure

IN your newspaper January 20 you published an item declaring that the number of visitors to the Andy Warhol Exhibition had reached 100,000. An identical figure was claimed in an earlier copy of your newspaper to be the number of visitors attending the Anthony Gormley Exhibition.

Thumbs up for market

WE welcome the planned return of Bexhill Farmers’ Market. The open air market could bring an additional dimension to the shopping offer currently available in the town; extending the range of locally produced goods and complementing the independent shops that are so distinctive of Bexhill town centre.

Look at the evidence

I WOULD like to reply to Derek Stocker’s letter of January 20 and thank him for his remarks.

Out of hours response

OVER the Christmas holiday period, South East Health, the local provider in Hastings and Rother of out-of-hours services made my mother, who lives in Hastings wait for more than 10 hours to provide a home visit. Neither my parents nor I are complaining about the six-hour wait originally predicted - we understand they were busy so six hours seems reasonable. However as the day went on with no contact from the company her anxiety greatly increased.

Well done Murray Ward

MY mother-in-law just spent three weeks in Murray Ward at the Conquest, where she died.

Road AND rail needed

I AM afraid that Richard Tyler and Derrick Coffee (Letters, January 27) each substantially miss the point in regard to both public transport and regeneration, by framing these as an either/or scenario. This area is crying out for both rail AND road improvements, while regeneration must strike a balance between town centre redevelopment and new light industrial and residential development on the outskirts. For the area to have an integrated public transport system, this means an expanded and frequent bus network across both Hastings and Bexhill to augment the limited rail network.

Celebrating in style

WELL done to David Woolf on behalf of Manor Barn Ltd for sponsoring the local Diamond Jubilee website (Observer, January 27). For Queen Victoria’s Diamond Jubilee the town opened the Institute in Station Road and the Congregationalist hall and school in Victoria Road was also dedicated to her. From 1887 to the present day both buildings have served our community well. Although similar building projects now would probably be considered over-ambitious, the agreement to create the Diamond Jubilee Walk through the Metropole Lawns is a very good start for 2012. But may I suggest another way in which our town could celebrate her majesty’s achievement? Since its inception in 1902 only 14 people have been honoured with the freedom of Bexhill. That the number should still be so small speaks volumes for their individual achievements but, to the best of my knowledge, their names and dates are not recorded in any public place within the town. Could we not create a Diamond Jubilee wall or monument for such a purpose? Could I also float the idea that the walls or floor of the observation platform above the rowing club’s new headquarters might be a suitable site. There is also space for a free-standing monument if that was considered more suitable. The fact that the last four recipients of the town’s highest honour belong to the Rowing Club adds, I believe, weight to my suggestion.

Beware of pickpockets

MASSIVE thanks to our newspaper this week for highlighting the very worrying spate of ‘pickpockets’ in our lovely town.

Thanks for generosity

ON behalf of the President and Bexhill Rotary Club, I would like to thank everybody who donated to our Christmas collections in December. Your generosity really is appreciated particularly in these trying financial times.

Ignoring spiritual side

MR Martin-Royle appears to be of nervous disposition so let me reassure him. There will not be a phalanx of Christians attempting to stone him to death for working on a Sunday. The Old Testament is an ancient tome written for a different time and place. That is not to say that we should ignore it because it is a unique piece of history which describes many changes to society over time. It is also an excellent basis for moral debate. Unfortunately, like the Qu’ran, it suffers from being manipulated and treated literally by some who do so for their own personal reasons. Mr Martin-Royle suggests that we should ignore it all because some of it is no longer factually relevant. There are many laws on statute which are now irrelevant and slowly being repealed. Does this mean that I should ignore all laws?

Expensive beach huts

I HAVE been notified that the cost for my beach hut for the East Parade this year is now £250. This is almost a 10 per cent increase from previously. Every year the rental goes up and the service does not.

Excellent bus drivers

WITH regard to the Observer two weeks ago and the letter from Paul Atkinson about the miserable bus drivers.

Sympathy over dog

HAVING read the Bexhill Observer and the recent letter from Liz and John Sweetener regarding the passing of their dog, Gunner, heartfelt sympathy to you both.

Thanks for my sight

THESE immense thanks are long overdue. The fact is now I can drive without glasses, watch television and do all manner of things that the average person takes for granted. I did!

Use for ‘those’ balls

AT last a useful and media worthy way can be found of ridding Bexhill’s Devonshire Square of the appalling “Gubby’s Balls” which have visually defaced the space for several years, removed a useful parking facility in the town centre shopping area, and created an arid and unappealing wasteland.

Efficient Bexhill

I RECENTLY went to Bexhill and I was extremely impressed by the improvements made to the seafront: Western Promenade, gardens, area around the De la Warr Pavilion.

Scruffy roundabout

SURELY it is time for the roundabout at Ravenside to be made an attractive feature instead of the scruffy weed-filled disgrace it has been for many years?

Diamond Jubilee events

ARE clubs, societies and businesses in Bexhill planning something for the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee?

Didn’t they do well?

EVERY year my family so much enjoy All Saints Church’s pantomime. This year it was Dick Whittington... with all the hisses, boos and its-behind-you, wonderful costumes and makeup, especially Dolly Dumplings - what a Lady she was - and followed by a scrumptious home-made tea and raffle. Congratulations to all the cast.

Professional care

ALL too often these days, one reads in the National Press of the poor quality of medical service provided in NHS hospitals, particularly for older patients. Having just spent five days in the James Ward at the Conquest Hospital, I can definitely say that such strictures do not apply there. To start with, I was still explaining my symptons (a slight discomfort in my chest) to the 999 receptionist, when the ambulance arrived outside my house. Two efficient paramedics then gave me an initial test, and decided to drive me to the A&E department of the Conquest Hospital. Here, within 30 minutes, I was seen seen by three doctors.

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