Gale's View: Blacksole Bridge

Blacksole Bridge has become an accident waiting to happen.  That is not only my view, it is a concern shared by the Bay's three County Councillors, David Hirst, Jean Law and Alan Marsh, and also by many of the City Councillors representing the Town.

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Herne Bay councillor charged with corruption

Canterbury city councillor Roger Matthews has been charged with corruption.  The 57-year-old, who represents Greenhill and Eddington ward in Herne Bay, has also been suspended from the Liberal Democrat Group following the shock news.  He is due to appear before magistrates on Thursday, March 26 alongside Herne Bay Golf Club owner Julian Brealy. Matthews said he plans to plead not guilty and will "have his day before judge and jury" at crown court. 

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Muse. Um.

click it to big it

Here’s a very British gem: the Herne Bay Museum (link).

Fearless and fervent, my woman and I swarmed into the Museum to see what we could find out about The Downs of yesteryear. The place is a treasure trove! If you haven’t been recently, pop in and saunter around. From fossil teeth to bouncing bombs, they’ve got all sorts of goodies on permanent display. There are also temporary exhibitions...

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A golden opportunity missed

Disappointing. Unsurprising. Recoverable. CCC voted down the opportunity to flaunt themselves as 21st century cyber-starlets (see Radio Sausage). The world is a marginally less glitzy place as a result. More to the point, they voted down the opportunity to let their constituents see them in action.

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Mappa Monday

Dear Reader, give yourself a treat and check out this map. It is jam-packed with facts and fun.

Just the other day, I quizzed CCC about the Herne Bay Conservation Area. I had heard people (well, estate agents) talking about it, but had no clear idea of where exactly it was. Quick as a flash One-Of-Those-Planning-People came back with a couple of great links. One of them links to this excellent map of the Canterbury District Local Plan.

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Radio Sausage

A few ounces of reconstituted tree, shaped into a local freesheet, thump to the floor. The crisp metal edge of the letterbox snaps back into place, briefly trapping a small fleshy obstruction. The pain-numbed child continues its paper round.

This is what passes for effective communication in 21st century Kent.

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Gale's attitude problem

Saturday: a beautiful frosty, sunny winter's morning in Herne Bay, and time to meet our MP. My fine & beloved woman and I strode up to the dodgy automatic doors of the Herne Bay Council offices and pried our way in.

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Gale's View: Sports Hall Relocation

Proposals to re-locate the Sports Facilities and Roller Hockey Arena from the Pier to Herne Bay High School and other fitness and health facilities to the Heron Swimming Pool complex have been taken in isolation and do not reflect the wider needs of the approaching two-thirds of the population of the City district resident on the coastal strip.

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Obvious need for a safe solution

Canterbury City Council Development Brief for Land West of Mill Lane, 16th February 2006, says:

Consideration should also be given to improvements at the Blacksole Bridge over the railway to assist pedestrians and cyclists using this route, it is noted, however, that provision of a pedestrian bridge is a requirement of Blacksole Farm development. Improvements to the bus shelter in Canterbury Road and provision of a bus shelter in Margate Road should also be addressed.

It was clear enough then. In fact, it's been obvious to anyone who has looked closely at a map (or walked across Blacksole Bridge) that a busy road with blind bends and no pavements needs sorting out.

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Visit www.SaveHillborough.info for more

Blacksole Bridge: Obvious in 2004

The road is particularly hazardous for pedestrians crossing Blacksole Bridge to the North East of the site.  Blacksole Bridge does not have pavements but is the only means of pedestrian access over the railway line from the site to Herne Bay and local facilities and is currently well used by Broomfield residents via the Thanet Way underpass.

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