"Free" parking for Herne Bay

A free parking scheme could be launched in Herne Bay to compete with out-of-town shopping centres like Westwood Cross. Town boss Chris West wants businesses to refund parking tickets to people who spend £10 or more in their shops.

He hopes to convince at least 20 traders to sign up to the proposal, which he says could be introduced by the spring.

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Pat Butcher bows out of limelight

As her namesake left our TV screens this week, Barnums owner Pat Butcher also said farewell after 30 years in the town. She and husband Mike packed up at the William Street school outfitters for the last time, handing over the reins to Mark Winham and Helen Bennett.

It brings to an end almost 30 years of the couple providing uniforms for children in Herne Bay and the surrounding towns.

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May Lodge to close

The May Lodge Club on Herne Bay seafront will close today (5th Jan) for the last time, the HB Gazette revealed. Owner Dick Eldridge says the building — the headquarters of the town's Royal British Legon branch — will be handed back to its owners tonight.

The decision was made after the club's accountant said it would struggle to survive. Mr Eldridge — who has run the club for 15 years and been a member since 1985 — described it as a "very very sad day".

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Greenhill residents pull together after vandals target cars

Residents of two roads in Greenhill, Herne Bay, have shown their community spirit after vandals went on a paint-spraying rampage. Between 10 and 12 cars parked in Chestnut Drive and Poplar Drive were sprayed with obscenities some time between 10.30pm on Thursday 29 December and 12.30am on Friday 30 December 2011. One car had its nearside front window smashed.

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Japanese invasion strikes Herne Bay

An invasive sea creature known as “marine vomit” is threatening to engulf the Herne Bay coast. Carpet seasquirt – which spreads rapidly and aggressively - has been discovered growing on boulders and reefs in waters surrounding the town.

It is the first time the unsightly species has been seen in the UK outside of harbours and marinas. The seasquirt – believed to be native to Japan – reproduces rapidly and can threaten other marine life, including oysters and mussels.

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Inquiry on village green stops!

The first three days of the Inquiry steadily improved as we found our feet and got better at highlighting the key points in the evidence of each of our witnesses. However, it all came juddering to a halt on Day Four.

We arrived at 9.50am on Thursday to find that Mr Ground was in the loo at the back of the Christchurch North Room. He had fallen prey to some kind of bug (norovirus from an oyster, perhaps?) and was forced to miss work for the first time in 16 years.

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Inquiry on village green starts

An official inquiry into the 'grass roots' fight to make the Herne Bay Downs a protected Village Green started with allegations of council waste and bullying. Canterbury City Council were accused of adding massive legal costs of hiring a barrister to cross examine locals, to the £30,000 they have already spent in legal fees.

Campaigners Ros McIntyre and Phil Rose, who want to keep the green by the prom a much-loved area for dog walkers and blackberry pickers, sat opposite the massed ranks of the council as the inquiry started on Monday. With their initially hesitant questions they bravely stood up to the suited and booted professionals who are being paid by CCC up to £500 a day to take them on. [Correction: it's £850 a day.]

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Council fights bid to turn Downs into Village Green

Canterbury council bosses were this week racking up a huge legal bill battling to keep control of picturesque land in Herne Bay. A five-day public inquiry to stop the Downs being granted Village Green status opened on Monday 28th November, with top London barrister Richard Ground fighting the city council’s corner against local campaigner Phil Rose.

Mr Rose wants the mile-long stretch between the Kings Hall and Bishopstone Glen to be made a Village Green – taking its control out of council hands and protecting it from development. He made the application in September 2009 after plans surfaced to build beach huts on the eastern side of the site.

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Road casualties

Britain has one of the best records in the world for road casualties. However, hundreds still die on the roads every year. In 2010, the police recorded 1,850 deaths, 22,660 people seriously injured and 184,138 who received light injuries.

Using official data recorded by police in Great Britain between 1999 and 2010, the BBC has plotted every road collision in which someone died. In all, 36,371 fatalities are marked on this interactive map.

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The finest public art

For your delectation, ladies and gentlemen, here's the loveliest piece of public art I've seen in a long time. In the middle of the Chicago, a long strip of land near the coast of Lake Michigan was reclaimed - it used to be railway sidings, but was converted into a Millennium Park. (It was finished four years late and over budget, but that's another story.)

Anyway, amongst the many attractions of this welcome green space in the City is this stunning piece of public art. Entitled "Cloud Gate" - but everyone calls it The Bean - it is made of highly polished stainless steel. And it is lovely. I want one in my town. Click the picture for a better look...