In
this month's issue:
(Click on a headline to go directly to the article)
- 'Members' Surgeriesl
- 'Reliable Tradesmen'
- 'Vets' Football
- B&Q Appeal
- RNLI Regatta
- SHRA Fighting Fund
- This Month's Sponsors
To
contact waterlines, write to:
Waterlines
PO Box 124
Eastbourne
BN24 9AW
Or, e-mail
Waterlines
Be
at the Town Hall on 8th August to show your support
The planning applications by Sovereign Harbour Ltd for even more unneeded high-density residential development, on four of the remaining five harbour development sites, will be heard at a special meeting of the Planning Committee on 8th August.
Because of the very high level of interest in these applications, only these applications will be considered at this meeting, which will be held in the Assembly Room at the Town Hall, starting at 4:30pm.
It is very important that as many of you as possible attend the meeting to demonstrate the weight of opposition that exists amongst harbour residents, and to leave the members of the planning committee in no doubt as to where their duty lies.
To avoid problems with town centre parking, the SHRA have employed Eastbourne Coach Tours to provide transport to the Town Hall for the meeting and back to the harbour afterwards.
Two coaches will run a "shuttle service" from the north and south harbours, leaving from the ends of Pacific Drive and Atlantic Drive at 3:00pm, 3:25pm and 3:50pm. It would be helpful if as many as possible take the earlier buses; why not go on the 3:00pm bus and do a little shopping, or have a cup of coffee, before the meeting
The coaches will pick up from all harbour bus stops, before going directly to the Town Hall. If you have special needs, please let us know in advance.
Times of the return journeys will depend on the duration of the meeting.
A message from Nigel Waterson MP
As your local MP, I was happy to add my voice to the opposition to the B&Q application. We won that battle; and at the time I said it should provide a "breathing space" to allow us all to reconsider the fate of the remaining undeveloped sites at the Harbour.
Now we face planning applications for those sites. I have written to oppose them too, and I have had many supportive letters and emails from local residents.
I
am often asked why these sites cannot be devoted to public open space
or for community facilities. The problem lies in the outline planning
permission granted by the borough council back in 1986. Then would have
been the time to insist on "planning gain" from the developers
which could have included just those community facilities which are so
conspicuously lacking now.
Alas, that opportunity was not grasped; and planners are now bound by the permission given in 1986. And subsequent planning decisions have led to the over development which is so apparent now.
I
hope and expect that the current applications will be turned down. And
if they are (and any appeal defeated), I am advised the whole situation
goes back to "square one". In other words, the Council could
then reopen the issue of "planning gain", and go in to bat for
the residents. That is the outcome I would like to see, so we can have
a completed Harbour of which we can all be justly proud.
Nigel
Waterson is right to say that the blanket outline consent that was given
twenty years ago is at the heart of all that has gone wrong on Sovereign
Harbour (see above, but it beggars belief that, in the whole twenty years,
not one administration has had the balls to stand up and challenge Carillion,
or is it that there was just no mileage in it for them?
When John Prescott decided to concrete over the South-East, there was good old Sovereign Harbour to remove the burden from old Eastbourne. What would be 'gross overdevelopment' in Meads or Old Town was 'just the ticket' on the harbour.
When the pressure was on to increase Council Tax revenue, there was good old Sovereign Harbour to provide the injection of cash, without putting too much pressure on the budget.
When the badly designed harbour disrupted the tidal flow of the coastal waters, there was good old Sovereign Harbour, via the Sovereign Harbour Trust, to provide the funding for the remedial work, and the ongoing maintenance of the sea defences.
Although the consent was given twenty years ago, the world has moved on since then and the law has changed. 'Sustainability' and 'Social Responsibility' are now high on the government's agenda. All of their major contractors, Carillion included, are lining up to display their new sustainability and social responsibility policies.
Can it really be true that, whilst the rest of the country has moved on, the residents of Eastbourne are still living in the 1980's, excluded from twenty years of legislative change?
Can it really be true that the residents of Sovereign Harbour must just sit back and take their medicine?
Absolutely not! It is time for a change of attitude by those who were elected to protect our human rights, it is time to get on the front foot and attack, the alternative hasn't worked.
And
as the saying goes, "if you can't change the people, change the
people".
I
am pleased to report some progress with Persimmon regarding the problems
of the weeds and graffiti around the marina walkways. Mr Ian Noscoe, Persimmon's
new customer services manager, seems to have bitten the bullet at last,
and is now working with his contractors to agree and implement a programme
of action. At the time of writing we have started to see some limited
progress and I am hopeful that the problems will soon be put right.
Thanks
to everyone who kept the pressure on the developers. May I respectfully
suggest that we now give Persimmon a little time to put things right.
Please remember, whilst they are the worst offenders, Persimmon is not
the only developer at Sovereign Harbour. It's up to all of us to stay
alert and contact our own developers and management companies whenever
we see problems. Don't let them off the hook!
SHRA receives a number of emails from residents about specific problems with individual developments. Although the SHRA is not able to take on these battles ourselves, it is always useful to hear what's going on. This helps us to build a full picture, and to keep our councillors informed of the big issues that Sovereign Harbour residents are facing.
Unfortunately
the emails we receive often come from people who are not members of SHRA!
Come on folks ... we are fighting your corner wherever we can and membership
is only £10 per household, so if you haven't joined yet, please
give us your support now. The more members we have, the greater our
clout.
.
'Marina
Mums' is a group, set-up by harbour resident, Sam Skull, to provide a
social network for mums and 'mums to be' and their babies, toddlers and
children. Meetings are held on a monthly basis, to create a social network,
and provide an opportunity to get together, to chat, provide mutual support
and to discuss local issues and concerns.
The
next meeting will be in Simply Italian on the Waterfront, on Tuesday
22nd August, starting at 11:00 am.
If you would like to go along, or would be interested in future events,
please contact Sam.
Phone or text: 07949-687996
or, e-mail
Sam
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June was a brilliant turnout for Harbour Friends at our new Yacht Club venue, and we expect the social evening at end July to be equally lively. We're getting very close to 100 members now and, with this in mind, a small group of members has got together to plan our forthcoming social programme. We aim to have at least one social activity each month, plus our regular club night at the Yacht Club on the last Sunday of each month. The programme for the next few months will be available at the next club night on Sunday 27 August. We will also publish forthcoming events in Waterlines and we are setting up our own website with information about Harbour Friends and what's happening. Watch this space!
Hope
to see lots of new faces, and the old ones, on Sunday 27 August from 7pm
upstairs in the Bar at the Yacht Club. Please remember your £6 subs
for those of you who have been before. Look forward to seeing you all.
On a beautiful July Sunday morning 17 of us started out from the Yacht
Club and walked over the 'B&Q' (apologies) land where we found plants
growing in great profusion - beautiful Yellow Spiked Mullein - used commonly
for dry coughs, St. John's Wort - never out of the news for its anti-depressant
properties (but you can't use it if taking any other orthodox medicines)
and vast areas of Goats Rue. The rarest plants we saw were Bee Orchids
and Musk Mallow - no medicinal use but beautiful to look at.
Then we strolled along the caravan park lane passing Burdock and Yellow Dock - good digestive herbs and on to the beach where the predominant plants were, Chamomile - one of natures best relaxants, Wild Carrot - strong diuretic, Poppies but we won't go into that!
All around the harbour is Rosemary, planted, I suspect by the developers because it loves this environment. Rosemary is an excellent digestive aid and circulation herb (but not if you have high blood pressure).
Everyone enjoyed the walk and talk and some of us ended up in the Yacht Club, not forgetting that beer is very herbal if it is made from hops!
I
will conduct another walk in September and meanwhile, if anyone needs
any help with herbal treatment, they can give me a ring on 01323 472604.
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The
inaugural outing of the Sovereign Racing Club, a trip to Brighton Races
on 9th July, was a huge success. Over forty members and their guest travelled
on a Flagship luxury coach to the course and enjoyed a full card of very
exciting races.
But,
if you couldn't go, or didn't book in time, don't worry, the second outing
has already been planned.
On Saturday, 26th August, again travelling by Flagship Coaches, the club
will be off to Goodwood racecourse for the Celebration Mile and some other
high-class races. The cost of this event, including admission to the Gordon
Enclosure, is just £26 per person.
With all that's going on around the harbour, why not take a break and have a day out?
To
book your seat on the Goodwood outing get in touch with Linus Gunning
at 61 Daytona Quay, South Harbour, phone 470757
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If
you want to know more about the astonishing range of native plants appearing
on our shingle beaches, this is your chance! Indeed, if you've walked
along the beach towards Pevensey recently, you might even have recognised
some of your neighbours carrying flags, making notes, and generally looking
rather confused.
What they've been doing is taking part in a survey of vegetated shingle that's being carried out on both sides of the Channel as part of the EC funded "Beaches at Risk" project.
The scheme is being run locally by Dr Patrick Fitzsimons, who rejoices in the title of "Interreg Biodiversity Officer" at the East Sussex County Council in Lewes. Patrick is looking for more volunteers - and will happily provide training to help you both recognise the plants, and master the survey techniques.
You
can get in touch by phone on 01273-482015, or e-mail
Patrick
or write to him at:
T
& E, County Hall,
St Anne's Crescent,
Lewes,
East Sussex, BN7 1UE.
Flags
provided; bring your own sun-hat.
Volunteers & Sea-kale
Former harbour resident and ex-SHRA Deputy Chairman, Brian Dennis, has
been appointed as the new manager of Eastbourne United A.F.C. The club,
which plays in the premier division of the Sussex County League, also
runs a reserve team and under 18 team. There are also six boys teams,
age groups Under 10, under 11, under 12, under 14, and under 16, There
is also an under 13 girls team.
The coaching staff includes two harbour residents, assistant manager and coach, Steve Latuske, and goalkeeping coach, Roger Firman. Roger is also involved with the reserve team and the under 18 team.
The football club are always looking for new players, at all levels so, if you fancy playing for your local club in any of the above teams contact Brian on 01323-642979 or 07952-128159.
The club are always looking for new supporters and people who would like to get involved with their local team. Any individual or company who would be interested in sponsoring the club in any way, whether by ground advertising or in the programme, or by sponsoring a players kit or sponsoring a home match, again contact Brian.
The football club is also very interested having the ground sponsored, so that in future it could be called " The Sovereign Harbour Oval" or "The Tesco Oval" for example.
So, if you are new to the harbour, or been here for some time and want to get back into watching or playing football go along to the "OVAL" where you will get a warm reception also say hello to Brian.
Forthcoming home games, 5th August, Ash United, 7th August, Hastings United 3pm kick-off.
On 13th August the Eastbourne United Veterans Team is taking on an Arsenal ex-professional and 'celebs' team in a charity match in aid of the "CRY" charity, raising awareness of Cardiac Risk in the Young. Admission is £4 for Adults, £2 for kids, or a family ticket for 5 at £10.
The first team start the new season on 12th August, see local press for location, home or awav.
Support your local team!
Members' surgeries.
Don't forget the monthly members' surgeries at Simply Italian on the
Waterfront.
Future Surgeries from 10:30 to 11:30 on Saturday,
-
5th August, 2006
- 2nd September, 2006
The
tradesmen on the list below have been recommended by our members. Although
we are happy to publish the names, the SHRA is unable to endorse the
recommendations and would urge members to make their own checks.
We would appreciate your comments, good or bad, on the service you receive
or, if you feel you would like to add a service to the list, please
write to us at:
Waterlines
PO Box 124
Eastbourne
BN24 9AW
Or, e-mail
Waterlines
For
a complete list, go to the 'Tradesmen' page on this website
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'Vets' Football
Harbour
resident Frank Milmoe, is starting up a Sovereign Harbour 'veterans'
(35 plus) football team to play friendly matches on Sunday mornings.
Following the article in the July issue of Waterlines, Frank had a very
encouraging response. However, he needs a few more players to turn
his idea into reality.
Anybody interested should e-mail Frank or, if you don't have e-mail, drop a note to:
Waterlines
PO Box 124
Eastbourne BN24 9AW
We
will pass your details on to Frank.
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B&Q
Appeal
As
reported in the last issue of Waterlines, the appeal by Sovereign Harbour
to build a B&Q warehouse in Sovereign Harbour has been accepted
by the Planning Inspectorate.
The deadline for objections has now passed and we can only wait for the Planning Inspectorate to set a date for the Public Enquiry.
The
SHRA has been accepted as a 'Rule 6 party', which gives us the same
status at the Enquiry as the appellant and the Borough Council.
The RNLI will be holding their regatta, at Sovereign Harbour, over the three days of the August Bank Holiday weekend. For a full list of the programmes visit the 'News' or 'Calendar' pages of this website.
Tickets
for the evening events (£5.00 for adults, £3.50 for children)
can be purchased from the RNLI office or the Harbour Office.
As reported in the July issue of Waterlines, the SHRA has launched a 'Fighting Fund' to help finance any possible legal assistance that might be required.
As yet, the amount of effort required to prepare for the B&Q appeal and the 'Five Sites' planning applications has prevented any serious fund raising efforts, but that will change.
September
should provide some relief, provided that the Planning Inspectorate
don't bring the B&Q appeal too far forward, and we will be looking
to stage some events which, we hope, will also be an opportunity to
have some fun for a change. Look out for announcements in the September
issue of Waterlines, and on the website.
If you have any fund-raising ideas, or would like to help with the events,
please get in touch.
Of course, you don't have to wait until September, any contributions will be gratefully received (cheques only please, made payable to SHRA). In fact, the fund has already got off to a flying start thanks to some very generous donations.
All money collected will be 'ring-fenced' and all contributions will be logged.
Send your donations and ideas to:
SHRA
PO Box 124
Eastbourne BN24 9AW
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Our thanks to our sponsors, who's generosity has again allowed us to produced this newsletter at almost no cost to our members.
To our regular sponsors,
Temple
Bird,
Waterfront Solicitors
and our repeat sponsor,
Mulbury
Hamilton
Financial Advisors
and our new Sponsor for August,
Di
Leito's
Coffee Lounge
Waterlines, the newsletter of the Sovereign Harbour Residents Association, is delivered free to every residential property on Sovereign Harbour. We are only able to do this because we have a dedicated group of people who give up their time to distribute the newsletters and a number of sponsors who contribute cash to help us with the cost of production.
Over the past year, we have been very fortunate to have had the help of several local businesses, and we are very grateful for this. However, we produce Waterlines on a monthly basis, and we need four sponsors every month in order to avoid serious depletion of our funds, so we are always looking for new sponsors.
Apart from our sincere gratitude, our sponsors get an advertisement, similar to those above, in the current issue, and a permanent listing on the home page of our website, with a link to their website.
To become an SHRA sponsor,
e-mail Waterlines
or call us on: 07770-621368