Chairman's Miscellany - TrustNews December 2006
Silverhill The last TrustNews went out before our comments on the Silverhill development were prepared for submission to the City Council. They were subsequently circulated to all members for whom we have an e-mail address and also put on our website; paper copies can be obtained from the Heritage Centre. Whilst the Trust Council continues to support the redevelopment of the area, the height and mass of the submitted plans were considered as over-development of the site and we were particularly concerned about the lack of any tree planting at ground level - particularly along the south side of Friarsgate - and the removal of the trees in Middle Brook Street. Recently we have had meetings with Thornfield Properties and the City Council to discuss these concerns which appear to stem from the radical alteration of the original brief for the site.
Bushfield Down In response to a letter from our President, Sir Peter Ramsbotham, Mr Andreas Whittam Smith, the First Church Commissioner, came to Winchester and visited the site with us in order to listen to our concerns and ideas for managing the area. He agreed to consult his fellow Commissioners and we await the result of the consultation.
Vision for Winchester In October a meeting of the Town Forum (councillors representing the six city wards) discussed a document setting out A Vision for Winchester. The Policy Group of the Trust's Council had made comments on the draft of this document and we were pleased that many of our suggestions have been taken into account. As might be expected there are areas of conflict between aspirations that will have to be resolved in due course but, meanwhile, the document is to be published for public consultation.
Town forum It is becoming increasingly clear that Winchester residents suffer from a considerable democratic deficit when compared with residents in the rest of the district where there are Parish or Town Councils to protect and promote their interests. The Town Forum is supposed to fulfil the role of a Parish Council for Winchester but, although it may be better than nothing at all, it fails far short of being an adequate substitute. The Town Forum has none of the statutory powers of Parish or Town Councils and its members, elected to represent district-wide interests, cannot be as focused on our local issues or have the time for this. There is also the issue of City Councillors having to abstain from comments on local planning applications. Winchester residents already pay a 'parish' charge in addition to the District and County charges, so perhaps we should have more influence on how it is raised and spent. It would be interesting to know your views.
I am most grateful to a new member of the Trust, Nicholas Hirst, for volunteering to help with organising our archives. Rosemary KinnairdSmith has kindly agreed to help him get to grips with the system that she looked after for so long.
The book sale in September raised £350 and we are indebted to Jo Gordon-Watson and her team of helpers. Particular thanks are due to lain Patton for transporting tables for the occasion. We should be glad for more offers to help with this task at the beginning and end of the day. The next book sale will not be until the Spring.
Finally, I would like to thank members for their support and wish you all a very happy Christmas.