Off into the unknown

Tonight we held the June meeting of the Town Council, it lasted an incredible four hours.

The meeting was moved to Paul's Street rooms as Mendip Facilities were not available although booked.

The Town Council have agreed to spend £15K on a feasibility study on a Civic Centre? Community Hub? a community thingy or somemit? you know? No written report to outline current provision it's strengths and weaknesses, no justification of the aims and objectives of the grand plan, still they passed it going out to tender on a feasibility study,presumably someone knows what they want feasibility on, we await developments.

I was clear, I wanted to survey on what community space is available, the quality of that space, the cost of that community space and the occupancy of that space. No report has been submitted on that basis.

I said what was the aims of objectives of the feasibility study, what do we the community space to do? Whom is it to be delivered for, yes a verbal list was produced, but how does that fit in with the social and economic needs of this Town.

Why was I as a Town Councillor treated so poorly that these two points on type of accommodation and the aims and objectives of the feasibility not presented in a written report?

Still the Town Council will be spending £15K of the tax payers money this equates to about £5 on tax, yet complain when I used my casting vote to raise tax by £1.25 a year to fund additional grass cuts across the Town and weed spraying to the Town Centre.

I note one Conservative councillor suggested that Tadley acres should get better treatment to the rest of the Town, what a cheek!

The Town Council is to host PACT meeting (this a public meeting to allow public to raise it concerns of public disorder, crime and problems within the community)in the public forum, I have had experience in chairing PACT and understand the resource required this is why this is a poor idea, largely the town council without resources to support peoples complaints, we know that the Police and principled Councils making cuts, why should a small Town Council want to take responsibility for other better funded organisations, the trouble with this plan is that when a big difficult issue arises and needs extra finance and expertise is required, the Town Council will be left alone hoisted on it's own petard, await egg on the Town Council face!


It would appear that Shepton cemetery is to be recycled, with a metre of top soil added to increase the ground available for burials, I asked about double graves, in Mendips plan only single graves will be allowed, it looks like Mendip will be taking the play area at Meadow rise back to the cemetery, again a verbal report, more questions than answers, a pretty shabby way to carry on, anyway, the feedback will have to wait a month.

The Town Council is potentially extending itself beyond it's financial spending power, the Council will have a choice, like the grand old Duke of York, march the community to the top of the hill only to disappoint or increase tax dramatically, you have been warned.