Friday 26 February 2010

Have we seen the last Car Boot Sale?

The people of Tenbury Wells may have seen the last of the regular Bank Holiday car boot sales on the historic Burgage site.

The Town Council's decision to remove the fence around the Children's play ground and not replace it after the rebuilding project has finished, may have unwittingly, reduced the scope to hire the Burgage for other events. Less than 2% of existing and new play areas are unfenced.

A risk assessment (the details of which are possibly to be revealed on Monday night) is thought to have included the need to install temporary fencing between the playground and access road for any event where there is a requirement for vehicles to enter the Burgage.

The type of fencing that will be required for events.

The cost of this installation is between £300 & £500, making the hire uneconomic for most events.

This challenge follows quick on the heals of the proposed renovation to the Regal Cinema, which if accepted in full, will severely reduce the scope for the venue to be used for anything other than films, again hitting Council revenues.

19 comments:

Anonymous said...

How will they keep dog poo out of the playground area if there is no fence?

@WR15 said...

It seems that as Dogs must be kept on a lead in the Burgage the problem just won't occur!

I bought my concerns to the Council as soon as I saw the plans, but was told that "no fences" is the modern way of doing playgrounds.

Anonymous said...

Would have thought these days it would be much safer to have a fence, especially for health and safety. It's not too far away from a brook and children could easily run off from their parents into trouble. At least with the fence/gate there parents had some control and could keep an eye on their children easier. Tenbury always attracts a LOT of people to it's car boot sales, and it would be a major blow to the town for them to not happen.

@WR15 said...

Hopefully an alternate venue can be found.

Anonymous said...

I wonder how the mowing contractor will be able to mow the grass without a safety fence in place. Perhaps they will have to employ an additional person to stand guard to ensure no children run out into the path of the mower.

Anonymous said...

There was a plastic-covered wire mesh fence next to the hedge. Why wasn't this re-erected closer to the driveway when the hedge was removed?
This fence must now be in store somewhere. Why not get it out and put it up?

Anonymous said...

I assume that to take your dog into the burgage it must be able to read the signs about being kept on a lead....because most owners dont seem to be able to!!!

@WR15 said...

The Town Council have amended their fencing requirement and will now accept a 'cheaper' temporary fence.

They seem to have conveniently forgotten their original specification.

It is now probably far to late for anyone to arrange an Easter Bank Holiday boot fair.

One Councillor suggested that the venue for the Boot Fair be moved to the show ground. They obviously haven't thought this through. Who will pay for the temporary toilets and the Police that will be required for the Traffic Control. (A legal requirement at this site) Also what benefit is it to the Town if the Boot Fair is held 'out of town'. The lesson of the loss of trade experienced when the Holly Auction moved away has obviously been forgotten.

@WR15 said...

The lack of fence makes a lot more sense if you look at the plan for the Burgage as a whole.

If (and it's a big if) the Town Council get the funding to complete the whole plan, then the concern about the lack of fencing will quickly fade away.

If however the project cannot be progressed then it might be sensible to consider installing a permanent fence to enable the Burgage to be used for the Town events that we have become accustomed to.

Ian said...

Police traffic control at the show ground? I haven't seen any for the last couple of years and, in fact, raised this matter with the show secretary after the 2008 show - where I thought the conditions on A456 were extremely dangerous.

@WR15 said...

I believe that Traffic Control is a condition of this site, but it might be that they sub contract the job out to a licensed sub-contractor.

You may have seen the WCC pot hole team being closely followed by a truck from a traffic management company. I believe all temporary traffic control now has to be carried out by a licensed company (or the Police)

Ian said...

Sorry - there was NO traffic control at the site during the last two shows.

@WR15 said...

I can't remember, but someone stopped the traffic when I was towed out behind a tractor.

Anonymous said...

It will be a real problem for parents with toddlers. Having the fence and gates in place is far safer. I can't see how there could be any benefit in not putting fencing up, perhaps other than saving cost.

@WR15 said...

The Town Council voted tonight to install a fence around the playground.

They will also be putting the option of Bank Holiday car boot sales out for tender.

M6GLZ said...

So another about turn. At least with fencing back around the play area it will reduce the likelihood of children getting bitten by the dogs let off their leads to run free in the burgage.

@WR15 said...

No thought about how it's going to be paid for, because as far as I know there is no spare cash in the budget.

I brought my concerns 'in writing' about the lack of fencing to the attention of the Council within hours of the plans being shown to the public. What I can't understand following the comments voiced by most of the Councillors at this months meeting why the lack of fencing came as such a surprise to them?

Unknown said...

I would really like to see the boot sale back on the Burgage, I can't seem to find a reason anymore to make the 60 mile round trip to my old stomping ground.
It did provide me(us) with an interesting morning and a chance to visit a couple of other places in the area too.
If the fence is to be erected - why not?

@WR15 said...

The Town Council have decided to erect a fence and have asked local fund raisers if they would like to manage the Bank Holiday boot fairs.