THE BEFORE AND THE AFTER: THE AFTER

Thank you to all those who turned up at last nights CAF meeting at Boldon Community Centre. To see such numbers again was a clear message that the people of East Boldon will no longer tolerate their streets and businesses being blighted by Metro parking congestion. I have been attending CAF meetings for this area for two years now, and I have NEVER seen such a turnout. Not only did we pack the venue with standing room only, but residents, not used to public speaking and certainly not used to the workings of council committees, put their heads above the parapet had their say!

Two things emerged from the meeting:

1. That Nexus have no idea when they will be able to build a car park extension. They have made no progress in purchasing the land needed, and haven’t even finished paying for the land which they used for the current car park. THERE WILL BE NO EXTENSION THIS DECADE.

2. That the Council will not even look at the residents control plan which was placed before them UNTIL AT LEAST THE SUMMER OF 2007. Even then, this community will then have to go into “the pot” with about 48 other areas to see whether our case is worthy.

Clearly we have been abandoned: Nexus have misled this community for five years and the Council has neither the stomach nor the will to tackle the problem NOW.

However, if we give up then Nexus will return to their policy of doing nothing and the Council will adopt schemes for other residential areas. This community will then sink without trace. I shall therefore continue to fight for a solution to the problem of congestion in this area, and like Robin Hood, I will gather helpers as I go along my merry way. Should any one have new or novel ideas as to how we can continue the campaign outside of the normal restraints then please contact me via this blog or on the new email address below

ENDTHEMETROMAYHEM

@SHAW9452.FSNET.CO.UK

Should any council or nexus employees read this blog then this is for you:

We Won’t Give Up!

To any local residents or other interested parties this is you:

Write to your Councillors ~ Write to your MP

Write to the local papers ~ Write to the Council

LET THEM KNOW THAT WE ARE NOT GOING TO WAIT ANY LONGER TO RECLAIM OUR STREETS

On a brighter note, the council plans to turn Cleadon Village into a traffic roundabout were well and truly defeated. Cleadon residents, not known for their revolutionary fervour, turned up in numbers to oppose the plans. The deliberate manipulation of statistics by the council planners was never going to get passed this lot and the pen, pencil and protractor brigade were told to go away and inflict their white elephant schemes on somebody else. The look of abject horror on the faces of the planning hierarchy was a picture to be savoured. In one fell swoop residents had ruined budget plans and work schedules for possibly the next six months. There was an aura of disbelief that tax payers had had the nerve to challenge full time council officials with such ridiculous arguments concerning protecting the community, preserving a village’s aesthetics and that to often ignored concept, ensuring that money is spent correctly. This was a well earned victory for common sense and for public participation, but for the poor council planners, it’s back to the drawing board. Literally!

On a separate but equally important note, it was a pleasure to see the enigma that is Councillor David Potts (Conservative, Cleadon and East Boldon Ward). David is clearly a gifted and articulate speaker, his arguments are coherent and he sees the issues in a larger context. His main problem is that he forgets to turn up at meetings. This was only his second appearance at a CAF meeting since May 2006, which when you consider the serious problems faced by his constituents, this is unacceptable. With only three Conservative members in a Labour dominated Borough, we need an effective voice of opposition (I don’t include that bunch of champagne socialists who refer to themselves as “independents”). By choosing to attend meetings only when the press or a large part of the public are there is no way to provide this opposition. With one ward councillor already impaled on his own sword for not going to meetings, you would think that David would have learnt a lesson. Clearly not!

After what has been a tough week, the weekend looms. For me, the history books will be dusted down and scoured for examples of peaceful public resistance. You never know, the Gazette may soon have the front page heading “SHOP KEEPER CHAINS HIMSELF TO METRO CROSSING BARRIERS”.