Charges for home name changes


WANT to change the name of your property or add a name to your house number? From now on itwill cost you £25.


Unlike most councils in Kent,Maid-


stone had not previously charged for the service. But with pressure on budgets, any new income stream is welcome. The council believes the cost to in- dividuals is “modest”, with higher rates for property developers – £75 for a single new home or £40 per flat, for example. A council report estimated that, if


the charges had been in place during the past two years, about £24,500 and £30,000 of income would have been generated annually, mainly from new flats. It concluded that the post of street naming and numbering officer should become self-funding by 2013-14.


MAIDSTONE is the first desti- nation in the South East to have a visitor guide applica- tion for smartphones. The app provides an interac-


tive guide to the town and sur- rounding areas. You can search for: What’s on – more than 200 events at any time, regularly updated Food and drink –more


than 200 restaurants, pubs, tea- rooms and takeaways Places to visit – from castles


Bowlers notch up great score


HUNTON Bowls Club celebrated 75 successful years with an anniversary tea. Thirty mem-


bers of the 50- strong club turned out for a friendly match between the president’s team, led by Ken Parks, and the chairman’s team, led by Margaret Carpenter. The game, which was won by the president’s side,


Margaret Carpenter and Ken Parks show off Hunton Bowls Club’s birthday cake


was followed by a birthday tea with a special cake made by member Roz Apsey. Mr Parks said: “Hunton has always been a very happy and conscientious club. Everyone helps one another.” The club has teams in the Weald League, Maid-


stone Friday night triples and Maidstone and Dis- trict Ladies League. It also plays friendly fixtures on most weekends during the season.


Town tourism gets more app-ealing


and gardens, to walks Where to stay – more than


65 hotels, B&Bs, self-catering and camping. The app will be available for


the iPhone, iPad and iPod Touch. Search for ‘Maidstone’ on iTunes or the App Store. Cllr Malcolm Greer, Cabinet member for transport and eco- nomic development, said: “This app has rich content and high resolution images


that provide opening times, prices and grading of accom- modation. “It will provide directions


using your iPhone’s GPS and Google maps. You can save places of interest and build your own itinerary.” In 2009, Maidstone attracted


more than 3.3 million day trips and over 417,000 overnight trips, according to a study into the economic im-


Car park sell-off plans


PLANS to sell an under-used town car park will not create a problem for mo- torists, Maidstone Council claims. In recent years, average occupancy


of the 66-bay Brunswick Street pay- and-display plot has been below 60% during the day and just 40% in the evening. The combined effect of the eco- nomic downturn and alternative long- stay parking closer to the town centre are the reasons given in a report. It adds: “It is not considered that


loss of the car park will significantly impact on local parking availability nor will it affect localised congestion as average on-street occupancy level in the “South 2” resident parking bays is 74% during the day and 79% dur- ing the evening.” The report also notes that a develop-


ment proposed by a prospective pur- chaser of the Brunswick Street land offers parking that may be used by res- idents during periods of high on-street demand.


pact of tourism. Visitor Economy Business


Unit leader Laura Dickson said: “The app uses the same data information system that fulfils the content of our web- site – www.visitmaidstone. com. This is part of the strat- egy to provide in-destination visitor information.”  To find out more, or to get


your business an enhanced pro- file on the app andwebsite, call 01622 602748 or email tourism@maidstone.gov.uk.


You can e-mail the Downs Mail — info@downsmail.co.uk


South 19


Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24  |  Page 25  |  Page 26  |  Page 27  |  Page 28  |  Page 29  |  Page 30  |  Page 31  |  Page 32  |  Page 33  |  Page 34  |  Page 35  |  Page 36  |  Page 37  |  Page 38  |  Page 39  |  Page 40