Holiday lets are
given go-ahead LESLEY Stephens was given planning permission to con- vert a vehicle repair work- shop at Honywood Farm, West Street, Lenham, into three holiday lets. Her request was granted
by Maidstone Council on condition that the accommo- dation is not continuously used by the same individual, family or group for more than 28 days in any one sin- gle letting. This is to ensure that the development does not become a permanent res- idence.
Maidstone Council also al-
lowed the erection of a sin- gle-storey tractor/ agricultural store.
Medical centre
extension plan THE Medical Centre in Northumberland Court, Shepway, has applied to cre- ate a new first floor. The design statement said:
“The proposal is to provide all the administration areas at first floor level together with the staff rest room and a conference room, which is desperately required by the practice. “This allows space to be
freed up at ground floor level for two additional con- sulting rooms.” Maidstone Council will decide on the planning ap- plication.
Leeds cottage
scheme A PLANNING application has been submitted to erect a new dwelling with associ- ated estate manager’s cottage in CaringWood, Caring Lane, Leeds. The proposal includes a
new barn with ragstone wall accommodating solar photo- voltaic cells, new access tracks, dry store, glasshouse, parking areas and landscap- ing.
Village oak trees
to be felled FOUR oak trees are to be felled in the Bearsted Con- servation area. The proposal for 6 Moncrif
Close also includes reducing the height of two silver birch trees to match that of the home.
Maidstone Council raised
no objections but demanded that two replacement trees – either oak, silver birch, sweet chestnut or holly – be planted during the planting season (October to Febru- ary). The council further de- manded that special care is taken not to disturb birds, bats and other wild animals that nest or roost in the trees.
26 East
Concert raises £4,000
for Army welfare fund THE Band of The Royal Brigade of Gurkhas and the Pipes and Drums of 1st Battalion, The Royal Gurkhas, gave a concert to an audience of nearly 300 people in the sports hall of Sutton Va- lence School. The concert was held in aid of
the Army Benevolent Fund. Over £4,000 was raised for the charity, which seeks to provide welfare support for serving and ex-sol- diers and their families.
Residents moan most about green waste sacks
Council failing in its duty to pay staff a ‘living wage’
A DOZEN staff employed by Maidstone Council are paid be- neath the ‘living wage’ of £7.20 per hour. Campaign group Citizens UK has calculated that all work-
ers should earn this figure to provide their families with the essentials of life. Maidstone Council pays one person over the age of 21 a rate
of £6.19 per hour. Eleven other members of staff get £7.02 per hour. The minimum wage for over 21s is £5.93 per hour. Stuart Jeffrey of Maidstone Green Party said: “I challenge
any of the councillors to try to survive on just £11k a year while paying rent and the ever increasing fuel bills. “The council has a duty to its employees that it is clearly failing in.”
‘Confidence’ at meeting budget savings COUNCIL leader Chris Garland says the borough has already identified most of the savings it needs tomake in the 2012/13 budget. After making cuts of £1.92m for 2011/12, Maidstone Coun-
cil needs to trim another £1.86m next year. Cllr Garland says he has already identified savings of £1.1m. He added: “I am more than confident that by Decem- ber we will have found the rest.”
MAIDSTONE Council should review its commu- nity toilet plan, according to Cllr Mike FitzGer- ald, leader of the Independents. The community toilet scheme was introduced
two years ago. It involved the closure of a number of the town’s public toilets but, at the same time, agreements with local shops allowing non-cus- tomer use of their facilities. He told full council: “I turned right out of the Town Hall and saw people urinating against
WASTE collection was the Maidstone Council service with the highest number of com- plaints this summer. The reason the total, 25, was higher than normal was due to issues over the supply of gar- den waste sacks, which have since been resolved. A report to a council scrutiny committee said: “New proce- dures are in place to prevent the same problems re-occurring.” There were also complaints
about missed collections not being rectified. But there were “valid reasons”
for these non-collections, in- cluding contamination, use of the old plastic garden sacks, the bin being broken and blocked access. The report said that in the July-September period the council responded on time to 108 of the 112 complaints - 96%, up from 87% in the previ- ous quarter.
Concerns raised over public toilets in town
this very building. Then I turned left and saw a sign from Age Concern telling people not to uri- nate.
“After 6pm it is very difficult to find some- where to go to the toilet. I am concerned about places for women to go. We need to have a fresh look at it.” Council leader Chris Garland replied: “The community toilet has proved successful. It works and there have been very few complaints.”
Proposal to replace post-war Bearsted bungalow
A DISTINCTIVE bungalow on the junction of The Street and Mallings Lane, Bearsted, could be replaced by a four-bedroom chalet bunga- low. Le Chalet is, according to appli-
cant Swift Roofing Contracts, “a postwar bungalow with little, if any, architectural merit”. The planning statement added:
“The mock Tudor design has been used on several other new develop- ments in the area. Therefore this has been proposed to follow the character of the area.” An attached garage has been pro- posed.
This Bearsted bungalow could soon be replaced with a four- bedroom property
Maidstone Council will decide on the planning application.
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