Fremlin Walk improvements plan


APLAN to improve the FremlinWalk shop- ping area in Maidstone has been unveiled. Legal & General, who acquired the site in December 2010, wants to establish two roofed areas; install a multimedia screen; erect better signage and lighting; provide lift improvements and works to the car park lobby; and create stencilled patterns to walls on the junction ofWeek Street. Aroofed area hosting seasonally changing events and activities would help attract greater footfall to the west end of Fremlin Walk, near House of Fraser, with an LED screen to show centre events, this year’s Olympics, information and advertising. The proposals have been submitted to Maidstone Council. The supporting state- ment said: “In the short term we have worked to improve the tenant mix through


AN EXTERNAL review of the controversial Maidstone Mu- seum EastWing project could be commissioned after the contract over-ran by sixmonths. Maidstone borough council-


lors have expressed concern at the extra costs incurred – and the management of the project itself. The East Wing should have


been completed in April 2011 but the deadline was extended by 11 weeks – partly due to sur- veying issues. It was then ex- tended for a further 10 weeks, which contrator Morgan Sindall attributed to problems with the lift shaft, the connection of the power supply, installation of


expected. We need to increase footfall and dwell time to improve the performance of the centre which, in turn, will attract higher end retailers and improved rents. “Although the department store is trading


The proposed


entrance to Fremlin Walk fromWeek Street


the scheme and have achieved 100% occu- pancy for the first time. “However, in the medium term we believe


the estatewill need to be revitalised to keep its appeal fresh, both to retailers and shop- pers.


“Commercial rents are not what could be Questions over museum contract over-run


ducting and design changes. In the event, the project was


not completed until October 21. Although the council had set


aside £500,000 to address the overspend, questions are still being asked about the length of the contract over-run. In May, the council appointed


a member of the building sur- veying team to monitor and re- port on progress but the cabinet nowwants an independent con- tractor to carry out a review of the project and report back to chief executive Alison Broom. It was hoped thematterwould


be discussed by the full council on February 29.


AGE UK Maidstone has issued a year- round message to residents: “Don’t dis- card, donate”. Unwanted household items and clothes


can be put to good use to benefit the bor- ough’s elderly population, as a recent “Green Santa” week showed. Everything from address books to cheeseboards found their way into the Green Santa sleigh parked in Maidstone’s Mall, helping swell the charity’s funds by more than £750 in just one week. More than 200 people a day donate un- wanted gifts and good quality items to the recycling sleigh, to raise funds for Age UK, one of the mayor’s charities for the year. Cabinet member for environment, Cllr Marion Ring, said: “The event attracted a lot of interest and put across an impor- tant message that we all need to play our part at reducing and re-using the amount of waste produced and, if it can provide much-need funds to local charities, all the better.”


well and the car park is well used, the foot- fall is particularly weak in the area in front of the department store where units are more difficult to let. “Footfall drops off significantly along the


retail street the further you progress away from Week Street. Therefore, there is a key requirement to increase the flow of cus- tomers from the car park and department store, up and out into the retail street, and to draw customers fromWeek Street along the whole length of the retail street.” Maidstone Council will decide on the planning application.


‘Room for improvement’ at tourist centre MAIDSTONE’s new tourist information centre has been criticised by the chairman of the council’s planning committee. The centre, previously at the Town Hall reception area, opened in November and is located within the new extension to Maidstone Museum in St Faith‘s Street. However, it took until mid-January for it to stock any brochures advertising local attractions. Cllr Richard Lusty said: “I amdisappointed in the way the tourist information department has deteriorated. Maidstone is a great place for tourism, so seeing theway it has deteriorated is upsetting. I have spoken to the chief executive [Alison Broom] and it will improve.” However, he heaped praise on other aspects of the project: “The


plans for themuseumwere passed by this committee andwhat we see today is a great credit to the borough and the memberswho had the foresight to add this extension. “I voted for the museum extension but at the time I made a state-


ment that the design seemed more in keeping with the Blackpool Pleasure Beach, which was reported in Private Eye magazine. “Having visited the museum I think it fits in with its surround- ings. The architecture is good and the cladding fits in well.”


Green Santa helps town’s elderly


Drop litter at your peril! LITTER louts in Maidstone need to clean up their act – or face a hefty fine. Since the council’s enforcement teams


were hired last July, they collected £345,000 in penalty notices and issue an average of 85 tickets each week. Four officers from London company


XFOR operate in teams of two across the town centre, issuing fines of £75 to peo- ple caught dropping litter. However, it is not all profit for the council as almost half of the fine goes towards paying for XFOR’s services. It is estimated the enforcement teams


Santa’s green helpers collect unwanted items inMaidstoneMall in aid of Age UK


Age UK in Gabriels Hill experienced a


25% increase in donations and a 64% in- crease in sales, compared with the same week last year – putting an extra £768 in the tills in the week.


DVLA office closure threat to jobs STAFF at the DVLA office inMaidstone are bracing them- selves for the jobs axe under government plans expected to save £28m by closing 39 regional centres. The office, in Queen Anne Road, is set to close by the


end of 2013, and consultations have begun with repre- sentatives of the 30 staff. They are expected to end on March 6. The Government says it will be providing best value for moneyfor the taxpayer by switching work currentlyprocess- ed at the regional offices to the DVLA HQ in Swansea. However, union chiefs have described the centralisa-


tion, which could mean the loss of 1,200 jobs across the country, as “outrageous and unnecessary” and pledged to fight it.


16 Malling


have issued 6,120 penalty notices since July. The amount collected in fines does not include costs awarded from courts if someone is prosecuted and found guilty. XFOR operates a litter enforcement service for six councils across the UK and employs six staff to run its Maid- stone operation – two administration officers and the four enforcement offi- cers.


Town parking charge increases blocked


COUNCILLORS have frowned on proposals to raise the one-hour car parking charge across two town centre car parks. The suggestion, which would have generated an additional £10,000, could


deter shoppers from visiting the town just when they should be encouraged, the town’s cabinet meeting heard. Although members agreed that charges for King Street and Medway Street


car parks should be aligned with Maidstone’s other main car parks, they ve- toed the suggested hourly increase from from 70p to 90p. Council leader Chris Garland pointed out that car parking charges had not increased for several years and said that the proposed increases were modest. However, the cabinet agreed with Cllr Marion Ring that the proposed increase


to the hourly rate – equivalent to 28.5% – should be rejected. The only other significant change proposed will increase the long stay car park charges for five hours or more by 50p. The full council will decide at the end of February.


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