Bands invited


to gardens gig BANDS looking to carve out a career in music are being invited to showcase their work as they “Switch on theMusic” in Maid- stone’s Brenchley Gardens. Switch on the Music, for-


merly Peace One Day, is being held in the gardens on Saturday September 8, having relocated from Whatman Park. Would-be performers are


asked to submit a CD of their music, or an online link, to se- cure their place. Golding Vision, the charitable


arm of Golding Homes, is spon- soring the event, organised by the Switch Café with the backing of the Town Centre Management, Kent County Council and the Civil Service Insurance Society. Auditions and applications should be mailed to Maidstone Youth Forum, Switch Youth Café, 34a High Street, Maid- stone, ME14 1JH or emailed to hannah@switchcafe.co.uk


Homes application KING & Johnston Homes has applied to build two detached homes, following the demoli- tion of a property at 46 Salts Avenue, Loose. A supporting statement said:


“The houses have been de- signed to respond to the exist- ing architecture.” Maidstone Council will de- termine the application.


Olympiad banner unveiled


A LITTLE piece of history has got Maidstone in stitches. For the first sixmonths of this


year, nifty needleworkers from all over Maidstone have been busy stitching away to create sections for the town’s new Cul- tural Olympiad Banner. Forty-two groups, represent-


ing music, dance, theatre and the arts, from across the bor- ough were brought together by the Maidstone Area Arts Part- nership and the Maidstone Vi- sual Arts Network to create the textile hanging. It featured in the Olympic Torch celebrations in the town on July 19 and 20 and now hangs in Maidstone Museum. It was unveiled by the mayor,


Cllr Rodd Nelson-Gracie, after a concert given by five arts organ- isations in Kent, representing dance, music and poetry. The


official ceremony was followed by marching the banner to Maidstone Museum. Sue Pritchard, who master- minded the project and carried out much of the stitching on be- half of the groups, said: “There is astrongculturallifeinthe Maidstone area and the banner was designed to reflect this.


Woodworm attacks Loose home PART of a building in Loose needs to be reconstructed due to a woodworm infestation, according to a planning application. A supporting statement said the problem was discovered after a previous application was granted for a second-storey extension at 1 Rosemount Close: “Upon commencement of the works the roof timbers to the kitchen were found to be riddled with woodworm; further inspection identified this problem to apply to the entire first floor structure and the walls, partitions and roof. “Practically all the timbers would need to be replaced. Stripping


out work is in progress.” Maidstone Council will determine the application to reconstruct the building above first floor level.


Thanks go to all the stitchers for their needle skills, to the mu- seum for giving us the class- room facilities for our monthly workshops, and to Maidstone Borough Council for funding the raw materials.” Organisations and individuals reflected in the banner include the Bearsted and Sutton Va- lence Choral Societies, the Craig Turner Gallery, Graham Clarke, the community arts group Lighten Up, Knit and Stitch, Maidstone Film Society and the Willington Players. The banner is based on the cladding of the new wing of Maidstone Museum. Sue said: “The banner will be-


come a part of Maidstone’s his- tory, commemorating the summer games and the county town’s part in the Olympic torch relay.”


Changing roles LOOSE Cricket Club has been given permission to convert a storage barn into changing fa- cilities and install practice nets. The scheme involves the re- location of cricket and football pitches.


Maidstone Council granted planning permission on condi- tion that operating hours are re- stricted to 9am-10pm.


To contact Downs Mail just phone 01622 630330


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