Vote for your favourite park
PEOPLEarebeing urged to vote for their favourite British park– and three Maid- stone parks are in the running. A record-breaking 1,448 parks and
green spaces received a Green Flag Award this year, including Mote Park, Whatman Park and Clare Park. Now, all three are in with a chance of receiving the annual People’s Choice Award. To vote, visit the Green Flag Award
website at
www.greenflagaward.org/ award-winning-sites. Select your region on the interactive
map, and find your favourite park or green space, and click the “vote for this
site” button. The parks, all managed byMaidstone Council, were awarded Green Flags in recognition of their exceptionally high standards, excellent facilities and strong community involvement. Paul Todd, Green Flag award scheme manager said: “Our judges have de- cided on this year’s winners of the Green Flag award but the public now have the opportunity to decide which park or green space deserves The Peo- ple's Choice Award.” The vote will close at midday on Oc-
tober 1, and the winner will be an- nounced the followingweek.
Mote Park is in the running for the People’s Choice award Council rethink over gypsies
MAIDSTONE Council has changed tack over a gypsy site and allowed a total of seven car- avans to be located in Pye Cor- ner, Ulcombe. Ten years ago the council first granted planning permission for Roydon Farm to become a gypsy site, but stressed in the formal decision notice that the site only had the environmental capacity for one mobile home and one static caravan. Since then, more caravans
have been permitted to stay on the land due to a number of planning consents, and the planning committee has now agreed to an officer recommen-
dation to allow a total of five mobile homes and two touring caravans. Ulcombe Parish Council’s ob- jection to the latest scheme, for two extra mobile homes for an extended gypsy family, was backed by Cllr Richard Thick, the local borough member. He said: “In 2003 there was
one mobile, but with each few years they have got permission for more and more caravans. This is open-ended. “I thought we, as a council,
were trying hard to come up with a policy of our own and not have a policy dictated to us.”
The schemewas given the go-
ahead mainly because of the unmet gypsy provision in the borough. Without a policy outlining al- ternative gypsy sites, the coun- cil is restricted in which traveller applications it can re- fuse. Cllr Tony Harwood, a com- mittee member, said: “Even under a fit-for-purpose policy regime this site would be suit- able. It is a very remote and well-screened site.” The planning application was granted thanks to the support of 10 members, with three absten- tions.
Stadium clash POLICE were called to the ground of Maidstone United during the first full game of the Stones’ new season. Cans of beer were thrown
onto the pitch as supporters of Wealdstone, North London, clashed with MaidstoneUnited fans during and after the 1-1 draw. The club has vowed to in-
crease security and is checking CCTV footage to try to identify the culprits. They are also look- ing at increasing the police presence at home games. More than 2,000 fans were in
the Gallagher stadium at the time of the trouble. Police dis- persed several groups of fight- ers, but no arrests were made.
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