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News Sponsored parish council Boxley Parish Mail


CHAIRMAN: Ivor Davies CLERK: Pauline Bowdery ASST CLERK: Melanie Fooks Parish Office, Beechen Hall,Wildfell Close,Walderslade, ME5 9RU


Tel: 01634 861237 email: clerk@boxleyparishcouncil.org.uk Website: www.boxleyparishcouncil.org.uk Contact details for parish councillors can be obtained from the parish office, the Useful Contact Details leaflet or the website


Allotment call PARISHIONERS are taking up the opportunity of renting an allotment at Dove Hill, south of Boxley village, but some plots remained at the time of going to press. If there are still vacant plots after January 31, the waiting list will be open to any person living within one mile of the parish boundary. The parish council is grateful to


county Cllr Paul Carter for a contri- bution of £700 towards the cost of water troughs and an environmen- tally-friendly toilet, and to the con- servation trust volunteers who intend to plant a hedgerow alongside the boundary footpath on January 25. Further details can be obtained


from the parishwebsite or office.  Cllr Pat Brooks and her husband, John, were thanked by the parish council for their generous donation of a seat for the Dove Hill allotments. John has also helped greatly in setting out the allotment plots.


Newnham Court


AT the time of going to press the parish councilwas considering its re- sponse to Maidstone Council’s re- quest for views on the formal planning application for this large- scale retail development, which would includea a Waitrose and a Debenhams store. The parish council is minded to


object to a number of aspects now that a detailed proposal has been re- ceived. An update will appear on the BPCwebsite and the next issue of the Parish Mail.


Happy new year!


THE chairman, councillors and staff of Boxley Parish Council wish every resident a very happy new year, all working together for an even better Boxley.


TV company ‘fails to resolve parking issues’


THE parish council continues to receive complaints from Grove Green residents about inconsiderate parking by audiences at Maidstone Studios.


It was reported that there had been


severe problems on two consecutive Thursdays in November, despite sev- eral attempts to improve the situation. In a letter to the parish council, a resident complained about traffic chaos on the evening of November 21 with parked cars almost totally block- ing the north end of Provender Way aswell as Shepherds Gate Drive. The resident said: “Should emer-


gency vehicles need to access these roads, I believe their ability to do so would be severely impeded. This in addition to the risk of accidents af- fecting residents”. When parish councillors consid-


ered this matter at a recent meeting theywere reminded that on previous occasions when this issue was dis- cussed with studios manager Geoff Miles, they had received assurances that the studios car park was ade- quate for audience numbers. How- ever, residents were still reporting that the security guards were direct-


Governor appeal THE parish council wouldwelcome a


resident willing to stand for co-op- tion to the governing body of St John’s School, Grove Green. This may suit someone unable to make the commitment of being a council- lor but who wishes to contribute to the community. Contact the school or the parish office.


Cash for the community


THREE local projects will benefit from a total of over £2,000 granted by Boxley Parish Council through its Community Chest scheme. Kent Wildlife Trust will receive


funds towards a kestrel’s nest web- cam for visitors to the Trust’sHQand elsewhere to view activity and also money for running guidedwalks. WaldersladeWoods Group will re-


ceive a grant towards purchasing a mobile machine for chipping brush- wood. This will then be used to sur-


22


face paths in the woods. Councillors agreed that the re- maining balance of £7,537 in the scheme should be included in the 2014/15 draft budget and to review the criteria as itwas originally hoped that it would assist less well-estab- lished groups in the parish and smaller projects. The scheme aims to make the


parish a better place to live in by pro- viding grants of £30 to £1,000 to help fund specific projects or activities.


Maidstone East Edition January 2014


ing drivers to park in Grove Green when the car park was not full. The police had been contacted and


the previous PCSO had attended, but this had not resulted in any improve- ments. Maidstone Council’s parking operations had been advised of the latest problems and asked to investi- gate and advise on any options that may stop or control the recurring problem, but it had responded that all issues were dealt with by Kent High-


ways Services. Itwas agreed that a letter should be


sent to Mr Miles to ask whether at the next event, parish council representa- tives could be present to see what the problems were so that they could fully understand the issues. It was also suggested that advance


notice of forthcoming events could be posted on the parish council’s web- site.  See Comment - pages 24-25


Concern over plans for greenfield homes


THE parish council has strongly ob- jected to an outline planning appli- cation to build 89 homes in open countryside south of Gleamingwood Drive, in Lordswood. The council has told Maidstone Council that it wishes to see the ap- plication refused but, if officers rec- ommend otherwise, it should be determined by the planning commit- tee. The council listed a high num- ber of concerns including sustainability of the development in a greenfield site and the loss of an- cient woodland. The parish council toldMBCitwas “astonished” and “concerned” at the borough’s statement at an early stage of the planning process, that “it is not considered that the scheme would have a significant additional urban-


ising effect on the area”, given that the project is called the Lordswood Urban Extension. It went on to say: “The introduc-


tion of 89 residential dwellings into open countryside cannot be anything but urbanisation. Access to the site is through a woodland belt that has hitherto been protected from devel- opment as it is a buffer zone between Lordswood and the rural strategic gap between the Walderslade and Lordswood conurbation and the ur- banised Hempstead Valley.” The inclusion of the proposed bio-


mass heating facility, using fuel from nearby woodland sites, was consid- ered over-optimistic and unsustain- able, and the parish council also questioned the practicality of run- ning such a business near homes.


downsmail.co.uk


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