downsmail.co.uk Cricket festival


Dear Sir – Many in Maidstone will be encouraged that there is still a real chance of Maidstone’s annual county cricket festival returning (Leers, January). The key players to put all this together seem to be Mote Cricket Club, Kent Cricket Club and Maidstone Council. But will our council really get behind this exciting Mote development and offer the support needed for the highlight of Maidstone’s summer social season? Geoff Johnson, Maidstone


According to Mote Cricket Club, Maidstone Council strongly supports its redevelopment plan and has made a £15,000 grant to help the club prepare the full planning application. Response by Stephen


Planning together


Dear Sir –With all of the extra housing proposed for Maidstone, has any thought been given to the effects on traffic, particularly as the town has, in effect, just one bridge capable of taking large vehicles across the Medway? Itwould be hard to think of anywhere less


suited to a supermarket, two non-food stores and a drive-through fast food restaurant than the junction of Hermitage Lane and the A20 London Road (Downs Mail, February). This area comes under Tonbridge and Malling Council and it appears that it doesn’t care about the major problems such a proposalwould cause. It will receive the rates revenue without any of the headaches. Isn’t it time adjoining councils co- operated with one another? Anyone who has driven in Hermitage Lane between


Contact our team ...


Stephen Eighteen Editor stephen@downsmail.co.uk 01622 734735 ext 231


Diane Nicholls


Assistant editor diane@downsmail.co.uk 01622 734735 ext 232


Jane Shotliff Journalist


jane@downsmail.co.uk 01622 734735 ext 233


Improvements for rail commuters


WORK has started on an £800,000 upgrade to West Malling train station. The re-modelling project, which


will improve passenger access and transport links into West Malling, will take until the summer. Extra parking for bikes, beer lighting and more CCTV cameras and signs are planned. KCC, the Department for


Transport and a significant £387,000 contribution as part of


gaining planning consent from the developers of Leybourne Chase is funding thework. The station car park will stay


open during the work, but access will be restricted. Meanwhile, commuters at Snodland could be looking forward to travelling by high-speed train into London, if improvements can be made at the station. Tonbridge and Malling Council’s transport board has been told that


Defeat for MP Tracey


AYLESFORD MP Tracey Crouch’s team took a panning in the annual Shrove Tuesday race atWestminster. Tracey (second fromright) and fellowMPs


were beaten in the pancake scramble by the Lords team. The Rehab parliamentary pan- cake race aims to raise awareness of the charity’s work with those living with brain in- jury and mental health issues.


Southeastern anticipates growing passenger demand due to building in the area. It is proposing to offer high-speed services in the peak periods if the station and parking arrangements can be improved, and a bus interchange is added. The borough’s transport board


has agreed to work with the rail operator and transport authorities to see how these facilities might be provided.


Dawn Kingsford


Journalist dawn@downsmail.co.uk 01622 734735 ext 233


M20 closure


WORK is taking place to help ease congestion on the M20 Junction 7 near Maidstone. The coastbound exit slip road


will be realigned as part of the Government’s £317m programme to remove bolenecks and keep traffic moving on Britain’s major roads. The work will all be carried out


overnight and will be completed, weather permiing, by April 2. The coastbound carriageway


will be closed from J5 to J7 for nine nights from Sunday, March 23. Diversions will be in place via the A229 and A249.


Kiosk at lock


THE Environment Agency has been given planning permission to convert the redundant toll office at Allington Lock, Maidstone into a kiosk for the sale of hot and cold food and drinks.


Malling March 2014 27


about 3pm and 6.30pm will know how dense the traffic can be – and don’t forget it has the town’s hospital on it and so needs easy access for ambulances. R.E.Stubbs, Silverdale, Maidstone


Your suggestion makes a lot of sense, Mr Stubbs. In the past few years councillors in the Allington ward of Maidstone, such as Dan Daley, have raised concerns about the impact of proposed housing developments on both sides of the borough boundary. A group involving politicians and residents on both sides might be able to present a strong case about how the developments will put a strain on local resources and press for more beneficial Section 106 developer contributions. Response by Stephen


Habitats, not homes


Dear Sir – Last month’s Downs Mail seems to have been saturated with discussions about our current housing needs. Apparently Maidstone Council has been calculating a figure of about 14,080 new houses, whilst independent consultants say the need is for 19,600 dwellings up to 2031. What is ridiculous about this, if one stops


to think, is that one day, all of this “discussion” will have been awaste of time! Human life generally will not be able to continue when all wild resources – animals, plants, insects, flowers etc have been lost due to destruction of habitats for human purposes. Derek Gould,Woodcut, Maidstone


Changes no improvement


Dear Sir – Reading (or aempting) the new and “improved” Downs Mail Iwas


reminded of an old American proverb – “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it”. The paperwas valued for its clear, black, readable print and its wide and succinct reportage, aswell as for its minimal but relevant editorial input. Thatwas fine, just theway itwas. What


has been “improved”? GE French, Marion Crescent, Maidstone


Comment not welcome


Dear Sir – Until now I have loved receiving the Downs Mail andwould immediately turn to the Leers page. It belonged to the readers and felt like a genuine forum for our opinions, freely expressed. Now you have changed it to what appears


to be a page for you and your staff to express their own opinions for at least 50% of content. In addition, the new typeface is too small to read. Give it back to us; return it to the previous format.We are quite capable of forming our own opinions on leer content. Everyone I have spoken to feels the same. Jean and Malcolm Beaton, Hill Brow, Bearsted


Thank you for your feedback.We have taken on board comments on the main body type size and have increased it aer the first round of editions. I hope you notice a positive difference. We felt that responding to some (not all)


leers would provide additional opinions and encourage debate. There are also occasions when we can use our insight to clarify unqualified points made by the writer. We aren’t aiming to be controversial or to


belile the views of our readers but to interact beer with them. Hopefully you will grow to like the section. Response by Stephen


Comment


Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24  |  Page 25  |  Page 26  |  Page 27  |  Page 28  |  Page 29  |  Page 30  |  Page 31  |  Page 32  |  Page 33  |  Page 34  |  Page 35  |  Page 36  |  Page 37  |  Page 38  |  Page 39  |  Page 40  |  Page 41  |  Page 42  |  Page 43  |  Page 44  |  Page 45  |  Page 46  |  Page 47  |  Page 48