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Mote Park – best in Britain? MailMarks
WE should be very proud Mote Park is
now regularly voted among the best three parks in the country – and it could rise to the top.
Improvements to pathways, parking and
views over the last two years have seen visi- tors numbers swell. Now Maidstone Council has announced plans for the next big steps – a major, larger re-built restaurant with magnif- icent vistas down to the scenic lake, upgraded toilets, and a charged adventure/activity fea- ture next to the free children’s play area to- wards the leisure centre. We often take grandchildren for an hour or
so. These new attractions will make most stays a lot longer – perhaps for three hours if the restaurant and eating experiences hit the right buttons. I would like to see the magnifi- cent scenery and fascinating history of the park imaginatively displayed around the restaurant to excite visitors and encourage wider exploration of the 440-acre park. How many know the enthralling story of
former park owner Lord Bearsted, founder of Shell oil company? He named it after his fam- ily business which traded worldwide in orna- mental sea shells. He was an amazing man who died in 1927. His heirs sold Mote Park to Maidstone Corporation for £50,000 in 1929 and The MoteCricket Groundwas left in trust
Traffic choking town
Dear Sir –Maidstonewas at one time a relatively easy place to access, park, shop and travel through. You could virtually guarantee to reach a destination on the other side of town from the south with reasonable accuracy at most times of day. People could commute into and out of the
town without the fear of being late for work, and kids could get to school on time in a safe, clean environment. Now as I write this from my home in Loose
I can only say I havewatched this town slowly diminish in terms of quality of life. It is a town that is fast becoming a jungle of new housing estates, without any real thinking about the effect on the quality of life. The list of decisions which affect quality of
life is endless. Loss of park and ride facilities has led to the town becoming choked with traffic. Increased use of traffic lights leads to more rat runs, and it is very noticeable how many people are jumping the lights. There is a lack of leadership at all levels when it comes to getting a south to north bypass (I suspect self-interested Nimbys are preventing that). Worst of all is the building of housing es-
tates on greenfield sites. There is no thought about providing the required infrastructure such as schools, GP surgeries and transport. Maidstone is not a town of the future but
one of a lost quality of life. Ask anyone in Maidstone about their quality of life in terms of the above, and I suspect the answers would be an overwhelming agreement that it has
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Stephen Eighteen Editor
stephen@downsmail.co.uk 01622 734735 ext 231
30 Maidstone East February 2016 Diane Nicholls
Assistant editor
diane@downsmail.co.uk 01622 734735 ext 232
Jane Shotliff Journalist
jane@downsmail.co.uk 01622 734735 ext 233
Dawn Kingsford Journalist
dawn@downsmail.co.uk 01622 734735 ext 233
DENNISFOWLE President
dfowle2011@aol.com
to the cricket club. With the park attracting a million visitors a
year – and this will grow – car parking prob- lems will increase, despite the new £1-a-day charge. I believe one of the next areas for council consideration should be the large grassed area lined with lovely trees between the entrance and exit roads. In winter it is often a quagmire. I think its main value will be as a surfaced
car park – but recommend greater ambition. I think the end closest to the park entrance would be a very popular location for two or three quality restaurants. I think dining in the park would be a very exciting addition. This area could be a good earner, too, for our cash- strapped council. I would also like the council to upgrade the
sports take in the park. There is a little-used area close to the leisure centre and bowls club large enough for high-quality football, rugby etc pitches. At the moment, much of this land undulates all over the place but an investment
been badly affected and is to getworse. Nick Kelly, Loose
Highways before homes
Dear Sir – Here is a quote from a KCC internal report to Mathew Balfour, cabinet member. “The housing target can
only be reached once proper planning policy constraints are applied to the need figure, i.e. environmental, infrastructure etc.” As can be seen, the “need”
in levelling andwell-planned layoutwould be very welcome by our sporting community. There is a strong demand from various sports – and the council knows it under-provides for sport in the borough. It should be protected for quality sport use
– but routes left for walkers and dogs to ac- cess other more popular areas of the park. Those I questioned have little appetite for walking over the current sports pitches. Changing and showers are available in the
leisure centre – but sports clubs would like to see these upgraded. I know some will seemy thoughts as harmful to their image of parts of the park. But no one should now doubt the popularity of recent changes – it has become a park of even greater beauty and fun. Let’s keep that ball rolling. What do you think? The Downs Mailwel- comes reader letters on Mote Park.
Fax frustrations Some 20 years ago a business abused my
fax machine by sending unsolicited adverts. Ten years ago I removed the machine – but still these unwanted nuisance phone calls ar- rive almost daily, causing great inconven- ience. Any advice please?
infrastructure constraints can be removed from the list, therefore reducing the housing target. It is no good Mr Carter assuring the
figure, which is 18,560 houses, is accepted as it has been by most partners, but that it can be reduced if the necessary infrastructure cannot be provided, i.e highways, schools etc. What has not been highlighted by anyone in the current local plan debate is that Maidstone Borough Council is not responsible for providing this infrastructure, and therefore cannot reduce the housing target without input from Kent County Council. We have been asking for andwaiting for
this input for many months and allwe get from KCC leader Paul Carter is rhetoric and the promise of a public meeting in February. The time has now come for KCC to put
its money where its mouth is and to respond to the latest Reg 19 local plan report so that those sites with severe
Cllr John Wilson
parish councils that KCC will in future object to planning applications on highways grounds – that will be too late. If Maidstone grinds to a halt in the future because of serious traffic problems, it will be due to KCC not standing up and doing their duty as infrastructure providers – they hold the power to reduce numbers, not Maidstone Borough Council! Cllr JohnAWilson, Maidstone Council, Coxheath and HuntonWard
Wrong on park and ride
Dear Sir – The Mail Mark on the very worrying future for traffic flows in and around Maidstone makes me question Maidstone Council's decision to collapse to local pressure and drop completely the Linton park-and-ride proposal. Itwas in the wrong position and should
be placed at the foot of Linton Hill on the approaches to Marden. Perhaps some businesses could benefit – certainly the local pub but does it not make sense to offer an element of services such as car cleaning, servicing, MOTs etc? This could also reduce traffic needing to
enter the town centre. The council must be positive in tackling our serious traffic problems – and I see just negativity. Richard Maryan, by email
Comment
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