May/June 2016


Serving local people, businesses & events in Addington, Birling, East Malling, Kings Hill, Larkfield, Leybourne, Mereworth, Offham, Ryarsh, Trottiscliffe, West Malling


Village gets new road surface at last


AFTER long delays to allow gas, water and traffic calming work to be completed, East Malling is at last to have a new road surface laid in the High Street.


Following pressure from KCC Cllr


Trudy Dean, the work will also include Chapel Street as far as Gilletts Lane.


Costing about £20,000, the work will be carried out this summer with a speedy process known as microsurfacing which was recently used on Mill Street and Cottenham Close. It involves patching existing potholes and then overlaying the surface, including any drains and ironwork with a sprayed mix of tar and asphalt chips. After a short period for settlement by cars driving over the surface, ironwork will be uncovered and if necessary raised in order to align


with the new layer.


The advantage of this process is that it is cheaper than the traditional planing off and resurfacing technique, and the equipment passes through in about 20 minutes, after which vehicles can use the road.


Requests had been made for a


colour to be mixed into the black asphalt which would be more sympathetic to the fine listed buildings. However, it was apparently very difficult to attain a precise colour and subsequent patching would be unlikely to get a good match.


New look for Lobster Pot


THE Lobster Pot pub at West Malling is due for a new lease of life after being transformed into an upmarket bar and café known as Amano.


The previously rundown pub in Swan Street attracted complaints of noise and anti-social behaviour before it closed in November 2014.


The new 80-cover eaterie is due to open in October after a £1.5 million refurbishment of the grade II listed building. New owner Diccon Wright and Partners says it will be “a modern bright day-time venue, which will welcome families for accessible, high quality dishes”. The menu will have a strong Italian influence and include home-cured meats, freshly made pasta and sourdough pizzas from a woodburning oven.


The project, which will also see the conversion of the first floor into four private letting suites and a new conservatory with 40 covers, is an expansion of Diccon Wright’s existing partnership which began with the


Unfortunately, the area under the railway bridge will require a different surfacing technique which will be planned for later this year. This is needed to ensure clearance for vehicles under the bridge.


Highways site concern


RESIDENTS of Larkfield have expressed concern about the use of land near to junction 4 of the M20 for highway construction machinery and plant.


Highway engineers are using land which was the subject of a controversial application two years ago for a showman’s site. That application was refused by a planning inspector because of the effect it would have on the surrounding open countryside.


Now residents are concerned that the temporary use may weaken the defence of the land if a future application is submitted.


nearby Swan. The company said the new venue would be slightly more casual and family-friendly than the Swan with the same high quality of food, adding: “We are also delighted the Amano will see the restoration of a lovely old building in the heart of the village.”


Local KCC Cllr Trudy Dean said: “I have been assured that this temporary use will not affect any future application, but people are obviously very worried about it and we shall be watching very carefully to ensure nothing is done which would open the door to future development.”


The highway work being carried out is to widen the eastern overbridge of the motorway junction, as was done to the western overbridge two years ago.


A Malling Action Partnership publication


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