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‘Garish’ signs put up without permission


BEARSTED Parish Council has strongly objected to new signs erected outside Barty House Nursing Home in the village. Cllr Tony Ryan feels the blue and


Warden helps


to clear flood BEARSTED’S community warden Sally Williams helped to relieve a flooding issue in Water Lane after heavy rain by clearing drain cov- ers.


The warden spotted the problem on March 1 when she was on a “visible presence” patrol. She reported to the parish coun- cil: “I was walking around the Roundwell area of Bearsted and got to Water Lane and the road was flooded due to the recent bad weather.


“I telephoned Kent County Council’s drainage department and reported the problem and was given a reference number. I also cleared the drain covers of leaves around Water Lane to help the water to clear.”


Cllr John Hughes joked: “There’s


always flooding in Water Lane – that’s why it’s called Water Lane!”


Dog waste on


the agenda BEARSTED Parish Council, along with other Maidstone Parishes, recently had their dog bins removed by MBC in a cost- cutting measure. At the March parish meeting, it


was discussed whether the coun- cil should buy 10 replacement co- mingled bins at an additional cost to the council. (Co-mingled bins are the black bins that can be used for dog and other waste.) However, due to the fact that residents were now using the cur- rent bins or taking the dog waste home, the situation had improved in recent weeks.


The council


would continue to monitor to en- sure that this continued to be the case.


The council noted that there


were a number of responsible dog owners in the village. Failing to remove dog waste is an offence which carries a fine.


white signs are “out of character” with the surrounding area. The residential home submitted


a retrospective planning applica- tion for the signs, the council’s re- cent full meeting heard. Cllr Ryan told the meeting:


“They are out of character with the listed building and wall. The new signage is just awful ... just garish.” The council will ask for signs


placed on thewall outside the busi- ness to be removed and replaced with more “sympathetic signage”. Cllr Ryan added: “This is a com- mercial enterprise and they are there to make money. They have put these signs up and then retro- spectively made an application for permission. “They are twice the size of the


old signs and they just don’t look right.” Barty House in Roundwell is an imposing listed Victorian building


chairman Graham Farrow, who says that half a dozen residents had complained of the signs to him per- sonally, said: “They’re ruining the look of a grade two listed building. They really do stand out and they are totally, totally out of keeping.” A spokesman for Barty House admitted the signs were erected without planning permission as Canford Healthcare and blamed “human error”. She said: “The signs were a re- placement for the existing signs and because they were installed with planning permission, we as- sumed it was like for like. We found out that we had to apply for planning permission, so retrospec- tive planning permission was put in.”


built in 1870. It is currently used as a care home for the elderly. Run by Canford Healthcare, it can accom- modate 57 residents. The parish council’s planning committee


The spokesman added that “someone else” made the decision and “the communication did not flow” as well as it should have within its organisation.


Dogwarning


COMMUNITY warden Sally Williams has highlighted the issue of dog thefts in recent months. She warned pet-owners against leaving their dogs tied up outside shops, a problem she had seen while out on patrol in the parish. The warden said: “I am noticing


dog owners are still tying dogs up outside shops, despite all the dog thefts that are going on around us. “When I see this, I am making


the owners aware of how easy it is to steal the dogs and advising them not to leave their pets unattended.” Parish council vice chairman Richard Camp said: “It seems there has been a spate of dog thefts across Kent, not just around here.”


Birthday flight Letter of thanks to mayor


A LETTER of thanks is to be sent to the outgoingMayor ofMaidstone, Cllr Derek Butler, pictured above, who will be stepping down in May. Cllr Tony Ryan said: “We should send a letter of thanks to the mayor. He has been a great supporter of Bearsted Parish Council and our residents and has at- tended many of our functions throughout the year.”


This page is sponsored and edited by:


Bearsted Parish Council www.bearstedparishcouncil.gov.uk


22 Maidstone East April 2017


BEARSTED member on Maidstone Borough Council, Cllr Mike Cum- ing, was unable to attend the March meeting of Bearsted Parish Council as hewas celebrating a sig- nificant birthday with a flight in a Spitfire. The council wished him well.  See page 3 for the full story.


Council Office: Madginford Hall, Bearsted Telephone: E-Mail: Chair:


01622 630165


clerk@bearstedparishcouncil.gov.uk Fiona Redman


MEETINGS HELD SECOND TUESDAYOFMONTH (7.30PM) AND THE PUBLIC IS VERY WELCOME


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