News


Smallpubs closing,but chains takeupthe slack


REGULARS in the borough have lost 45 pubs since 2001, new gov- ernment research has revealed. Maidstone now has around 5.9


bars per 10,000 people, according to the Office of National Statistics (ONS), but it is still higher than the UK average of 5.8. The number of pub jobs in the


borough remains unchanged at about 1,250. TheBritishBeer andPubAssoci-


ation believes larger chains are ex- panding to absorb the demands of punters left “pint-less” by the clo- sure of smaller, independent pubs. In Tonbridge and Malling there


are now35 fewer bars than in 2001, says the ONS. The borough also has a lower ratio of pubs to people than the national average, at five per 10,000. But, despite the drop in locals,


thepub sectorhas increasedits em- ployment levels in Tonbridge and Malling by 66.7 per cent, and it nowstands at 1,000 jobs. In its report, Economies of Ale, theONS says that nearly a quarter


April’s a date


THEMaidstone SymphonyOr- chestra, featuring the acclaimed sopranoApril Fredrick,will be on stage atMoteHall inMaid- stone on February 2. The singer will be perform-


ing her version of the “highly- charged but


beautifully


poised” Four Last Songs by Richard Strauss. The music starts at 7.30pm


and ticket prices range from£5 for students through to £28. April Fredrick is widely re-


garded and has performed with orchestras before as well as in stageproductions. She has studied at the Royal Academy ofMusic. Log onto www.mso.org.uk


or call 07817429143 for further details.


Toilet plan


FREMLIN Walk Shopping Centre in Maidstone is in- stalling a “changing places” fa- cility. The shopping centre, which already hasdisabledtoi- lets and baby changing facili- ties, will be opening the brand newloo in early 2019.


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Despite pub closures, breweries like Linton’sMusket are thriving


of pubs in the UK (11,000) have closed in the last decade, but turnover in the industry is holding up and employment is on the rise. The report says: “ONS data con-


firms the large fall in the number of pubs, from around 50,000 pubs in 2008 to around39,000pubs in 2018. “Although lots of pubs have


closed, the total turnover of pubs and bars has held up, remaining flat since 2008.The remainingpubs andbars appear to have soakedup


the custom from those pubs that have closed down. “While the number of jobs in


pubs dipped during the economic downturn, there are now6%more jobs than therewere in 2008.” The Campaign for Real Ale


laments the loss of somany pubs. Chairman Jackie Parker said: “Pub closures make us all poorer by reducing tax revenues raised by the pub sector and weakening community life.”


downsmail.co.uk Farewell, Pat


FRIENDS have paid tribute to Leeds villager Pat Ingarfieldwho has died aged 76. Mrs Ingarfield, who was wid-


owed, passed away onNovember 1 after a long illness. Her funeral was held at St


Nicholas Church in the village. She was well known in her


community as a keen amateur gardener and former chairman of the local Women’s Institute. FriendAudrey Browne said: “She was a very, very good friend and she was always willing to help people out. Shewill be verymuch missed.” Her husbandMichael, a former


chairman of the parish council, died some years ago. Mrs In- garfield was survived by three sons.


Drugs charge


OFFICERS investigating the sup- ply of classAdrugs inMaidstone have charged aman. Shaquille Gordon (19), of Lon-


don, was arrested on November 26 and charged the following day with the supply of heroin and co- caine inMaidstone between Janu- ary 2 andMay 16 2018.


Eco village plan ‘could easily fund relief road’


THE offer to fund a relief road fromthe proceeds of an “eco vil- lage” in the heart of Kingswood remains on the table, says one of the people behind the scheme. Tens ofmillions of pounds could


be realised through the project, whichwould involve the construc- tion of 900 houses on the site of a tree-growing business. A by-pass could cost up to £75mto build. Farmer Rob Schroeder (pictured)


is considering submitting a plan- ning application ahead of Maid- stone Borough Council’s reviewof its Local Plan in 2021. MBC may have to find room for


another 7-8,000 homes on top of 17,600 contained in the Local Plan. The need for yet more houses


without roads to cope with the traffic will once again put Liberal Democrat-run MBC under the spotlight for choosing “modal shift” as itsway of dealingwith an estimated increase of 30,000 cars with the first tranche of houses.


Maidstone East January 2019 Modal shift will encourage peo-


ple to ride bicycles, walk or take buses rather than use their cars. Mr Schroeder said: “Maidstone


Borough Council is living in cloud cuckoo land if they think people will take non-existent buses, ride a bike or walk up the M20.Our pro- posal could fund a relief road eas- ily.Wewill consider an application when the call goes out.” Mr Schroeder and neighbour


Keith Cook own 120 acres off Gravelly BottomRoad and are the brains behind Eco Build Partner- ship UK. The scheme would pro- vide retirement homes, rural dwellings and 50 business units at Broomfield Park. A new by-pass would see the


widening of Burberry Lane with a roundabout at Park Barn Road to access the development, while the road would turn sharply to the right, cross the B2163 and emerge on the A274 somewhere near The Potting Shed. Martin Round, who sits on


MBC’s planning committe, said: “There is no official call for sites at present but there may well be by March or April next year. I would say we would be looking at a few of thosemore innovative, larger or radical solutionswhenwe put out that call for sites because I would imagine we will have to look at some innovative and radical solu- tions.”


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