Tax Avoiding Phone Company Wants Mast on Recreation Ground

How's Your Signal? 

Hedge End Town Council has been approached by representatives of a mobile phone company who are looking for a site for a new mast to improve their signal in the "Southampton area".  They have suggested that the Town Council's recreation ground at Woodhouse Lane would be a suitable location (at least from their point of view).  Apparently they are willing to negotiate a rental for the land which would be occupied by their new base station.

At the moment the Council has no real information.  We don't know how tall, what it would look like, how much land it would occupy or how much the phone company would be willing to pay.  Although if their recent performance with Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs is typical, we can expect them to drive a hard bargain.

On the down side a mobile phone mast would be an eyesore, would make the recreation ground more cluttered, and might raise concerns amongst the parents of scouts, guides and pre-school children who meet at Baden Powell Lodge.

On the plus side, it would be a new income stream for the Town Council at a time when it is trying to avoid any increase to its council tax precept.  And if you are a customer of a famous tax avoiding multinational mobile phone company based in Newbury, you might get an improved signal.

While the Council is trying to find out a bit more from the company, it would be good to know what people think about whether mobile phones on recs is an appropriate use of public land.


Photo Credit: Tim Parkinson

Tories Insist: Land Not For Sale

Farm Land or Concrete? 

Serious doubts remain about whether the Lib Dem master plan for 3,500 houses in Hedge End and Botley is deliverable.  The planning process is currently stalled by unspecified concerns from the Highway Agency according to the Borough Council web site.  And local Tories continue to claim that Hampshire County Council will not sell the land at Woodhouse Lane in Hedge End where the Lib Dems want to build a thousand houses. 

Hiltingbury Conservative Cllr Grajewski plans to ask this question of Borough Council Leader and Hedge End Town Councillor Keith House at this week's Full Council meeting: "In view of the fact that Hampshire County Council has informed Eastleigh Borough Council that it will not release land at Woodhouse Lane for development within the plan period 2011-2029, what does the future hold for the Draft Local Plan?"

Perhaps the question should also be asked: "In view of the fact that official Conservative policy is to build as many houses on green field land as possible, can Hampshire Tories really stand up against their masters at Westminster?"  Planning minister Nick Boles has this to say: “It’s my job to make the arguments to these people [people who oppose development] that if they carry on writing letters their kids are never going to get a place with a garden to bring up their grandkids"

I've said it before - Who can you believe?

Lib Dems Tree Hypocrisy

How the Trees Looked in July 

Lib Dem controlled Eastleigh Borough Council recently destroyed a number of mature trees in Grange Road, Hedge End.  This despite claiming on their web site that "The Council is committed to protecting, improving and developing the Borough's tree stock in public places."

The Town Council's Highways and Planning Committee to its credit has tried to get to the bottom of this travesty.   In the minutes of its 5th December meeting it was reported that the chain-saw wielding Borough:

Firstly tried to blame local residents for damaging the trees in the first place, despite claiming on its web site that it will "ensure that trees on public land are retained wherever possible and are given appropriate protection from the effects of development and construction activities.."

Secondly revealed that the "works" were approved  by the 100% Lib Dem Hedge End, West End and Botley Local Area Committee.

Thirdly admitted that the trees were not on publicly owned land in the first place.  It's a shame they didn't bother to find that out before they sent in the publicy financed chain saws.

Finally have stated that the trees will not be replaced, despite claiming on their web site that  "A range of species will be selected for new and replacement planting taking into account their suitability to each site."

While they thought the trees were on public land, the Council had the "full intention of making a claim for enforcement and criminal damage against the resident."  But now they find they have destroyed trees on somebody else's land, they are washing their hands of the whole matter.

Hedge End Plants Native Trees

As a minority of one on the Town Council, it is pleasing when an idea you have suggested leads to something good.  Back in December 2011 I suggested to the Recreation and Amenities Committee that we should take advantage of native trees being offered free by the Woodland Trust as part of their Jubilee Woods project.

My original suggestion was for the trees to be planted on the Council's land at Kanes Hill as the nucleus of a new community woodland.  As it turned out more people supported planting them at the new Dowd's Farm Park, and I have to admit it turned out to be an excellent choice as more than fifty volunteers turned up on Saturday to help with the planting.

There were Town and Borough councillors, Town Council staff, members of Hedge End Horticultural Society, Girl Guides and local people of all ages.  The Council had advertised it as a four hour event, but the number of volunteers meant all the trees were planted in an hour.   Everybody deserves a pat on the back for a demonstration of true community spirit.

The important thing is that Hedge End now has 400 more trees than it did last week.  They are native species, so will contribute to our biodiversity and support native insects and birds.  They will be good for the environment and good for people too.

Mrs Hedge End Blogger took some photos:

Many Hands

Cllr Baynes

Hedge End's Tree Warden

Cllrs Jenny and Peter Hughes

One of the Younger Helpers

Hedge End Blogger

Cllr Allingham

Cllr Welsh

Grown from one of the Queen's Own Acorns

The "Royal" Oak

The Group Shot

Lib Dems Too Late

Red alert or red faces?   

A full four months after Hedge End Blogger reported the story, the Lib Dems in their "Winter 2012" newspaper have finally caught up with the Conservative County Council's plans to privatize our museums.

Not only are they four months behind Hedge End Blogger, they are three months too late for the consultation which closed at the end of July.

All a bit embarrassing for our County Cllrs Kyrle and Tennent as the local Lib Dem propaganda machine puts a stock photo of them posing outside Hedge End Library to illustrate a story about museums.   If they think that is putting local people on "red alert", I hope they made a better job of returning those library books on time.

Seriously though, perhaps one of them could tell us what happened to the County Council consultation as all reference to it seems to have disappeared from the Hampshire web site.

Lib Dems Green Light for Late Night Pizzas

Opening the door for an enhanced night-time economy in Hedge End, Local Lib Dems have given the OK for Domino's Pizza to extend their opening hours.

As reported on this blog here and here, Domino's wanted to stay open until 3am seven days a week.  They applied to the Southampton and Eastleigh Licensing Partnership based at Southampton Civic Centre for permission.  This was in the face of their original planning permission when they took over the old Threshers off-licence which clearly stated that they should close at 11pm. 

Eastleigh's own planning officers were opposed to the extension, as were a number of local residents and the Lib Dems on the Town Council's Highways and Planning Committee.

Now the Licensing Panel, comprising Hedge End Councillors Pretty and Welsh, and Bishopstoke's Cllr Winstanley have decided that an extension to midnight is OK.

Within weeks of the decision, a visitor to Hedge End was mugged for his pizza in the car park behind Domino's.

Photo credit -Pål Berge

Massive Housing Plans Force Boundary Rethink

Green fields sacrificed to more and more houses 

Lib Dem plans for thousands of houses on green fields in Hedge End and Botley may require local parish boundaries to be changed.  Hedge End Town Council's Finance and Administration Committee will be discussing the need for changes on Tuesday (meeting starts at 7:00pm at the 2000 Centre).

According to the Office for National Statistics the average electoral ward  has a population of 5,500.  The Lib Dems 3,500 new houses could bring with them enough voters for at least one new ward and require some adjustments in existing wards.

At a national level proposed boundary changes have revealed weaknesses and divisions in the Conservative dominated coalition.   All parties try to extract the maximum political advantage when constituency boundaries change.  Lobbying by Labour and Lib Dems has resulted in the Boundary Commission withdrawing its proposals for a new parliamentary constituency for Hedge End and Hamble. 

In Hedge End, the Lib Dems have disproportionate control over our local government with all seven Borough councillors and 20 out of 21 town councillors.  If the local Labour and Conservative campaigners are not careful, there could be a boundaries carve up entirely to the benefit of the Lib Dems.