Bridgwater Town Councillors joined today’s meeting at the Mercure Hotel called to address public concerns about the controversial ‘Celebration Mile’. The project was conceived by Sedgemoor District Council as part of the previous governments ‘Town Deal’ which established a fund of some £23m for local projects which included many of the road works currently going on at the same time right now plus other schemes such as the Art Centre, the Town hall, the Engine Room, the Carnival centre and the Docks.
Town Council Leader cllr Brian Smedley (Labour Westover) was at the meeting and said “This project was conceievd by Sedgemoor and when that Council was abolished, transfered to Somerset County. They’re in charge. Town Council’s role in this is simply that we have one member on the Town Deal board. That said, we have to deal with the consequences and, one would hope, benefit from the outcome. In the meantime it’s incredibly difficult for people who see the project as more trouble than it’s worth. The problem here is that we ask for more money to be spent in Bridgwater and when we get it different people think it should be spent differently. Some even think we should give it back. We can’t give it back, we’d lose the money. We can’t change it to another project-Sedgemoor got the money for this specific project and we can’t scrap it as there would be fines and compensations from contractors. We just need to make sure the work is done properly, quickly, efficiently and the key thing is getting the communications right. But I want to emphasize that this is NOT a Town Council project it;s now a COUNTY Council project. We asked them for Compensation for the businesses affected, county refused. So we asked for business rate relief, and that actually is now on the table and so we are encouraging affected businesses to go down that route.”
Communication
Eastover’s Labour County Councillors Leigh Redman and Hilary Bruce have been working hard to keep communications about the project going. Cllr Redman said after the session this morning “Communication was always going to be an important part of the contractors job for this project. Residents and businesses need to know what’s going on, or in many cases what is not going on and why,The session today was a benefit, bringing residents and traders together with senior council and contractor representatives, to discuss concerns, I hope the improved comms continue.”
Cllr Redman continued, “The project is often being held up due to unforeseen circumstances, supplier, utilities or contractor, and so the important point is letting people know. However, I am still concerned with the proposal to one way East Quay and its impact on the further road networks, particularly now that Cannons capacity works has been stopped. I am aware that there will be other works around the Clink/retail park in the near future, which will include a new crossing between Sainsburys and the retail park, something Cllr Bruce and I worked hard to get following residents concerns.”
Communication
Bridgwater Town Council Transport spokesman Cllr Tim Mander (Labour, Westover) said “I was able to speak to representatives of Taylor Woodrow (the contractors) and Somerset Council. Being a Westover Councillor I was particularly interested in the Angel Crescent and Clare Street sections of the Celebration Mile. I took the opportunity to voice the frustration of traders in Angel Crescent at both the time the work was taking, and the stop start nature of the sections already carried out. There needs to be better communication and greater urgency invested in the project. Whilst I was informed of problems with the supply chain, which was responsible for some hold ups, I stressed that reasons for delay need to be explained to all stakeholders. It is clear that both the contractors and Somerset Council really appreciate the need to get on with the works and understand the public frustrations with the project.”
Communication
Cllr Mick Lerry (Labour, Victoria) is the Town Council’s BEconomic development spokesman and the only Town Councillor with a seat on the Town Deal Board. Mick said “ Obviously, the issue is communication with the public and businesses about the progress of the project. However, it is also about mitigation as well and businesses who pay Business rates can apply for a discount. Somerset Council have also been asked if Officers can assist businesses with this process. Members of the public did understand that at the end of the development, the investment will encourage more businesses to invest in Bridgwater. Some businesses have also benefitted from the local sales of material and the employment of companies to carry out certain operational tasks.”