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LATEST NEWS
26th October 2006
The Beast is Back!

The Beast of Brentwood
Residents of Brentwood have reported recent sightings of a potentially dangerous creature loose in Weald Park. The creature, described as panther-like, was observed by several different people at a variety of sites around the park.

There have been rumours of a wild beast in the Brentwood area for many years. The sleek, dark animal has been nicknamed Brandon.

The local horse riding community is up in arms about the actions of this creature. "At present, we have a number of bridleways and open spaces all over Weald Park which we can use as we wish" said a spokesman. "But with Brandon making tracks all over the park, we are frightened that we won't be able to do this in future. Brandon's actions, and fear of Brandon, will make the park a no-go area for horse riders." Other residents echoed this view. "We are concerned that our freedom to roam through the park will be severely curtailed by Brandon's presence" said Ethel, a small tan and white Jack Russell. Police later closed the park to all non-paying visitors, as a security measure.

One of the eye witnesses commented that she hadn't really caught a good sighting of the animal, but had heard the sounds of something unusual under a hedge. "It was a contented sound, as though it had just enjoyed a slap up meal with Mr Blobby at the House of Commons" she said "but once it caught sight of me, it ran off in the direction of Great Yarmouth and vanished. The last thing I remember was that it was muttering something about needing to dig up a car park and bury a cinema, or something like that".

Officials from the Brentwood Menagerie in Ingrave Road, voiced their concern about the nickname Brandon has been given: " It's unfair to call him the 'Beast' of Brentwood - Brandon is just a big soft pussy cat really".

NEWS
26th July 2006
Olympics is just Go Ape 'in disguise'!

That was the headline that Brentwood Gazette gave to one letter of protest about the 2012 Mountain Biking event. Quite right too. Many have complained that the visit of Seb Coe and his "Roadshow" to Weald Country Park was almost a closely guarded secret. A few schoolkids were borrowed for a photo-opportunity in front of the gaudy 'battle-bus', but in reality the whole visit was kept very private to make sure the media-spin exercise wasn't disturbed by the dissenting voices of 'real' people.

In the letters page of Brentwood Gazette July 26th, a Carol Harding writes:

Just what is going on with the Olympic mountain biking event? I read your recent report with interest, but have ended up even more confused than before. I wanted to go along to the meeting in Weald Park to ask some questions myself - I thought that a meeting of public officials in a public park would welcome public participation, particularly as we are constantly told we must get behind the project. But I was told in no uncertain terms that I was not welcome: that it was "a private event". So I am using my local paper - my local community mouthpiece - to raise my concerns.

At first, we were told that everything to do with the mountain biking event would be temporary, and the park restored afterwards. Now both Bob McLintock and Lord Coe are saying that the track should remain and be part of the "legacy".

Then we were told that the mountain biking event would not harm the ecology or the environment of Weald Park. At the moment there are "no cycling" signs up all over the wooded areas of the park, presumably to protect the park from the environmental damage done by leisure cyclists. How can it be that leisure cyclists damage the park, but sports cyclists will not? And how does it work that, after the 2012 Olympics, the leisure cyclists will be encouraged into areas they are presently excluded from? Also, if 12000 spectators are really coming to the park by bus and coach, that's an awfully big coach park.

We've been told that the event will be funded by the IOC. But I have heard that this is only true of temporary facilities. If it is decided that any facilities are to remain, they will be in essence "bought back" by the Council - i.e. charged onto our council tax. It seems to me that mountain biking is a bit of a niche market, and perhaps not a high priority for the mainly elderly population of Brentwood and Shenfield.

Finally, we've been told that the event will bring economic benefits to Brentwood. The supposed benefits, if any, will be minimal; it's all just spin. Even if the 12000 spectators wanted to come and stay in Brentwood for a few days we simply don't have the hotel capacity - and no business is going to invest in more hotel space on the back of a 2 day event. The facilities, construction, coaches and catering will all be franchised out to outside firms. I asked an officer from Brentwood council about this and she told me that it would be "like Wimbledon - you know, accommodation there is so scarce that people can go away for the whole fortnight and rent out their houses..." i.e. we will benefit economically only if we all decamp for the duration !

The same Council officer trotted out the usual refrain that the Olympics simply won't work unless we're all behind it. Had the people of Brentwood been asked, and wanted this event, we might wish to give it our support. But it has been imposed with no consultation, and in a democracy we have the right to oppose such schemes.

All this reminds me of the Go Ape! fiasco in Thorndon park a few months ago - commercialisation by the back door of a publicly owned and much loved public space. Who can ever compensate us for the damage done to this beautiful, quiet amenity?

NEWS
16th April 2006
Olympic Destruction in Brentwood!

Congratulations to the Save Thorndon Park protesters for fighting off the Go Ape 'theme-park' proposals!

However, Councillor Stephen Castle has other plans for Brentwood Parks. He is also behind the proposals for the Olympic Mountain Biking event in Weald Country Park, another plan presented to local people without prior consultation.

After all the fuss is over, we are told the park will be restored to its former natural state. But before that, there will be months of untold disruption and devastation caused by track earthworks and the removal of mature trees, the building of infrastructure: hard-standing for thousands of vehicles, toilets, changing rooms, food stalls, TV gantries, and seating for 3000 or more; all for an event lasting just 2 days.

As if that is not bad enough, can we really believe that they will keep their promise to remove everything afterwards and put right the damage? Or will we be given all the same spin we've heard from Cllr Castle about Go Ape? The argument is utterly predictable: keeping the expensive new facilities as a commercial operation will be sold to us as a great opportunity to bring in 'much-needed income'.

But the arguments against mountain biking in Weald Park are just the same as those against Go Ape in Thorndon - it will be an unwanted intrusion into the quiet beauty of green belt woodland. Accepting it as an Olympic venue is the thin end of the wedge in driving through the total commercialisation of our park.

NEWS
24th October 2005
Promises, promises - Update!

I'm not alone in smelling a rat on the new Brentwood Cinema proposals.
In the letters page of Brentwood Gazette October 19 2005, a Graham Leigh writes:

... As for the cinema idea, believe that if you will! How is a new high-cost facility going to be an economic success when the previous existing cinema complex was deemed to not to be financially viable?
I wonder what bright spark thought up that tempting morsel. Whoever they are, he or she deserves a medal for a creative imagination. I think that suggested facility would join previous promises of much-wanted amenities that disappeared without trace once proposed plans have been accepted and building commenced.

In the very same edition of the Brentwood Gazette, more of the same pie-in-the-sky promises are exposed:

SCREEN DREAM: Promises that a cinema will be coming to Brentwood have been thrown into doubt after the borough council leader admitted he had not yet spoken to any cinema operators.
Cllr Brandon Lewis had promised that a new cinema would be a cornerstone of any development on the William Hunter Way car park, saying: "Our absolute requirement is that we bring a cinema to this site."
However at a council meeting he admitted he had not yet apprached cinema operators about the idea. But he insisted that he had good reason to believe that a cinema was possible. He said:"I think that the town is now in a position to be more attractive to business"

Dream on, councillor. We don't even know if the new Bay Street shopping area will be any more attractive to people than the old Chapel High wind tunnel. Every week the newspaper publishes complaints how even with car parking for over 400 cars off William Hunter Way, the current lack of in-town car parking is ruining business for shops and local firms. If, by some miracle, the Bay Tree Centre attracts more shoppers there will be even more pressure on car parking. The truth is people would rather go to Lakeside, or Chelmsford, where they can wander round a huge range of shops without the deafening ordeal of fume-belching articulated lorries driving past them a foot from the pavement.

OLD NEWS
20th March 2005
Promises, promises

So after the uproar from businesses complaining about the idea of building shops and bijou apartments on the 3 acre William Hunter car park, now the council is trying to sway opinion with promises of a multi-screen cinema.
Well of all the things that Brentwood people wanted from the Bay Tree Centre Shopping re-development, a cinema was the one thing most requested. A cinema is the one thing that the council failed to deliver, citing all sorts of excuses. It's a bit rich to try to tempt people into agreeing a stupid proposal with these hollow promises, which no doubt will run into some "unexpected" obstacle after the general principle of building on the only in-town car park has been agreed. What contempt they have for our intelligence.

OLD NEWS
11th March 2005
Plans to build 350 Apartments on Gasworks Site

People at the Warley end of Brentwood are up in arms about a property developers plan to build 350 flats off Kings Road on the site of the gasworks.
Once again parking is a major concern. Stunning that Brentwood Council should countenance it. There is already a scandal over the lack of GP services in the area created by the sprawling developments on the Warley Hospital Site. Are the inhabitants going to further swamp the lists of desperately over-worked Avenue Surgery?
Apparently developers say parking for so many new people isn't an issue because the occupiers will be young professional people who don't have cars. What planet are they living on - just about everyone has a car.

OLD NEWS
1st March 2005
Plans to build on William Hunter Way in Brentwood.

Oh great, another bright idea from our local councillors. More shops that'll be boarded up and empty and eventually let to Charity shops for nothing because no-one can afford the ludicrous business rates of Brentwood.
Even with Sainsburys car park, there isn't enough parking space now on busy days. That's why people are abandoning Brentwood shops and driving to Lakeside & Bluewater.