The post you are reporting:
I spent 6 days in Canterbury hospital in July and on one of those days - late morning, I felt well enough to walk in to Canterbury City centre.
I sat by the Cafe Rouge, near to M & S and looked around, listening to the live music being played by a chap.
The place was heaving, all different languages could be heard and it was a big eye-opener.
It's wrong to compare Canterbury and Dover, but what was striking, was that the buildings in Canterbury were clean and smart, none were in need of urgent repair or refurbishment; the streets were clean and everywhere looked welcoming and smart.
Sadly, the same can not be said for Dover; this is where a Town Centre Management/Business Support Manager is needed.
I have tried really hard over many years, to work on ground-floor initiatives, but no one (in authority) was then, or is now, listening - or even wants to listen.
The Town Council can't/shouldn't do this on their own; the District Council have no money to; the two Chambers of Commerce don't have a clue about Town Centre Management or supporting local retail businesses, so the Town continues to struggle and so do the businesses: surviving instead of thriving.
As I've said many times before, Dover needs to be a tourist destination - we have enough here for them to stay a few days, including the must-do day trip to France, so working with one or more Ferry companies would be essential.
Lots to do and it wouldn't take a fortune, just organising, but like a rabbit in the head-lights, they (the real stake-holders) are all stuck rigid.
Roger
