Pablo- Registered: 21 Mar 2018
- Posts: 614
Jan Higgins likes this
howard mcsweeney1- Location: Dover
- Registered: 12 Mar 2008
- Posts: 62,352
I was rather expecting someone like Primark to snap that up once St James was in full flow, I wonder what our enterprising Council have in mind.
Captain Haddock
- Location: Marlinspike Hall
- Registered: 8 Oct 2012
- Posts: 8,163
I believe that our Leader has caved in after much pressure from a former Chairperson who lives in River, and Dover District Council is about to start running in-house a much needed 'Clothing Emporium for Ladies of a Certain Age'.
This has necessarily been kept secret from run-of-the-mill councillors (due to the inevitable need for commercial confidentiality

) and was only decided at a special meeting of the Commercial Property Advisory group (Snargate Street Division) last week, who have been convinced of the viability of the project, after seeing extensive plans illustrated on the back of a fag packet. They will of course be adjusting Dover's development strategy to reflect this development once they have a strategy.
When I asked whether the rumour that the council was planning to turn the much abused Stembrook Street toilets into a 'much needed' bowling alley,ice rink or department store (see mad correspondence in Dover Express passim) earlier in the week, a council spokesman said that he was unable to comment as he had been ordered that since 25 May he had been told to say that no-one was allowed to know anything due to the General Data Protection Regulation and that if anyone complained he had been told to say it had been imposed by the EU, his hands were tied and that I shoudn't ask too many questions as 'the council knows where you live - Deal is short of a much needed cinema and we're quite good with CPOs, if you get my drift'.

"We are living in very strange times, and they are likely to get a lot stranger before we bottom out"
Dr. Hunter S Thompson
Jan Higgins
- Location: Dover
- Registered: 5 Jul 2010
- Posts: 13,894
Bit of a surprising move, is it big enough for the bowling alley that so many seem to want?
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I try to be neutral and polite but it is hard and getting even more difficult at times.
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Brian Dixon
- Location: Dover
- Registered: 23 Sep 2008
- Posts: 23,940
bowling alley ha more like a boating lake when it rains.
howard mcsweeney1 likes this
Gary39- Registered: 7 Jul 2017
- Posts: 451
Just one question..I thought my council tax was to pay to local services, etc. ? DDC cannot even clean my street probably this year after 5 complaints..
Guest 1165- Registered: 21 Jan 2014
- Posts: 22
Well they didn't do a good job of keeping Schtum about buying the Co-op I heard the mutterings a few months ago! Tim Ingleton's face when I asked him was that of seeing a ghost. The mutterings have always pointed towards demolishing the building to make way for more parking
Bought a house in the south of France the locals we're Avignon of it
howard mcsweeney1- Location: Dover
- Registered: 12 Mar 2008
- Posts: 62,352
An esteemed councillor said exactly the same about it being turned into a car park today so maybe Tommy Inglenook has been sussed?
Captain Haddock
- Location: Marlinspike Hall
- Registered: 8 Oct 2012
- Posts: 8,163
naff123 wrote:The mutterings have always pointed towards demolishing the building to make way for more parking
The mutterings I heard are that it's going to be the base station for a cable car going up to the castle?
"We are living in very strange times, and they are likely to get a lot stranger before we bottom out"
Dr. Hunter S Thompson
Ross Miller
- Location: London Road, Dover
- Registered: 17 Sep 2008
- Posts: 3,707
It needs to be a 3-4 storey mixed use (retail/housing) development
Jan Higgins likes this
"Dream as if you'll live forever. Live as if you'll die today." - James Dean
"Being deeply loved by someone gives you strength,
While loving someone deeply gives you courage" - Laozi
Captain Haddock
- Location: Marlinspike Hall
- Registered: 8 Oct 2012
- Posts: 8,163
Top Tip Ross - in cases like this ALWAYS say 'including much needed affordable housing'.
I've no idea why but I've always found that at this point everyone looks awfully serious and starts nodding their heads, even though no-one actually has any intention of building any as the profit margins of building stuff for poor people hardly make it worth the bother.

Andy B likes this
"We are living in very strange times, and they are likely to get a lot stranger before we bottom out"
Dr. Hunter S Thompson
Ross Miller
- Location: London Road, Dover
- Registered: 17 Sep 2008
- Posts: 3,707
And I am back to CLTs/Social Housing providers working together with local authorities to build much needed social housing... private developers will not do it
"Dream as if you'll live forever. Live as if you'll die today." - James Dean
"Being deeply loved by someone gives you strength,
While loving someone deeply gives you courage" - Laozi
Guest 1831- Registered: 1 Sep 2016
- Posts: 395
There has been a great deal of Social Housing around this area.
Social Housing is a strange beast that morphs itself according to finance and politics.
Gateway Flats being a prime example

Guest 1713 likes this
Ross Miller
- Location: London Road, Dover
- Registered: 17 Sep 2008
- Posts: 3,707
Indeed it has been something of a political football, however my preference is for control to be in the communities hands as far as possible and this is where Community Land Trusts have a major role to play
"Dream as if you'll live forever. Live as if you'll die today." - James Dean
"Being deeply loved by someone gives you strength,
While loving someone deeply gives you courage" - Laozi