Guest 1764- Registered: 31 May 2016
- Posts: 4
Town Council Answers Please, What are all these internal transfers for? At a quick glance £500,000 so far for May/June and July. £2000 to insure the council robes (outfits) A lease for £4,308 for 3 months for what?, Legal advice £5,404!, Zero towards Dour river clean up., Tourism support 0. Cllr training at best western hotel? £350 plus £350.75 in 2 months. What training? What's with all the different cash books again? Who / what is Dover community association? They got a grant of £27,290. What for have any of the towns folk seen any of this money spent.
Guest 1767 likes this
Captain Haddock
- Location: Marlinspike Hall
- Registered: 8 Oct 2012
- Posts: 8,167
"We are living in very strange times, and they are likely to get a lot stranger before we bottom out"
Dr. Hunter S Thompson
Guest 1694- Registered: 24 Feb 2016
- Posts: 1,087
Clearly it is all public, as you can see it, as can I.
DCA (Dover Community Association) is taking on Biggin Hall and refurbishing it for community use. Legal advice is probably to do with the formation and establishment of the Love Dover company which has been formed by Dover Town Council to purchase and refurbish run down and derelict/empty properties in our High Street and return them to use as commercial properties with private rentals above. The formation of this company was in the news the other week, as was its initial endowment of £375,000 from the council.
Then there is the commitment that the Town Council, together with the Town Team, has made to financially supporting the planning and development phase for the refurbishment of the public realm between Bench Street, through the Market Square to Canon Street and Biggin Street, which includes the creation of a new water feature for the Market Square and a 'Ghosts of Dover' feature to be projected through the water using lights and lasers; this project is in development and will come for public consultation relatively soon, it is also the subject of a funding bid to the Coastal Communities Fund for the money required to deliver the project in full (some £1.7m is the total requirement to deliver the build phase of the project).
Having attended the odd council meeting as a member of the public recently, I believe that future accounts will show money for Tourism Support and I am sure that the DTC has previously provided financial support to the Dour River clean up, probably via individual councillor grants.
I don't know what the training was about, but considering how many people complain about how useless they think the council is, I'd think that the moaners would be pleased that councillors are getting training to deliver a better council service.
Ross Miller, Guest 1385 and Jan Higgins like this
howard mcsweeney1- Location: Dover
- Registered: 12 Mar 2008
- Posts: 62,352
The Town Clerk is probably the best person to furnish all the financial information, as for Dover Community Association I seem to remember refurbishment of Biggin Hall and/or the adjoining bogs was being organised by them with a grant from the Town Council.
https://sites.google.com/a/dovercommunity.org/dover-community-association/news-and-announcements/2016agmGuest 1694- Registered: 24 Feb 2016
- Posts: 1,087
Just been able to ascertain that DTC provided funding to River Dour Partnership in the previous financial year for safety equipment for the river clean-up volunteers, and a contribution to funding for environmental improvements being carried out on the river by South East Rivers Trust. The grant was made to the Dover Society as that is the host for the River Dour Partnership so might not be immediately obvious from the accounts.
Reginald Barrington likes this
Guest 1792- Registered: 2 Jul 2016
- Posts: 111
I did that survey for DDC , when they asked for ways to save money , I wrote to get rid of parish councils and get rid Town council ,after all they do nothing cept waste money ,Utterly appalling they waste money on cars taxis robes gloves etc and correct me if I'm wrong didn't the taxpayer fork out £35 per head last yr for Xmas dinners for all the staff ,, I've read plenty of horror stories about this Alison Burton don't think I d believe her if she told me black was black and white was white ,Is it true also that us taxpayers are forking out £20,000 for her to do a law course which was a qualification she should have had for the job ,I've been seeing this on all various Dover sites
Guest 1266- Registered: 8 May 2014
- Posts: 381
£1.7m funding requirement to deliver a 'Ghosts of Dover' lazer water feature
Jack of Hearts
Guest 1831- Registered: 1 Sep 2016
- Posts: 395
No Jack Heart - As I read it. This money will be for the whole water feature project.
Very Good News that Water will be coming back to the Market Square.
The Turd has now lost its appeal. Water is always fascinating and lively to watch etc.
howard mcsweeney1- Location: Dover
- Registered: 12 Mar 2008
- Posts: 62,352
I wouldn't take Dover sites on social media too seriously, posters tend to try to overdo previous ones with horror stories about the Town Council. Quite frankly I don't believe the Town Clerk eats babies.
Button and Guest 1385 like this
Guest 1767- Registered: 1 Jun 2016
- Posts: 49
Very interesting reading the above postings together with quite valid responses, however, one query is lingering, these internal transfers? Who works out the budgets for each cash book (service) as quite clearly the budgets are not being adhered to!. If that occurred in my house, the debt collectors would be called in as I could not just magic up an internal transfer!
Guest 1792 likes this
Guest 1792- Registered: 2 Jul 2016
- Posts: 111
Don't believe I said she did ,but I've never seen anyone that thinks she's the cats whiskers either.
Guest 1767- Registered: 1 Jun 2016
- Posts: 49
well Cherry not sure what your quote was about; who is the cat's whiskers?
Having had more time to peruse the accounts; I note a payment to Trident Towing Company for £2,666. why does DTC need a towing service as we have the use of a 4x4 to tow things around. Oh, I see it's for a trailer; is this trailer for carrying all the gardening equipment ie: mowers & strimmers etc., for allotments and other areas of our town. Why do DTC need the services of a fuel guzzling 4x4, when an investment of a small lockable van would serve the needs of the gardener? Good money saving idea
Guest 1694- Registered: 24 Feb 2016
- Posts: 1,087
Jack "£1.7m funding requirement to deliver a 'Ghosts of Dover' lazer water feature "
No. £1.7m to refurbish the public realm and remodel the roadway (to make the Market Square more suitable for larger public events) and open up pedestrian access to/from the DTIZ and revitalise our traditional High Street, from Bench Street, through the Market Square to Canon Street and up into Biggin Street, this will include a new water feature and 'Ghosts of Dover' feature projected through the water.
Judith Roberts and Guest 1831 like this
Judith Roberts- Registered: 15 May 2012
- Posts: 637
I like the idea of a new water feature. I miss the fountain. I think the' Ghosts of Dover' idea a bit weird. Is it holographic figures projected in the water feature? It might scare children if it is.
Guest 1694- Registered: 24 Feb 2016
- Posts: 1,087
Judith, the background to the idea is that we have a modern and somewhat generic development at the DTIZ and probably a modern and somewhat generic development around the new marina on the waterfront, but Dover is a uniquely historic town, it has a story to tell that nowhere else has, but we are not telling it right now in a way that can attract significant numbers of people into the historic heart of the town. So, how do we tell our story? How do we begin to relate the unique story of our town to a modern audience, many of whom will otherwise bypass our heritage buildings, people who are a mixture of locals and visiting tourists? How do we create a one of a kind attraction that adds to our heritage environment without impinging on or detracting from it?
The 'Ghosts of Dover' will not be ghostly figures, but laser generated images depicting events and people from our town's history which are given a 3D effect by being projected through the 3 dimensional prism of the water feature at given times of the day when it will go from colour lit water jets to a fine mist square curtain of water - well that's the idea anyway.
howard mcsweeney1 and Reginald Barrington like this
Judith Roberts- Registered: 15 May 2012
- Posts: 637
Sounds interesting. I hope it comes to pass and look forward to seeing it in due course. Are the 'people from history' local folk or the usual Romans, Royals and Winston Churchill? There are so many historic figures to choose from.
TheThinWhiteDuke- Registered: 7 Jul 2016
- Posts: 359
What are the plans to stop this new (and ridiculously expensive) water feature from being buggered up by the traditional prank involving a bottle of washing up liquid?
Jan Higgins
- Location: Dover
- Registered: 5 Jul 2010
- Posts: 13,895
Thank you Neil for the explanation and keeping us informed.
Now for the moan why are our councillors not telling us what is happening, have they something to hide or is it the usual doctrine of keep us the peasants, who they are supposed to represent, out of the loop.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
I try to be neutral and polite but it is hard and getting even more difficult at times.
-------------------------------------------------------------------
Captain Haddock- Location: Marlinspike Hall
- Registered: 8 Oct 2012
- Posts: 8,167
Neil.Wiggins wrote:
The 'Ghosts of Dover' will not be ghostly figures, but laser generated images depicting events and people from our town's history which are given a 3D effect by being projected through the 3 dimensional prism of the water feature at given times of the day when it will go from colour lit water jets to a fine mist square curtain of water - well that's the idea anyway.
Sounds dire! Personally I'd like Dover to be pushing its History (rather than dumbed-down Heritage with the patronising view that visitors are so bloody thick that they need interpretation rather than information)
Didn't we learn anything from the White Elephant Experience debacle?
We should be trying to emulate Oxford or Bath not sodding Alton Towers.
Ross Miller 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
Guest 660- Registered: 14 Mar 2008
- Posts: 3,205
when I was a Cllr I was on here often,to let people know what was going on and people still moaned and once I was threatened at being sued.
howard mcsweeney1 likes this
If you knew what I know,we would both be in trouble!
