Constable Crowcroft still dreams of City status for St Helier but the reality is that the ancient Jersey capital is being turned into the Island dump.
Not only are new rabbit hutch homes being crammed into the crumbling town alongside every unsocial activity from refuse, scrap and sewage disposal to night-time thuggery and mahem – but now the economic heart is to be removed and re-located too.
The free marketeering planners and developers – in spite of bringing the world economy to its knees – are still hell bent on building 600,000 sq ft of new offices on the absurd Esplanade Quarter besides more shops, cafes and leisure facilities. Yet 5000 existing workers will simply be re-located from the old town and their existing offices and business premises will just become vacant along with all the offices and other premises that are already falling into ruin around St Helier.
Supposedly, the Esplanade Quarter development will generate £75 millions to be spent on improving old St Helier but it’s just another pipedream - as the Ann Court fiasco has demonstrated, neglect, decay and planning vandalism is the future for most of St Helier.
Meanwhile the sacred Jersey cow looks out over open green fields and keeps the islands most wealthy country parish residents happy……….
Submitted by Thomas Wellard.
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2 comments:
I don't dream of city status for St Helier. When interviewed for this blog what I said was that I still thought there would be no harm in St Helier getting city status, but that it wasn't a top priority for me. The things I dream about for St Helier go into the top priority category - a town that's clean, safe and well funded; that has more than adequate open spaces, good air quality, excellent facilities for the disabled, the pedestrian and the cyclist; that is a place tourists want to come and visit; that maintains its amazing range of shops and places to eat and drink; that has a thriving community of artists and writers; that's a place people choose to make a home in because of the convenient access to schools, shops, museums ... Frankly I don't really mind whether it's called the town or the city of St. Helier!
Constable Crowcroft's ambitions for St Helier will no doubt receive the suppport of many residents of the parish but where is the political will and resolve?
Decades of neglect are not just coincidence. What is wrong with the system and why is the Constable of the most important parish and his 10 Deputies so easily disregarded?
So far as Ann Court is concerned, there cannot be a better opportunity to create a true gem in central St Helier. Turn this space into a proper little park with pedestrian access to and from the Arts Centre so that it can be a place for open air fun and entertainment for people of all ages. Don't waste money even turning it into a temporary car park - just lay the turf now and enjoy the place this summer and maybe even politicians will use it as a place to meet with the electorate and discuss common interests.
C'mon Constable - you have the authority - use it!!!!!
Grock
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