Captain Haddock
- Location: Marlinspike Hall
- Registered: 8 Oct 2012
- Posts: 7,941
"We are living in very strange times, and they are likely to get a lot stranger before we bottom out"
Dr. Hunter S Thompson
Reginald Barrington
- Location: Dover
- Registered: 17 Dec 2014
- Posts: 3,232
That's certainly going to kill what's left of the old town centre and high street.
Arte et Marte
Captain Haddock- Location: Marlinspike Hall
- Registered: 8 Oct 2012
- Posts: 7,941
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/business/news/uk-shopping-retail-latest-figures-sharp-decline-high-street-shoppers-september-a7998801.html
Retail Parks footfall up.
High Street footfall down.
Bicester Village (and where the Hell is Bicester most will ask)
6.4m visitors last year.
https://www.bicestervillage.com/en/home/
We are not going to stop the future just because we either don't like or don't understand it.
"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 2418- Registered: 14 Dec 2017
- Posts: 37
Captain Haddock wrote:
Dover really needs a strategic plan looking to the future rather than perpetually playing catch up.
I see you are in the news again about your twitter trolling of black lives matter. Perhaps if councillors spent less time on social media or posting on forums and actually did something we would have a plan for Dover!
Captain Haddock- Location: Marlinspike Hall
- Registered: 8 Oct 2012
- Posts: 7,941
PaulineQuick wrote:I see you are in the news again about your twitter trolling
Pauline, I hardly call referencing the tragic and unnecessary deaths of 20 youngsters last year by stabbing in London 'trolling'. I actually do think that black lives matter. If white middle class kids were killing and maiming each other in such numbers it would be national headlines each day until something was done. The Police Commissioner Cressida Dick has made a number of statements and today Sadiq Khan stated 'I’m determined to do everything I can to tackle knife crime across our city. As part of my plans, I’m investing an extra £1.4m to provide more youth workers to A&E departments across London'. Only a small number of my 22K tweets refer to this subject, which include retweeting Tracey Ford who works within the black community on the topic. The fact that a number of my on-line stalkers get worked up about a hashtag I suspect says more about them than me?
"We are living in very strange times, and they are likely to get a lot stranger before we bottom out"
Dr. Hunter S Thompson
Keith Sansum1
- Location: london
- Registered: 25 Aug 2010
- Posts: 23,860
no doubt it's the way your controversial posts are put might have upset the locals usually does
ALL POSTS ARE MY OWN PERSONAL VIEWS
Captain Haddock- Location: Marlinspike Hall
- Registered: 8 Oct 2012
- Posts: 7,941
Honi soit qui mal y pense?
"We are living in very strange times, and they are likely to get a lot stranger before we bottom out"
Dr. Hunter S Thompson
Keith Sansum1- Location: london
- Registered: 25 Aug 2010
- Posts: 23,860
and you Bob lol
ALL POSTS ARE MY OWN PERSONAL VIEWS
Captain Haddock- Location: Marlinspike Hall
- Registered: 8 Oct 2012
- Posts: 7,941
Back on topic. Interesting article in today's Observer:- A new high street can’t save a town – but jobs and trains will.
https://www.theguardian.com/business/2018/jan/07/new-high-street-cant-save-town-jobs-trains-commuters-employment
Well worth a read IMHO.
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
Captain Haddock- Location: Marlinspike Hall
- Registered: 8 Oct 2012
- Posts: 7,941
Forgot to say. Not just retail at Ashford. They are getting a Commercial Quarter too!
http://elwickplace.com/news/ashford-paves-way-for-ambitious-regional-business-hub/"We are living in very strange times, and they are likely to get a lot stranger before we bottom out"
Dr. Hunter S Thompson
howard mcsweeney1- Location: Dover
- Registered: 12 Mar 2008
- Posts: 62,352
We're not really in competition with Ashford which has a population about double that of Dover and a much larger catchment area. Ashford International station is a great pull factor in attracting businesses there.
Captain Haddock- Location: Marlinspike Hall
- Registered: 8 Oct 2012
- Posts: 7,941
Howard, here's a list of the town's we are in competition with:-
http://www.cityam.com/274795/most-affordable-london-commuter-towns-one-hour-commute-can
HS1 time of travel Dover - St Pancras 1hr 5min
"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: 3,696
Regarding population, here is the latest figures from KCC's handy publication 2016 Mid Year population estimates Ward level population in Kent
Total population of Ashford District is 126,600 (DDC 114,200)
Population of Ashford Urban areas 79,830 v DDC 74.930 (of which Dover Town is approx 33,000 - excludes River, Whitfield & Lydden/Temple Ewell & Deal is approx 31,000 )
As Bob says anywhere out of London that is 1 hour (ish) from a major London terminus is in competition with Dover.
The Guardian article Bob linked to is what many people including myself have been saying for some considerable time - the "high street paradigm" has changed; it needs to become a social meeting and event destination rather than a shopping destination. We need to be thinking of making it pedestrian friendly, encourage events to be put on, encourage the change of use of upper floors to residential, encourage smaller units that can be used for cafes, restaurants, micro-pubs, pop up shops etc.
"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
Karlos- Location: Dover
- Registered: 1 Oct 2012
- Posts: 2,485
What's the population of Dover including River, Temple Ewell & Whitfield? (They're not separate villages).
howard mcsweeney1- Location: Dover
- Registered: 12 Mar 2008
- Posts: 62,352
I cannot see how Dover can attract businesses from France or Belgium that are looking for a South of England location when Ashford is a fast train ride away from them and London another 38 minutes away. The fact that Quinn Estates are a lead player in the new business development there shows that a successful business sees more profit there than developing in Dover, I believe they are behind a scheme in Canterbury that will expand the city on a large scale.
A former Dover MP once said that the main problem here was that so much of our catchment area is populated by fish.
Jan Higgins
- Location: Dover
- Registered: 5 Jul 2010
- Posts: 13,806
I am surprised that more small retailers do not share space in one shop, a central position at minimal cost.
When I lived in Suffolk a few years ago this was fairly common. What looked like one shop from the outside when looking at the window displays turned out to be almost like a small indoor market when you went inside, everything from pens and pencils to pots and pans on sale by various different mini shop counters.
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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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howard mcsweeney1- Location: Dover
- Registered: 12 Mar 2008
- Posts: 62,352
Karlos wrote:What's the population of Dover including River, Temple Ewell & Whitfield? (They're not separate villages).
That is incredibly brave of you to say that.
Brian Dixon
- Location: Dover
- Registered: 23 Sep 2008
- Posts: 23,940
French,germans,dutch and belguims are spending money in the town.
Sue Nicholas- Location: river
- Registered: 12 Mar 2008
- Posts: 6,018
Karlos very very brave.All those he mentioned are villages with their own Parish Councils
Ross Miller likes this
Karlos- Location: Dover
- Registered: 1 Oct 2012
- Posts: 2,485
They're all just suburbs of Dover, they used to be villages I admit, but not anymore. Lydden is a village for example.
Anyway I was only asking about the town's population. If Dover Town is 33000, then those other suburbs must increase the population quite a bit more than I expected.
John Buckley likes this
