I posted a while ago that I had emailed Wetherspoons (Howards suggestion!) regarding Snoops. I have had a letter:
Dear...
Thank you for taking the time to contact Customer Services Department with your comments.
I am sorry to hear of your disappointment with the building at Castle Street, Dover. We treat feedback from neighbours very seriously. As a result, I have passed your comments and observations will be passed to the Property and Development Department to review and take any appropriate action.
Thank you for taking the time to contact us and do hope you will not be deterred from visiting our pubs in the future.
Julie Smith, Customer Service.
JD Wetherspoon plc
PO box 616
Watford
WD24 4QU
I have left in the grammatical errors, as it is probably an indication of the mis-use of a standard template rather than a personal letter. I note that they do not indicate they will reply further to me with any information. I am sure they are sorry to hear about the place, but surely not surprised?! Perhaps if more of us wrote and complained via the website, as I did, we might produce a better response. I am fed up with the deriliction there.
Guest 674- Registered: 25 Jun 2008
- Posts: 3,391
I will do so bern
Guest 640- Registered: 21 Apr 2007
- Posts: 7,819
Ah yes..the Wetherspoons bog standard letter. A whole brace of us wrote to them, oooh I dunno maybe 2 years ago now or more, on Nigel Collor's suggestion and rather remarkably we all got the same letter. Whether your one above is exactly the same as then I cant remember but I suspect it is...and written by the same machine!
worth a try but Wetherspoons are out there too busy making money to take time to worry about the complaints of a few locals in..ermm where was that...Dover !!?
All a bit dispiriting....is there a chance of making a bigger noise, do you think? Maybe a concerted public effort to embarass them (and DDC!!) but mass letter writing and protests. Has Gwyn P ever done anything about it?
howard mcsweeney1- Location: Dover
- Registered: 12 Mar 2008
- Posts: 62,352
what do you think bern???
it is only when a bit of masonry falls on someone that they may consider taking some action.
meanwhile we can await another bogus planning application from them.
I won't believe there is nothing we can do!!!
Perhaps if a fair few of us wrote to GP and Wetherspoons, and perhaps if the local chip-wrappers and dog-poo-bags (I think they are called newspapers, thus eliminating many journos by having too many syllables in the name) took the slightest interest in a real and important local issue, never mind the advertising potential they might lose, we could achieve something.
howard mcsweeney1- Location: Dover
- Registered: 12 Mar 2008
- Posts: 62,352
nigel insisted some time back that we bombarded them with e mails and letters.
we have!!
if we write to our mp, he will write to them, get the same reply and pass it on to us.
this is what happens.
Guest 651- Registered: 12 Mar 2008
- Posts: 5,673
Join my Facebook group....
"Come on Wetherspoons, sort out the old Snoops/Cinema in Dover"
Been nice knowing you :)
howard mcsweeney1- Location: Dover
- Registered: 12 Mar 2008
- Posts: 62,352
i doubt that anything that costs them money with little return would strike home.
Then it would appear to be over to the local authorities. If they want to beef up Dovers image and attract business they may have to consider investing in it................
PS - isn't this part of what we pay our MP for
Guest 640- Registered: 21 Apr 2007
- Posts: 7,819
Bern the local authorities have been dealing with Wetherspoons for a long time but to no avail. I remember a picture somewhere of our now new KCC representative Nigel Collor, that ruddy chopped Dover enthusiast, meeting with Wetherspoons brass inside the now ruined Castle St carbuncle. It was a hard hat type of meeting as I remember as the place is so dilapidated. He had numerous other meetings as I remember but got nowhere. They are a very hard nosed lot Wetherspoons when they can ignore councils and what have you.
I think Nigel tried and his next effort was to get us all to write in but that produced nothing either but the bog standard reply we all got. Wetherspoons were one time planning to open a night club type of place there as I remember but its been a long time now on the backburner. They are playing poker...waiting to see what developes with DTIZ and so on.
We often carried pictures of the horrific state of it and then one day some of the Snoops sign fell down and nearly hit someone. The newspapers picked up on that one but still Wetherspoons didnt care or didnt budge. They just calmly removed the rest of the sign.
Nigel will know much more, Im just trying to remember that stuff off the top of my head. Nigel doesnt come on here that much anymore, he was once very prolific, but if he did he could fill us in with more of the lurid past.
Thanks for the history, PAulB. It is outrageous that a national company can play fast and loose with a community. "How very dare they" springs to mind! Is there any chance of a renewed vigorous approach? It really is an eyesore, and it is galling that a big company is getting away with it. Even if they didn't develop it at least they could tidy/smarten it up a bit.
Guest 664- Registered: 23 Mar 2008
- Posts: 1,039
Well done. I will be giving them the sawn-off keyboard treatment and urge everyone else who has not done so to join in.
Guest 670- Registered: 23 Apr 2008
- Posts: 573
Due to the credit crunch and difficulty in raising funds, Wetherspoons suspended dividends and put all further expansion on hold. Apparently they hve to repay a rather large debt in Septenber, 2009.
In these circumstances there would seem to be little hope of any progress on this site for the foreseeable future.
Guest 640- Registered: 21 Apr 2007
- Posts: 7,819
Thanks for that Dave..interesting one. Not much happening anytime soon then.
Demolition is the only option at this point.
In the meantime take a look at this shot below taken in 2006 yes even back then it was terrible. Look at the optimistic sales boards out as they try to sell the place having left it way toooo late. Jeezez that woman is taken a chance...some of that Snoops sign was soon to fall nearly pulverising someone's head.
Guest 651- Registered: 12 Mar 2008
- Posts: 5,673
Been nice knowing you :)
Guest 684- Registered: 26 Feb 2009
- Posts: 635
The old Granada/ABC/Damages building is an absolute disgrace, Wetherspoons' inertia/indifference nothwithstanding.
Is this the way we treat our art-deco buildings in the district? If so, expect the Regent bingo hall on Deal seafront to start crumbling into the briny and sprouting trees through its windows any time soon.
Agree with Andy Stucken...let's campaign to get this hideous eyesore fixed soon. It shames our heritage, our present - and us all.
Guest 651- Registered: 12 Mar 2008
- Posts: 5,673
Difference I think is DDC own the Regent so they can be lobbied. the Granada is a private building that now isn't danderous and has no listed status
Been nice knowing you :)
Guest 664- Registered: 23 Mar 2008
- Posts: 1,039
The green shoots sprouting from Snoops are not the type we want to see.
Private building be damned! It's an eyesore, is probably a risk (has it been properly risk assessed recently?) and is lowering the value of our town. If a proper risk assessment was to be done around the risk of de-valuing property nearby it would show a story. Is there a risk register at DDC for the town centre?
WETHERSPOONS: GET IT SORTED!!
email: dover7@msn.com