Congratulations Harbour Steam

From Cllr Clive Hart - TDC Leader.

'Congratulations to the Steam Museum Trust and their partners who have provided local residents and visitors with the excellent Harbour Steam Bank Holiday event in Ramsgate. It has been simply wonderful to see so many people enjoying themselves in such a beautiful setting'.

UPDATE: After receiving feedback regarding the lack of a mention with regards to the Summer Squall in Ramsgate, please see below to read Cllr Clive Hart's response (originally posted on the Ramsgate Arts Facebook page on Monday 3rd September):

"Just a note on the Summer Squall.
It certainly was brilliant and I have to say both the Squall and the Steam events complemented each other superbly. I'm sure that there were many who visited and enjoyed both.
My comment on our website regarding the Steam Trust was simply meant as a thank you to them for repaying our (administrations) trust. We took a leap of faith by signing the lease for the museum over to them earlier this year and our opponents said they would let us down. They didn't and that was all my comment was about.
However, please do pass on my sincere congratulations to all who made the Summer Squall event possible too. I'm afraid that due to grandparent duties I was unable to attend the evening events but all reports say they were brilliant and when I did attend on two afternoons the place was buzzing.
Hope you now understand my comment on our website. Our administration is truly thankful for all the sterling work of local volunteers.
Kind regards
Clive
Cllr Clive Hart - TDC Leader."

Port and harbour neglect continues under the Conservatives

By Cllr Clive Hart - Labour Shadow Leader of the Council.

 

At the Thanet Council Cabinet meeting on Thursday 17th November, Conservative Cabinet member Cllr Martin Wise announced "A Ramsgate Port and Harbour draft master plan has been developed and presented to Scrutiny". 

Now I'm used to ambiguous language coming from our local Conservative party but this statement was quite simply 'a fudge too far'.

I have spoken with the Chairman of the Ramsgate Port and Harbour Scrutiny working party and he says he would dearly like to have sight of the document he has been promised for such a very long time now. He waits and waits but despite his constant requests it never comes.

For clarification - the actual facts are: at the earlier September Thanet Council Cabinet meeting the Commercial Services Manager explained that the initial draft Master plan for Ramsgate Port and Harbour was considered to need additional work and that the plan itself had not been circulated to the members as it was considered to need 'further development'. 

It was also decided that a Cabinet Advisory Group would be needed for this 'further development' and on the 6th October I met with Conservative leader Cllr Bayford to agree the make-up of the group. We agreed the cabinet advisory group would consist of three Labour members and three Conservative members. On the 12th October I informed Cllr Bayford and the council that our Labour members would be Cllr Poole, Cllr Huxley and Cllr Fenner.

Yet another month has passed in this sorry saga and my members are all still eager and waiting. As with every other step taken on this elusive master plan project, procrastination and navel gazing appear to be the order of the day and to date no meetings have been planned.

Ramsgate Port and Harbour should be our islands 'jewel in the crown'. Instead we've had eight years of Conservative rule at Thanet Council and eight years of neglect.

Neglect of Thanet's Harbours

By John Watkins

After eight years of neglect by Thanet District Council’s Tory administration, Margate Harbour is now in it’s worst state ever, since John Rennie’s stone harbour arm was first constructed early in the nineteenth century. Due to the constant build up of silt that has been allowed, there is now insufficient depth of water to accommodate any reasonable sized sailing or motor vessel and boat owners have been forced to moor their craft elsewhere. Sitting on the front patio of the new Turner Gallery should be a great experience, with the view to the west, over Margate main sands, for both local residents and visitors alike. However, if the tide is not covering the rotting seaweed and mud in the harbour at the time, a very unpleasant aroma is likely to soon drive most people inside.

At Ramsgate Royal Harbour marina, the neglect is even more marked. The absence of any planned maintenance programme has resulted in health and safety problems with pontoons and ladders and the build up of silt in the inner marina. Sections of the main Commercial quay are now ‘no go’ areas, due to problems with subsidence. Large weeds grow out of the basin walls and some of the pontoons at the eastern end are now so old and unstable that they have even received their own ‘Royal Historic’ plaque. The Pier yard is a disgrace, decorated with it’s own rotting hulk on prominent display alongside the detritus strewn listed Smeaton dry dock. Meanwhile the grade two star listed,  Maritime Museum, closed for years now, becomes ever more run down, from the snapped off flag pole at the front to the smashed windows and yards of unsavoury graffiti covering the rear walls, neglect is everywhere.

Something urgently needs to alter the years of laissez faire mismanagement of Margate and Ramsgate harbours, and a change of political administration at Thanet District Council would be the swiftest way to achieve this.