The situation in one of the village's car park has got so bad in recent weeks that vehicles have been unable to manoeuvre around the car park and some drivers have returned to find they are unable to get their vehicles out.
A lady sent me these photos of the car park off Ryleys Lane, by Alderley Edge park, which were taken on Wednesday, 16th December. Asking, has anyone taken a look at the car park recently?
She confirmed that all the vehicles were parked and empty and that some would definitely not been able to get out.
The lady, who wishes to remain anonymous said "It certainly did not seem possible to drive around the back of the car park and I reversed out. I witnessed a few others do the same. The parking in there seems to be getting steadily worse - possibly as a direct result of all the double yellows that have, quite rightly, appeared in attempt to get people parking legally and safely."
Councillor Craig Browne said "We are aware of this situation, which has existed for sometime and is part of a legacy handed to the current Parish Council by its predecessor. The key problem is that no regime or markings exist in this car park, which remains under the responsibility of Cheshire East Council. I have had meetings with Cabinet Member Les Gilbert, who has been to Alderley Edge to witness the situation for himself. Although in recent weeks, the situation has been made worse following the opening of Yu and Piccolino.
"As a Parish Council, we are seeking devolution of this car park, which would allow us to have it marked out properly and introduce an enforceable regime that will give it a completely different status to the one that currently exists; however, this is taking time and any work will require significant financial outlay - at the same time as we are committed to completing the £2.5m redevelopment of the Festival Hall & Medical Centre."
He added "Our decision to seek devolution of this site is for exactly the reasons that have been stated and identified by the resident you refer to. By seeking to devolve this car park, we are attempting to introduce a degree control over a village asset that has been allowed to become uncontrollable."
Comments
Here's what readers have had to say so far. Why not add your thoughts below.
Whenever I asked the Officers at C.E. they sent out chaps to fill in potholes and remove rubbish. Try asking them Craig !
Then he blames delay on the new P.C's over-spend on the Festival Hall; oh purleese!
What the heck is an 'enforceable regime'? and the 'completely different status'? Politician's gobbledegook!
C.E. have in the past stated to me that they could make the car park just fine BUT it would cost so much money (circa £75,000) that they would have to install parking meters. When I consulted users of the park (walk up to people and ask; it ain't rocket science!) they preferred to keep the car park as it was rather than pay fees.
If its of interest, a survey of the car park users (which I did) showed that approx, 65% were there all day; I noted the number plates at approx. 10.00 am and again at approx. 3.00 pm (I guessed that those times kept possible school parents out of the equation).
When the P.C. at last reveals its master plan to solve the parking problem in the village, perhaps they will include increasing the size of this car park? Or perhaps they will try to blame the former P.C. for shrinking the car park !
You couldn't make it up !
feliz Navidad.
But..... nothing is happening and as a long standing trader since 1990 I am concerned and I must be losing business however loyal our clients are and people have started to say I cannot come and see you because I cannot park anywhere.
I have just paid £570 for a member of my staff to have an annual pass in one of the car parks. As traders we do have to arrange for our employees to park we are part of the fabric of the village.
Maybe we should gather all our staff together count them and plan a place for them to legimately park..... map out the village or incentivise them to come by bus or train or to cycle.
For our clients we should ask them politely if they have parked legitimately safely and considerately. This should include all the eating establishments.
We should be looking out for each other in this lovely village.
Merry Christmas
Without the traders, the village dies.
Business rates and high rents. So the last thing needed is a lack of parking for their staff and clients.
Build a car park NOW. No more time wasting.
I do not care whether its the P.C. or C.E. or a group from Mordor, just damn well get on with it !
Why is it that you always refer to something that you don't understand as 'gobbledegook'? It could come across as ignorance. I don't see that Craig is blaming you and your fellows, just pointing out a fact. Why don't you enlighten us all and tell us how you, personally, in your time in office, increased the parking provision within the village.
Marc
I feel sure that Craig would welcome your wisdom; especially as when you were a councillor you completely sorted the AE parking problem out.
Your "village" died thirty-five years ago; thanks to money-grubbing in-comers.
A historian might argue that the rot set in when, in 1842, the railway was constructed. Chorley railway station was named Alderley Edge in 1880. It's been downwards ever since...
Frankly speaking, the recent past is comprehensively recorded on the internet and is not too hard to unpick (including "deleted" e-mails); should the occasion arise. So I'm advised.
So you mean make the businesses that generate the parking problem (and make profit from it) pay to solve the problem instead of local taxpayers?
Crazy idea - it'll never catch on!
twas ever thus.
When I came to A.E. about 30 years ago, the main street had, as best I recall, two butchers, a fish shop, two greengrocers etc. etc. Then the large supermarkets opened and the citizens decided to use the supermarkets. So the small village shops went away. I guess that was a form of democracy?
I try to use our last surviving butcher; for sort of romantic/nostalgia reasons.
There are now many very large houses (footballers, property developers etc). If we looked back to when the thatched cottages were replaced by large brick mansions, with servants, I guess some people complained then, as you are doing now.
I am willing to bet that in another 60 or so years, some of the 'footballers mansions' will have Grade II listed status and a 'English Heritage' listing !
I repeat, twas ever thus.
Is your comment about deleted emails anything to do with my comment of some time ago that I had, upon ceasing to be a parish councillor, passed a happy time getting rid of over 3,000 emails to do with parish council business? I truly do not understand why anyone should go on about that; why would I want to keep out-of-date emails, concerning something that I was no longer a part of? You surely don't thing that I was destroying the damning evidence before the revolutionaries broke down the door?
Hi Alan,
are you proposing that the traders should pay for a car park (or whatever other solution is suggested)? I believe we've already mentioned that the traders pay business rates that are I beieve higher than the domestic rates as paid by you and I. If you are serious about having the traders pay for the device/s to solve the parking problem, then will you accept that such would push even more businesses out of the village?
Re. as Kristina wrote above; I ain't trying to score points. I think that her gentle comments rather shame the pair of us?
Happy (slightly late) Hanukkah
Unfortunately many of the places which replaced them have not stood the test of time and have been replaced, in some cases, by dreadful extravagances owned by the "look at me" types who seem to have arrived from up the road.
The only centre locally which has managed to retain some "village" feel is Knutsford; where many local shops for local people(!) still survive.
Wilmslow has completely lost it, with dreadful architecture from the 60s and 70s blighting Grove St and Water Lane.
As you alluded, the Alderley village I knew as a kid is long gone; back then it was possible to buy all one's weekly needs from individual shops by walking half the distance it would take today in Sainsbury's at Handforth Dean, for example. Crazy!
Bound to change of course. Cars taking over and public transport all but gone.
I think it is now just about justified to say that there's a beginning of fly-tipping there.
Anyone got any ideas of how to prevent it?