Letter to St Helier ratepayers

Dear Ratepayer
The annual sending out of Rates Assessment notices, which are not a request for payment but notification of how your rates bill will be calculated after the Parish Assembly have ‘set the rate’ on Wednesday 17th July, gives me a valuable opportunity to enclose a letter to you. Hopefully the monthly parish magazine, The Town Crier, together with our website (www.sthelier.je) is keeping you up-to-date with parish matters, but there are a few things that I would like to bring to you attention in this letter.
To begin with our magazine, I hope you like the new format. The second issue will be delivered to you at the beginning of June and early signs are that it was a good decision to change our supplier to bring the work (and jobs) involved back to Jersey. As you are probably aware, production and delivery of The Town Crier is paid for entirely out of advertising revenue. If you are a ratepayer living outside the Parish boundary you will not automatically receive a copy; you can either read it on the website or request for it to be posted to you each month.
Now that we have a monthly magazine and a regularly updated website we are considering another way of saving money – ceasing to run ‘Gazette’ notices in the JEP, a potential annual saving of £10,000. We have received advice that our current means of publishing official notices in the magazine, website, and official notice box outside the Town Church, would (if supplemented by additional notice boards including at the Town Hall, the Nelson Street offices of the Honorary Police and the electronic information screen at Charing Cross) be sufficient to comply with the relevant law. After all, not everyone reads the newspaper. However, before taking this step I would be interested to hear any views you may have on the subject.
A more substantial saving in parish expenditure reaches the million pound mark this month following the decision that was taken not to fill the post of Chief Executive of the parish back in 2002. Since then our administration has been run by a management board which I chair whose members are the five directors of Finance, Human Resources, Municipal Services, Parks and Technical & Environmental Services together with the two Procureurs du Bien Public. We meet fortnightly to deal with the many matters, large and small, that are involved in the running of a large and busy parish. I am grateful to them as I am to all of the parish’s 350-strong staff team and our numerous volunteers that a culture of reducing unnecessary expenditure is instilled in every area of how the parish is run, alongside the constant effort to find ways of improving the services we offer our ratepayers without increasing costs.
A major difficulty we face, however, is that some of the key decisions affecting our finances are out of our hands. The States of Jersey Employment Board (SEB) agreed a 4% pay rise effective from January 2014 without any consultation with us which presents an enormous challenge to my team who have been trying to keep down costs. The States also impose regulations on our residential homes and day nurseries which lead to increased costs, and these two factors have been instrumental in our decision to close one of our three homes, Maison de Ville, at the end of 2014. This is, of course, a very unsettling time for the 26 residents and the staff of the home, although we do have the advantage of running two other homes which will have a part to play in addressing the future needs of staff and residents; we also have 18 months in order to manage the process sympathetically.
While the unfair burden of welfare costs has been removed from the shoulders of St Helier ratepayers, with the introduction of the Island Wide Rate in 2005, the States have yet to address the unfairness of the position of St Helier, whose ratepayers bear the cost of providing a clean and tidy capital for the majority of the Island’s workforce, shoppers and visitors. This problem was raised recently at a Parish Assembly where parishioners objected to the cost of refurbishing the Conway Street toilets, but similar arguments can be made about the cost of providing parks and gardens which, in the case of all other parishes, are paid for out of taxation. My proposition that the States pay rates on its properties (P.40/2013 – available on our website) goes to the States for debate on 4th June but so far it has received no support from the Council of Ministers (many of whom started their political careers as St Helier deputies!) or from the Committee of Constables. If the States were to agree to pay rates on public buildings we would at least have an extra million pounds a year to defray the running costs of the various services we provide to the whole island.
Thank you to everyone who took part in the referendum last month, those who voted as well as the parish’s team of staff and volunteers who ran our four polling stations and counted the votes. Our parish supported Option A by a majority of about 2:1 although Option B was the Island’s preferred choice. The States is likely to debate the implementation of the necessary changes for next year’s elections before the summer recess.
Yours sincerely
Simon Crowcroft
Connétable

Not the Parish of St Helier blog

This occasional blog has never purported to contain the views of the Parish, but rather to provide the opportunity for me to get things off my chest that concern the Parish and to elicit constructive criticism and suggestions.  However, I came under fire in the States Assembly this week for having a link to this blog on the Parish website.  While I was able to reassure members and any ratepayers who were listening that no Parish funds have gone into providing or maintaining the blog, I have to accept the criticisms (made predominantly by members who agree with me about the best outcome of the forthcoming referendum) that the mere presence of a link to my views on the Parish website creates a perception that this is the Parish's view rather than my own.

For a Parish Constable to openly support 'Option A' - giving the electors of Jersey an equal say at the ballot box - has caused some consternation, not least because I have changed my mind about this.  A clip of the Constable of St Helier as a younger man supporting the contrary view - that the Parish constables should have an automatic right to sit in the States - has been posted on Facebook by Senator Lyndon Farnham.  As I said on Facebook in reply to Lyndon, changed my mind because I found the Electoral Commission's report convincing on the subject of voter equity. 

The bottom line for me is this: if you are going to redesign your voting system you might as well take the opportunity to achieve that most basic feature of democracy of my vote having the same power as yours. 

To those who fear the collapse of Jersey's parish system if Option A is successful, I would say that 11 years in post has convinced me of the robustness and resilience of the parish system.  Whether 1 or 12 of the parish constables are also elected as States Deputies (under Option A) Jersey's parish system with its unique living tradition of Honorary Police, sworn officers dealing with rates, roads etc., will in my opinion continue to prosper.

If either of the other options is successful in the referendum on April 24th, the need for reform is not going to go away.  This is going to run and run until we stop skewing the democratic process by allowing elected members with vastly differing mandates to influence the outcome of key decisions by Jersey's government, and by giving Jersey's electors different voting power depending on where they live.

Why we should vote for Option A in Jersey's referendum on April 24

As chairman of the committee charged with presenting the Electoral Commission's proposals for next month's referendum I've had to keep my personal view to myself about whether the Constables should continue to have an automatic right to sit in the States Assembly.  However, with the approval of the referendum act yesterday, I am now free to speak my mind.

The Commission's proposals are set out in full in a document delivered to every home and available on the web (www.statesassembly.gov.je) and in the run up to the referendum on Wednesday 24 April there is likely to be a lively debate about which of the two reform options A or B, is better - or whether, indeed, we should just continue as we are (Option C). 

The problem with Option B which gives each of the 12 parish constables an automatic seat (and vote) is that it perpetuates the democratic deficit for St Helier electors.  Under Option B there will be 6 electoral districts each with 5 representatives, plus 12 constables: that will give St Helier (to be divided into 2 districts) just 11 representatives in the slimmed-down Assembly of 42.  That may sound like an improvement (we currently have 11 members out of 51) but it is still a long way short of the representation the St Helier electors are entitled to, given that our parish has one third of the population.  In contrast, Option A would create 6 electoral districts each with 7 representatives, so St Helier would have 14 out of 42 members in the Assembly, including the Constable if he or she were to stand successfully as a Deputy. 

It is vital in the upcoming campaign to stress that while Option A removes the automatic right of the parish constables to sit and vote in the States Assembly, but it does not stop them from standing for election as deputies.  Most, if not all of the current constables have shown that they are perfectly capable of discharging their parish duties at the same time as functioning as useful members of the legislature.

Option B not only allows the centuries-old under representation of St Helier to continue but it also means that voters in some parts of the island have more say in the government than we do - whereas it is a fundamental principle of democracy that everyone's vote should have the same value. 

Supporters of Option B will argue that if we don't have all 12 constables in the States it will spell the end of the Parish system.  In my opinion this is scaremongering: Jersey is not Guernsey, our parochial institutions are much stronger than in our sister island, with, for example, strong parish municipalities with particularly robust traditions of honorary service such as the Procureurs du bien public, the Honorary Police, the Roads Committee, the Rates Assessors, the Roads Inspectors, and so on - all of which will continue to function under Option A. 

Why does all this matter? some parishioners will be asking themselves.  Voter equity is important, I believe, if Jersey is to continue to be regarded as a jurisdiction that values fairness; in more practical terms, some of the political battles St Helier representatives are facing - such as getting the rest of the Island to contribute to the running costs of the Island's capital - will be much more achievable if Option A is successful in the forthcoming referendum.

Retail rendezvous

Recently I attended a meeting with the Town Centre Manager, Richard Mckenzie, and traders in Conway Street, to explore ways of promoting their street as a shopping destination. Thanks to the improvements carried out in this street over the years it's become much easier for people to walk up and down it, particularly if they are users of the bus station at Liberty Wharf. But for the retailers and other businesses in Conway Street the question is how to get busy people to pause long enough to see what is on offer in the shop windows? Altogether it was a positive meeting, followed by a walk down the street to see what practical measures the public sector could take to improve things, and what the shops themselves could do too, of course.

The same week we met with traders in Colomberie who have finalised the new banners they were given responsibility for designing, and the concept of Colomberie Shopping Village was officially launched. Similar groups are operating in Don Street and Wests Centre, and the Parish is eager to see other businesses getting together so that together we can raise the profile of these distinct shopping districts in town. St Helier is, after all, much more than a single shopping precinct, with a wealth of small shops, cafes and restaurants off the beaten track. If you would like parish support in developing a trader group please get in touch with me or the Town Centre Manager.

Meanwhile the newly formed 'Town Team' continues to work on practical steps that need to be taken to ensure the town is vibrant, attractive, and accessible. In particular, there are calls from traders for shopper parking to be made 'free after 3' and for free shopper parking on Saturdays. I will be asking the States to trial these ideas in the coming year. After all, we subsidise the Island's other industries in various ways, so why not make shopper parking easier and cheaper for the sake of our retail and hospitality sectors?

You can't always blame the planning dept!

Representatives of the firm that owns a large chunk of the north of St Helier, the regeneration of which is key to the future or this part of the Parish, came to see me last week to say they were going to pull the plug on the development. As it was the first I had heard of any problems I asked them to allow me to act as 'honest broker' with the planning dept to see what could be done to save the scheme. I had spent much of the previous day with the Minister and Chief Officer of planning and knew that as far as they were concerned the scheme was on course to follow the Millennium Town Park in the much needed uplift of this part of town. The developers, however, were not interested in any assistance I might have been able to give. I think that's a shame, especially after the way public expectations have been raised that the regeneration of northern St Helier was on the way to becoming a reality.

Sneak preview of comments in next issue of 'Town Trader' magazine

Responding to a recent question in the States the Minister of Transport & Technical Services stated that the latest survey of parking availability in town showed that around half of the spaces in the public car parks have space at various times of the day. I put it to him that we need to bring back some kind of real-time information screen on the approach roads to St Helier that conveys this good news to motorists. The Minister reacted positively to the idea but I wonder how long it will take? His answer also revealed that the user-friendly alternative to paycards, the long-awaited 'pay on exit' parking system due to be trialled this year in Sand Street car park, has now been put back till the autumn. I also asked the Minister to consider introducing incentives to encourage shoppers to make the trip into town, such as 'first hour free' and/or 'free from 3pm', as the price of a paycard has now risen to such a level that it deters some people from popping into town to make a few purchases which they can more conveniently make from an out-of-town shop where there are no parking charges.

The occasional prophet of doom in respect of the town's future hasn't, I think, been to St Helier recently. We know footfall is down and retail sales have slumped, due mainly to the recession and competition from online shopping, but you can't sit in a pleasant town square on the internet, or chat face to face with friends over a coffee or a snack. And in spite of recent bad weather, town is gradually coming more safe, clean and attractive, thronged with tourists, including the innovative guides dressed in the uniform of the 1781 Jersey Militia, while events such as the recent 'container art galleries' on Weighbridge Place occur on a regular basis.

Town businesses can nominate an representative or 'mandataire' to vote in Parish Assemblies (for more info' please contact the Town Hall or visit the website www.sthelier.je) which means that every business in St Helier can have a say in how much will be paid in parish rates this year. On Wednesday 11th July the previous year's accounts will be presented and budgets for the new financial year and all town traders are encouraged to come along.

Retail therapy

Recently I was talking to a retailer who told me he and his staff had not sold a single item during the previous day. That’s eight hours of trading, with fixed costs – rent, wages, social security, rates, utilities – with not a penny in income. I am sure that this is not an isolated example as I am being told that things are very tough indeed ‘on the high street’. True, there continue to be new businesses ready to step into the shoes of the ones that close in the precinct; true, our town centre is less at the mercy of out-of-town shopping than is the case elsewhere. We are also seeing the benefits of visible policing, increased resources for street cleansing, and plans are underway to increase the amount of litter bins (including recycling bins) and benches around town. But urgent action is needed if St Helier is to continue to beat healthily as the Island’s retail heart. Richard MacKenzie, the Town Centre Manager, has come up with a number of ways of reversing the present decline in footfall, including such ideas as making parking free after 3pm each day. Given that there is always plenty of space for parking in Pier Road multi-storey he is suggesting that some of the commuter parking in the Esplanade car park is replaced with shopper parking, and that the entire car park at Ann Court is given over to short-stay shopper parking on Saturdays. The trial of a simpler way of paying for parking in Sand Street car park is overdue, and I would like to see a change in the way parking fines are handed out, having too often been on the receiving end of letters, emails, phone calls and tearful explanations of how a simple error with a paycard has put a person off ever trying to park in town again. And what's happened to the amendment that I made to the Island Plan whereby the Harbours dept are supposed to be converting some of the rented parking spaces on the Albert Pier to shopper parking? It’s high time everyone involved in the important process of getting shoppers into town, including several States departments, the Parish, and the Chamber of Commerce, work together to make sure that St Helier’s retailers see more shoppers this summer, not fewer.

Dramatic improvement

The challenge of maintaining the appeal of town in the face of competition from internet shopping and people's natural reluctance to spend money in a recession has been the subject of several meetings I have attended recently. Thanks to an initiative from the Chamber of Commerce working in partnership with the Parish's Town Centre Manager, we now have 'footfall counters' which give reliable information about how busy the town is, allowing comparison to be made with previous years' performance both here and in other town centres. There is no doubt that retailers, restauranteurs and the rich variety of entrepreneurs based in St Helier are having an increasingly tough time meeting their overheads, let alone making a profit, in the face of declining numbers of people coming to town.

I have been particularly vocal about the need to change our parking system to free up more spaces for shoppers and visitors, to make payment simpler and fines much less punitive, but there are other factors, too. Take customer care, for example. The last two meals I've eaten out couldn't be more different: the first one featured a cold plate, loud background music, a tiny garnish masquerading as a salad, with 'Are you enjoying your meal, Sir?' asked in a deadpan way as if by rote (how many of us are going to send it back, anyway?) The next meal out started with a compliment on the colour of my sweater, a choice of tables, plates whisked away as soon as they were finished with, piping hot coffee topped up without having to ask for it, and so on. I shook the dust off my feet as I left the first establishment; the second one I will return to and recommend to others.

In the city of Hull there is an initiative developed by the playwright, John Godber, which uses drama to convey to people the difference it can make to a customer when the person who deals with them is well informed, courteous, thoughtful, prepared and interested; anyone who provides a service to the public whether in the private or public sector is being encouraged to take part and it's apparently having lots of beneficial effects on the community as well as improving the visitor experience.

While there are numerous examples of excellence in customer care, and the Parish recently re-started Customer Care Awards to recognise this, there is always room for improvement, and I am thinking of taking a leaf out of Hull's book. Perhaps if Mr Godber could be persuaded to visit us we could also get one of his plays staged at the Arts Centre or Opera House - he is, after all, the third most performed playwright in the UK behind William Shakespeare and Alan Ayckbourn.

Thou art indeed just, Lord ...

Thou art indeed just, Lord … but why did that boy I met with the shaven head –
he’d kicked over the litter bin and was jumping about as if it were a bed
of dry leaves in the park – wear such a manic grin?
He distributed the stuff as fast as I tried to put it back in,
and so we struggled, (literally, in my case, given the state of my back,) youth
versus age, until he tired of my empty threats and mild reproof
and went off with his mates to upset the bin in the next street, no doubt,
or ring the bells and bang on the windows of folk too scared to come out …
What’s the point, Lord, of the work I do? Why shouldn’t I despair
as this boy with dismal CAT score and prison-ready hair
goes capering in his Doc Martens through the civic beds
while people whose hair goes thin or grey upon their heads
question the whereabouts of his parents? I question that, too,
but more pressing, Lord, I question the whereabouts of you.

Don't shade your eyes, plagiarise!

The new community market that kicks off this Friday in the Town Hall has been plagiarised from St Lawrence, so thanks to Constable Deirdre Mezbourian (pictured). Last year I was taken up to the St Lawrence Parish Hall to see their monthly market for myself and decided that we need one of those in St Helier. We are starting out with bric-a-brac and car boot type stalls, but if it's a success we will copy St Lawrence further and provide food. Unlike our western cousin, we don't have parking on the doorstep, however, which is a problem both for the stall holders and would be visitors. Given that there is so much empty space in Sand Street car park for most of the time, it begs the question why that car park can't be changed to allow folk to park for more than the 3 hour maximum. I will take this up with the Minister of TTS as people frequently tell me that they can't attend functions in the Town Hall as the nearest car park prohibits them from staying for long enough. Which seems pretty daft. Meanwhile, we are exploring how we can increase the capacity of the Parish-owned car park at Lempriere Street, as if the Town Hall had a decent sized off-street car park we could provide much more in the way of community markets and the like. Anyway, come along on Friday 9 March between 10am and 2pm and snap up a bargain.

An electrifying experience

This week I've been test driving a Peugeot electric car for the JEC. It's the first electric car I've driven and it's been an unalloyed pleasure being behind the wheel. It's perfect for town traffic as when stuck in a queue you are neither wasting petrol nor creating air pollution; the silence is golden (there's a good radio too). I particularly like the gauge which shows you how the battery is getting charged as you decelerate, which encourages better driving, as you tend to allow the car to slow down that way rather than using the brakes. It's got plenty of power for accelerating out of difficulty, and its range seems ideal for island life. 'Filling up' at home is convenient, easy and, I guess, cheap. The silent running of the car does mean you have to watch out for pedestrians and cyclists, but I do that anyway, so it's not a problem. The only obstacle in the way of my putting in an order for one is the price, rumoured to be in the tens of thousands. But if this one is going begging at a knock down price after the trial, I would certainly be interested.

Capital confidence

Without wishing to gloss over the serious challenges that are facing town's retailers and the many other firms that do business in our town, it's important that we recognise the continued resilience of St Helier's retail offer in difficult economic conditions. Recently I was shown around the former CT Maine jewellery shop that is being fitted out by Sandpiper as a clothing store; not only was I impressed by the skills of the craftsmen and women who were involved in an extensive renovation of this historic town centre shop to an ambitious deadline, but I was inspired by the confidence that Nick Steel, from Sandpiper, has in the future of retail in St Helier.

The work being carried out on CT Maine will make it rival the splendidly restored National Trust property just a stone's throw away at 16 New Street; it's as much a museum as a clothes shop, and I look forward to spending time and even some money there this Christmas.

The Parish Roads Committee were persuaded to relax the 'scaffolding embargo' sufficiently to allow essential work on the roof of CT Maine's (a name which it is likely to stick in the public mind for many years to come!), and Sandpiper responded by putting up an attractive hoarding during the work; apparently this has attracted neither graffiti nor fly posting, which goes to show that the public appreciate such attention to keeping the public realm attractive.

At the same time, it's depressing to note that a sculpture on the Esplanade has been vandalised again; a new focus on incorporating public art in developments was one of the key acheivements of the former Environent Minister, Freddie Cohen. I hope that the perpetrators are brought to justice and that we send out a strong message to such people that the majority of us want St Helier to be a clean, safe, attractive and vibrant capital of our island.

Why I signed Senator-elect Bailhache's nomination paper for Chief Minister

Seems a few eyebrows have been raised over this so I will explain for the curious. Firstly, it seems to me that the person who tops the poll in the Islandwide election and who decides to stand for the top job on the strength of that is worthy of consideration. True, Deputy Ian Gorst, who came second, announced during the campaign that he would stand as Chief Minister whereas Philip Bailhache didn't, but the latter didn't, as I recall, rule it in or out.

Secondly, Senator-elect Bailhache took the trouble on two occasions after the election to discuss with me what I felt the key issues facing St Helier are, whereas I didn't hear from Senator-elect Gorst.

Thirdly, Senator-elect Bailhache ran for office with a specific objective of sorting out the States Assembly, and it should be clear to anyone who listens in to the States, or watches from the visitors' gallery, or reads it on Hansard, and who has heard some of my (now infrequent) interventions, that I am really fed up with the amount of time we waste in there; we are testing the system to destruction and I am fully signed up to reforming the States so that those of us with other things to do as elected members, and in life, can get on with doing them.

Salle polyvalente, anyone?

For the senatorial hustings meeting last month the Parish hired a meeting room in a town hotel, due to the fact that the Assembly Room at the Town Hall only holds 250 people, seated, with 50 permitted to stand, making a total of 300 out of a population of more than 100 times that number. Nor was there sufficient space on the dais for the 13 candidates plus chairman, nor sufficient microphones - nor sufficient air! If you have attended a packed public meeting at the Town Hall you will know how stuffy it gets. When the building was acquired in the 19th century, as fire station, police station as well as parish offices, meeting space wasn't a problem as the only people entitled to vote in parish meetings were 'principals', those paying over a certain amount in rates; before that, parish meetings had taken place in town hotels (Plus ca change ...) while elections involved a show of hands in the Town Church prior to the introduction of the secret ballot.

Of course we will never be able to find a suitable space in which to accommodate the thousands of parishioners who could turn up to Parish Assembly, and critics of this proposal will point out that most of our assemblies are only supported by a handful of parishioners. It is also possible for us to make use of referendums on important parish issues in future. Even so, I think it is time that St Helier started looking for a meeting room with a more realistic capacity than the Assembly Room. Two of our twin towns have such facilities, the Kursaal in Bad Wurzach and La Salle Polyvalente in Avranches: both are modern, large enough to accommodate up to 1,000 people, and they also are in much demand for concerts, conferences, presentations, dinners and the like.

I'm not for a minute suggesting that the Assembly Room has had its day. We are making increasing use of our elegant room, with lots of commercial hirings as well as numerous community events, concerts, dances, dinners and so on, with potential to to put it on the town's cultural tourism trail so that more people can enjoy the parish's collection of paintings. But when it comes to holding a large gathering of parishioners, there is only really Fort Regent whose future is still uncertain, and which isn't under the Parish of St Helier's control in any case.

Any ideas?

The Millennium Town Park - a personal view

One of the four questions put to the candidates in the election for Senator at the final hustings last month was why the new park had been built without the underground parking that was part of the original petition. As chair of the meeting I obviously couldn't say anything but listened as most of the candidates deplored the fact that the project hadn't tackled the desperate need for more parking in our parish. Stuart Syvret was the only candidate who seemed to fully appreciate the difficulties involved in digging out the site to a much greater depth as would have been necessary if underground parking had been included - and the huge increase in the cost of the project.

It was difficult enough to persuade the States to part with the 10 million pounds the park project cost - thanks to Deputy Southern's amendment to the 2011 Business Plan and the intervention of Senator Alan Maclean's ring binder; it was equally difficult to stop the States from building appartments around the edge of the park site - St Helier elected representatives lost that vote in the States, but the former Planning Minister, Freddie Cohen, withdrew the plans that would have made our new park even smaller than it is. How much more difficult it would have been to get the States in the current economic climate to stump up the extra tens of millions that an underground car park would have cost.

Yes, there were some private sector schemes floated during the last dozen years, and countless proposals for putting the car parking elsewhere - a multi-storey on Ann Court site, anyone? - but States Members in 2011 were faced with the prospect of another decade of argument about underground parking on the site, and no realistic hope of implementing the public's preferred project to celebrate the new millennium - unless they went ahead and voted the funding for a surface park. And that was the decision that was made, albeit by the narrowest of margins.

Not that we should give up on the search for more public parking in the northern part of St Helier; we shouldn't. The company that owns the site occupied by the Odeon and the various surface car parks and warehouses adjacent to the new park is keen to develop a mixed-use scheme and have told the St Helier Roads Committee on a number of occasions that it will include as much public parking as the transport planners will allow. There are also various publicly owned car parks in the area, including parish car parks at Nelson Street and Byron Lane, and States' owned sites in and around Springfield, that could provide much more parking than they do. To the east of town, there is ample space to extend Green Street car park, so long as the States aren't determined to build the new police station there, while extra levels of parking at Snow Hill have been talked about for years.

As for the new park, it is a dream come true for thousands of Islanders. Someone who lives in an adjacent street told me, with tears in her eyes, how she came out of her front door one morning to see a large tree in autumn leaf had appeared at the end of her road. Even though the Millennium Park Support Group is disappointed with the removal from the scheme of some of the features that were promised, and the inclusion of unwished for elements, practically everyone is agreed on one thing: the Millennium Town Park is an enormous improvement on what was there before. See you there, for a game of petanque, perhaps, or a jog a few times round the perimeter, or a picnic on the grass.

No Pooh sticks in the Millennium Town Park

I have given my overall support for the current planning application in respect of the Millennium Town Park especially since the revised North of Town Masterplan has deleted most of the planned buildings from the site.

I say, most of, because I think that given the relatively small size of the park and the large number of expected users, it is in my opinion wrong to waste any of its area with unnecessary buildings. Indeed, the original petition that led, after many years, to the creation of the Millennium Town Park, proscribed any building on the site. There is actually no need for the States to provide any more than an area for picnic tables on the site, given that there is an existing cafe at the junction of Gas Place and Oxford Road, another one across Bath Street and a third under development on the junction of Tunnel Street with Bath Street. The provision of public toilets can be justified, although these could have been provided by using the contours of the site so as not to lose any valuable space. As it stands, the toilet provision in the proposed cafe is woefully inadequate - far better to have achieved a higher number of public toilets at various locations around the park, introduced at semi-basement level with planting or other park features on top. The applicant is providing, at considerable expense to the public purse, a cafe facility which will take trade away from existing cafes. I would refer you to the park in front of Cardiff's art gallery, essentially a lawned space with many trees, fountains, public art and some planting; the cafe provision there is amply provided by a wooden kiosk. I repeat: not only is the proposed cafe building against the spirit of the agreement to create a park without buildings; it is a waste of valuable park space, and it is, in my view, an entirely unnecessary blot on this particular landscape.

An even stronger argument can be made against the proposed maintenance shed on the Tunnell Street side of the park. I have been provided with detailed arguments as to why TTS believes it is essential to take up yet more space from an area that has been described by the park designer as 'very tiny', but there is no doubt that the new park could be maintained without this extra building. Of course this might entail changes in working practices, but there is no doubt that it could be done. It is, after all, not certain that TTS will be able to afford to maintain the park in the face of spending cuts, and I would give, by way of example, the case of La Collette Gardens which the then Public Services Committee decided they could no longer afford to maintain as a formal park. The Parish of St Helier maintains its town parks without the necessity of sheds, and would not require a shed were the Parish to be requested to maintain the Millennium Town Park at some future date. The need to provide a pump housing for the water feature does not justify the presence of the maintenance shed.

I would recommend that the cafe and maintenance shed elements of the application are not approved and TTS is requested to revise its scheme to provide better public toilet facilities. Alternatively, the applicant could simply delete both structures from the plans and we could rely on the surrounding buildings to provide all the facilities involved. I have already drawn the attention of the parties involved in the scheme to the potential complementary uses of the Le Seelleur building adjacent to the park. Given that it is intended to provide, at the very least, traffic calming and safe crossing points along the length of Gas Place, given that this building is in States' ownership and given that it requires urgent refurbishment anyway, it would be a far better use of the funds set aside for the cafe and toilet block for these to be applied to the Le Seelleur building. Public toilets could be provided here as well as the gardeners mess room et cetera, which it is proposed to provide in the second building on the park.

If any further work is to be done by the park designers in respect of the above matters, it would be useful for the provision of water in the park to be reviewed. I did mention during the consultation the presence of former streams through the site and believe that it would have been a major enhancement of the park to have had a watercourse flowing through it, running perhaps from the water play area at the eastern end of the park down to Bath Street. I believe that the 'Health & Safety' concerns of a shallow stream could be overcome and that there are few activities children enjoy so much as playing 'Pooh sticks'.

Election Manifesto 2011

Dear Elector of St. Helier

When I stood for election nine years ago the Parish was on the verge of bankruptcy, with angry ratepayers determined to slash its budget at the annual Rates Assemblies. I promised if elected to get the Parish finances under control.

Together with the Procureurs du Bien Public, the Parish staff, and with the support of the Parish Deputies I have managed to reduce expenditure and increase income so that St Helier’s rates are no longer the highest in the Island, Reducing the cost of Parish administration has not been at the expense of front-line services – financial stability means that we have been able to take on new posts such as increasing our Parish Warden headcount to 5, and, following a successful trial in partnership with Transport & Technical Services, successfully recruiting 5 additional street-cleaning staff to provide cover in the evenings and at weekends.

Together with the Parish Deputies I have successfully argued in the States against building on the site of the new Millennium Town Park, and this project is set to become a reality next year. Ratepayers have approved the purchase of a building to provide new toilets in the town centre, and a proposal will come to a Parish Assembly in the New Year to build a new residential home as part of the redevelopment of Westmount Quarry. Other exciting plans for 2011 include the opening of new youth and community facilities at La Pouquelaye, First Tower and the Move On Café, and the construction of a shed for recycling at the Mont a l’Abbe depot.

The success of latest recycling trial in La Pouquelaye means that we are preparing to provide weekly kerbside recycling collections across the Parish; we are continuing to trial food-waste collections in the Havre des Pas area, and we are going to bring back monthly glass collections, as not all parishioners find the communal glass bins convenient. We will continue to work to improve parking facilities in the Parish, and to increase the supply of spaces for the Residents’ Parking Zones as well as for motorcycles.

Following my uncontested election for a fourth term as Constable of St. Helier on Wednesday 1^st December, I look forward to continuing to control expenditure, improving services, defending the best interests of the Parish in the States’ Assembly, developing our day nurseries and residential homes, and supporting the many people who fulfil valuable Honorary roles in the Parish – all this at the same time as reducing Parish Rates. I am holding public meetings at which I will set out my policies for the Parish, answer questions and receive feedback on my manifesto on the following dates in the New Year:

Tuesday 11th January, First Tower School at 7pm

Wednesday 12th January, the Old Magistrate’s Court, Town Hall at 7pm

Thursday 13th January, at the Havre des Pas bathing pool café at 7pm

Alternatively please feel free to contact me for more information on telephone 720830 or email: constable@posh.gov.je

Key achievements so far

1. Parish finances under control


2. Progress with Parish property portfolio including Westmount Quarry and the Old Magistrate’s Court


3. Residential Homes and Day Nurseries among the best in Jersey


4. A second recycling trial at La Pouquelaye and agreement of a recycling partner in France


5. New front line posts in street-cleansing


6. New website for the Parish


7. New Residents’ Parking Schemes and more Parish Wardens


8. Championing St. Helier’s position in the States Assembly


9. Workscheme for the unemployed and an aprenticeships programme


10. Open meetings of the Roads Committee and monthly meetings with Parish Deputies


11. Annual grants to young people and youth groups


12. Honorary Police recruitment and training


13. Town centre management and regeneration initiatives


14. Support for the ‘Community in Bloom’ Group and our new Battle of Flowers’ Committee


15. Investment in new play facilities at People’s Park and the Parade


16. ‘The Town Crier’ newsletter – new monthly format delivered across the Parish


17. Refurbishment programme for toilets and additional facilities


18. High standards maintained in Parish parks, gardens and cemeteries


19. Support for local charities in the Seale Street charitable offices


20. Increased use of Town Hall for community uses, such as Senior Citizens’ lunches

The challenges ahead

CHALLENGES IN THE STATES:

I will continue to ask questions of Ministers in the States and to bring propositions forward for debate as I try with my fellow Deputies to ensure a fair deal for St. Helier. There are several key States debates and works in progress that could have serious impacts on our Parish if the States make wrong decisions in 2011:

1. the long-awaited debate on the North of St Helier Masterplan, to which I have tabled an amendment to secure adequate open space for residents and to prevent ‘town cramming’


2. the debates on Speed Control and the new Island Plan


3. the ongoing debate on the proposals for the Esplanade Quarter, and the need to protect the interests of the retail heart of town, especially the markets


4. the future of Fort Regent and proposed developments ‘East of Albert’ including the harbours


5. the implementation of the Transport policy including proposals to improve pedestrian safety in places like Midvale Road and the Queen’s Road roundabout, to promote safe and responsible cycling and to increase shopper parking


6. the review of the Licensing Law and the implementation of initiatives to make St Helier a less threatening environment on Friday and Saturday evenings


7. the opening of the new incinerator at La Collette and the potential effect on Havre des Pas; ongoing problems for the residents of First Tower posed by States recycling and sewage operations at Bellozanne




9. the debate on whether the States should pay rates on their properties – a successful outcome for St. Helier will mean an extra £1m per annum to address the inequity of our ratepayers subsidising public amenities such as parks, gardens and toilets

I have a proven track record of championing the interests of the Parish in the States Assembly, and pledge to continue in this work during the coming year.

CHALLENGES IN THE PARISH:

I will continue to work with the Parish Assembly, the St Helier staff team, the Procureurs du Bien Public, the Parish Deputies, the Honorary Police, the Roads Committee, Accounts Committee, and the many other groups which meet to plan the successful administration of Parish life. I believe that the key challenges facing the Parish in 2011 are:

1. the need for continuing financial control, especially in the difficult economic climate, tackling inefficiency and waste, maximising non-rates income, with the target of further lowering the Parish rate at our Rates Assembly on Wednesday 6 July


2. the introduction of kerbside recycling collections, including community recycling points for those with insufficient space to store recyclables, and a return of domestic glass collections


3. the need to develop further our ability to keep St Helier clean, especially the provision of more litter bins, and greater enforcement of littering offences


4. wise management of the Parish’s property portfolio, both of schemes already approved by the Parish Assembly such as new town centre toilets, and the potential purchase of a new residential home as part of the Westmount Quarry development


5. the provision of more benches and trees around the Parish


6. the monitoring of the operation of the existing Residents Parking Zones, making improvements as required, and developing new zones where requested by parishioners


7. the opportunities to develop further the opportunities for community involvement in Parish life, especially in the Honorary Police, and the ability of parishioners of all ages to enjoy the facilities and activities provided around the Parish


8. the development and implementation of environmental policies for the Parish

I look forward to working in the months ahead with the talented and enthusiastic team of St Helier staff and volunteers that has the improvement of our Parish as its no. 1 priority.

Constable Simon Crowcroft

I started a new language school for foreign students in St. Helier in 1991. I was elected as a Deputy of St. Helier No. 2 District in 1996 and chaired the Urban Renewal sub-committee of the Planning & Environment Committee which played an important role in the refurbishment of the bathing pool at Havre des Pas as well as in the rejuvenation of town, with new tree planting, pavement widening, unloading bay provision and traffic calming. In 2001 I was elected Constable of St. Helier; I was returned unopposed in 2004, and won a contested election in 2008. On 1December 2010 I was returned unopposed to serve a fourth term which will expire on October 2011 when there will be a general election.

I have given up my business interests in order to concentrate full-time on the running of the Parish

I am a family man, 52 years old, with three sons aged 27, 25 and 22, and two daughters aged 14 and 9. My wife, Angela, teaches art at Jersey College for Girls

Formerly a resident of St. Brelade, where I lived from the age of 15, I chose to raise my family in town to be closer to work, to the schools and to the vibrant community that is St. Helier.

Nomination paper

Thank you to the following residents of St. Helier who have nominated me to serve a further term of office as the father of the Parish:

Clive Barton, Paddy Freeley, Iain Macfirbhisigh, Ann Bailhache, Stewart Mourant, Roselle Godfray, André Ferrari, Martyn Gallery, James Spriggs and Gordon Bullock

Please feel free to contact me for more information on telephone 720830 or email: constable@posh.gov.je

The Planning Committee and St Helier

Today I attended the public meeting of the Planning Applications sub-committee to support a request for reconsideration in respect of the Broad Street cafe. The proprietor and his architect have asked for planning permission to enlarge the serving hatch as the present one is simply too small to meet his operational needs. Admittedly the montage of the larger hatch wasn't too attractive, and this is a listed building, but all the same, the permitted (small) hatch was inserted as part of the conversion of the building from Victorian toilet to modern cafe, so the request to enlarge it seemed reasonable enough to me.

So, which elected members compose our Planning Applications sub-committee? Some rural constables and some out of town deputies - not a single member from the Parish of St Helier, of which there are eleven in the States Assembly. Last year the committee turned down a request for a pavement extension to allow some more al fresco in a part of town that needs every bit of extra retail vibrancy that it can get; and today they turned down, unanimously, the request to make a minor change in a cafe serving hatch.

Thanks, guys!

St. Helier is getting cleaner

I still have to pinch myself when I see our staff with their brushes and handcarts, or astride their green machines, and it's dark. For as long as I can remember you only ever saw one or two people cleaning the town streets in the afternoons, and it's long been an ambition of mine to have street cleansing crews working into the evenings, as happens in many other towns of this size.

Since July last year there has been a new trial in place whereby all of the Parish street cleansing staff are concentrated on the area within the Ring Road, while the TTS or States staff deal with the rest of the Parish. But St. Helier parishioners voted extra funding so we could increase our staffing to cover the afternoons, evenings and weekends, and what a difference it is making.

Not that we're home and dry, by any means - we still have to tackle the root of the problem and deter people from dropping litter in the first place; we need to improve the provision of litter bins, too - sometimes I pick up some litter and find I have to walk half a mile before I find a bin to put it in; we need to allocate more resources to the actual washing of pavements and precincts. But progress is definitely being made towards a cleaner St. Helier.

The St Thomas' RPZ

The latest addition to St Helier's Residents' Parking Zones or RPZs went live at the beginning of the year. As with the previous RPZs, Cheapside and St Mark's, there have been teething problems; for people on the waiting list to get a permit it is particularly frustrating not being able to use the areas which were previously disc parking, while some residents who already have off-street parking are concerned about whether there are enough spaces provided for visitors. At the meeting accompanying the launch of the new RPZ, held for obvious reasons in St Thomas church hall, a number of useful suggestions were made, especially about how the number of parking spaces available may be increased, and the team at the Town Hall is looking into the proposals. These include making it legal to park on some parts of the street that are currently yellow-lined and removing some of the 'ugly' concrete planters, some of which have pretty stunted trees in them.

Most of the feedback we have received has been positive: residents of streets previously clogged up in the evenings and weekends by high-sided commercial vehicles are delighted to get some light in their windows; the Parish Wardens, whose activities are funded by the permit fee, are adding to the sense of security in town streets; in St Helier, as elsewhere, residents' parking adds to the sense of living in a particular neighbourhood, spares residents the headache of having to move their vehicles all the time, and means that if you live in town and want to drive out to the beach or the countryside you have a pretty good chance of being able to park in the vicinity of your home when you come back.

Though I don't qualify for a RPZ permit, I still get a real buzz when I walk in town streets and see the permits in the windscreens of most vehicles. It's the kind of practical politics that got me into this in the first place, and it takes me back to the first meetings of the working group which were held in the language school I ran in Don Street. Martyn Gallery was there, Bernie Manning, Jenny Bridge and several others. The latest RPZ has taken 12 years to deliver, but that's still not quite as long as the Millennium Town Park or a parish-wide recycling scheme.