Report this comment
  • "
    Nebs wrote:
    Broadwaywatch wrote:
    maxell wrote:
    you cant speculate when you are dominated by the airport, this council now has to ask the airport if any event will affect them, you cant even run a ballonn race now with out consultation , and they are also moaning about the paper floating lanterns, they rule the roost, the council have sold you all doen the line , yes there maybe jobs and yes it might be conveinent , but look at the cost, loss of the air show , closing of the peir, and the incease in taxes to make up the loss that would have come from the air display revenue, whilst the airport makes profit ,so you are effectivly paying for the airport once again. what has the councils done ? no way back you have sold your souls.
    and it would seem the loss of an ancient footpath, footpath 36 from Eastwood to Rochford. A footpath which has been there long before the airport built a taxiway across it back in the early sixties. However, the airport back then also painted a zebra crossing on the tarmac so that the footpath could continue un-obstructed and un-obstructed it has remained until now. Now the owners of the airport are intent in closing this most often quiet rural walk and diverting it onto a busy main road. The reason they say is because of security . It seems strange that it's taken them all this time to come to this conclusion. However, if this is truly the reason then I propose that such a problem could easily be solved with an electronic gate with a camera either side of the taxiway where it crosses the footpath. I believe it to be a logical, and community minded solution to such a said problem.
    If you buy a house under a flightpath, you can't complain when planes fly overhead. If you buy an airport with a footpath going through the middle, you can't complain if people want to walk along it.
    Well said Nebs. Thank you"
  • This field is mandatory
  • This field is mandatory

  • Please note we will not accept reports with HTML tags or URLs in them.


  • Enter the above word in the box below

Please be fair, courteous and respectful to the views of others so we can build a vibrant community in a safe online environment. You are personal liable for your comments and action will be taken against anyone who offends, ridicules or posts malicious and damaging views. If you wish to complain, please contact us.

Southend Air Show cancelled and pier shut in budget cutbacks

in Local News By David Trayner

Southend Air Show scrapped and pier shut in budget cutbacks Southend Air Show scrapped and pier shut in budget cutbacks

SOUTHEND Air Show will be cancelled and the pier will close two days a week as Southend Council struggles to balance its books.

Council tax will rise by 1.75 per cent – 38p per week for Band D properties – and the authority will slash more than £10million from its budget as it deals with a £3.2million drop in government funding.

A total of 80 jobs will be lost in the cutbacks, although 41 are already vacant posts.

Council leader Nigel Holdcroft said: “We no longer have any leeway and we have to make real cuts to services in order to balance our books - and that involves making some very hard choices.

“Some of the savings we are proposing won’t be popular with residents but I would ask them to bear in mind that this crisis was not of our making.”

The closure of Southend Pier on Mondays and Tuesdays between November 1 and April 1 will save £50,000 and ceasing to hold the popular air show, which brings hundreds of thousands of tourists to the town, will save a further £130,000.

Other cuts include £1.8million to adult and community services, £1.7million to children and learning, £1.3 to enterprise tourism and the environment, £794,000 to support services and £846,000 to the corporate department.

And austerity looks set to continue as government funding is expected to drop by a further 8.9 per cent - £6.834million – in 2014-15.

Mr Holdcroft said: “These difficult financial conditions are not going to improve any time soon and we will have further difficult decisions to make in years to come.

“We are determined not to make decisions on a short-term year-by-year basis and have already begun looking at how we can make major savings in service delivery going forward.

“We have to take a new approach to how we provide libraries, museums, leisure facilities, old people’s homes, children’s centres and waste services.”

For full details of the budget and analysis see Tuesday’s Echo.

Local Businesses

About cookies

We want you to enjoy your visit to our website. That's why we use cookies to enhance your experience. By staying on our website you agree to our use of cookies. Find out more about the cookies we use.

I agree