Tunbridge Wells Borough Council says auditors have not given specific approval for its plan to use a 50 year loan to fund the £27m Palm Court renovation, even though a council official recently appeared to suggest that the auditors were indeed on board. Senior council finance official Jane Fineman told an October meeting that "the …
Tag: tunbridge-wells
Tunbridge Wells Council Explains £ 23 million Loan for Shopping Centre Revamp
Tunbridge Wells Borough Council says that upgrades to its shopping centre will mean higher revenues from parking fees and "new retailers paying higher rents than the current occupiers of the space." The council has revealed that it expects parking charges in the newly refurbished Royal Victoria Place (RVP) shopping centre car park to rise by …
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Shock as Lib Dems Halt Tunbridge Wells Town Council
The Tunbridge Wells Town Forum has condemned a lack of consultation by the Liberal Democrat-controlled Borough Council after news that the Borough plans to abruptly stop work on forming the Town Council. A motion will be put before a meeting of the Borough Council next week to order a pause to the process. The Town …
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First Half of Huge Council Shopping Centre Loan Nears Approval
Tunbridge Wells Borough Council has given more details of the case for its £ 27 million project to update the Palm Court area of the Royal Victoria Place Shopping Centre ahead of a scrutiny meeting on Monday. But concerns remain that the council will not get the returns it expects, creating a risk that council …
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Kent’s Rebellion Over Mass Housebuilding
A council meeting in Tonbridge and Malling has refused to progress with a plan to build the 20,000 new homes demanded by the Labour government, but the decision was then immediately overruled by the government. The vote to pause the Local Plan was described as "irresponsible" by the Liberal Democrat group. But Conservative councillor, Sarah …
Victorian Snooker Hall Still Set for Demolition
The owners of the snooker centre in Tunbridge Wells have spoken for the first time about how they were "devastated" to find the Borough Council wanted to knock down their home, the Friendly Societies' Hall. Construction of the ornate Friendly Societies' Hall (pictured below) began in 1877 after a royal visit by one of Queen …
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Royal Tunbridge Wells to have its own Town Council
There's concern that no significant assets are set to be given to the brand new Town Council for Tunbridge Wells, so leaving it with little power to enhance the town. The decision to form the new Town Council was made by Tunbridge Wells Borough Council on 15th July after public consultations. The Tunbridge Wells Borough …
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Cinema Plan is Top Election Issue
The Liberal Democrat plan to take on a council debt of £68 million to finance town centre development work appears to have turned into the major local election issue for voters who make their choice tomorrow (Thursday 7th). The Conservative candidate in Sherwood, Christian Atwood, told Southborough News today: "A lot of people are against …
SE Water Failures were “Forseeable and Preventable”
A new expert report has said that South East Water was wrong to blame its failures in Tunbridge Wells at the end of last year on a bad batch of chemicals and unusual fresh water supplies. A detailed report by the government agency, the Drinking Water Inspectorate or DWI, into the collapse of the supply …
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Opposition Builds to Lib Dem Plan for £68 million Council Debt
The Liberal Democrat Borough Council plans for a new "boutique" cinema and more shops in the RVP Shopping centre is set to be a big local issue in the May elections. Leading figures from a range of political parties have spoken to Southborough News stating their outright opposition to the scale of the new council …
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