State of the Borough debate - Cllr. Steve Kulka - 27th July 2006

Speech by Cllr. Steve Kulka delivered to Full Council on Thu 27th Jul 2006

There are always opportunities for the council to increase our quality of life and improve the state of our borough.

If only someone were to listen to the residents, so I asked some.

Reigate Priory Park was mentioned.

It's due to have £4.5M of Lottery cash spent on it. Supposedly to make it more attractive.

There was a public outcry when the kiddies paddling pool was removed a couple of years ago. Residents wanted to keep it and the council weren't listening.

Never mind though, we've been told that there will be a new water feature in the New Park.

An exciting new design that uses running water, straight from the mains.

Unfortunately it stands a good chance of being turned off in the summer, just when the children want to use it.

Residents wanted a bigger car park - and they got it. It doesn't have any more car parking spaces in it, but it's bigger. Someone wasn't listening.

The trees along Monks walk that provide shade to the children in the playground of Reigate Priory School are being removed because they aren't pretty enough.

The children need shade in the summer, but nobody's listening.

Reigate had the Summer Music Festival. Good music, Fireworks and an excellent excuse for a friends and family get together with a picnic.

Thousands of people typically attend this annual celebration of the arts. Admittedly they weren't all local residents, but that's a good thing.

Visitors came to Reigate to make a day of it. They'd spend the day shopping, having lunch, afternoon tea, then before the main event they'd probably go and buy their takeaway picnic in Morrisons.

Do the organisers get support from the Council to help promote the event? Not any more. So we don't have one this year. A sad loss.

Redhill's Harlequin is having it's council funding slashed.

A Theatre, Cinema, Music venue and Meeting and Conference centre.

I attended a public meeting there recently, to hear a presentation about the future of Leisure facilities in the Borough.

We were told by the Executive member that 'absolutely no money has been spent on the fabric of the buildings during all the time they've been in control of the council'. There also seemed to be some confusion among the Tory Executive as to whether there would be a pool in the north of the borough.

Redhill Town Centre has had a face lift.

The council have spent a fortune on a new 'easy clean' granite surface.

Nevertheless it is permanently covered with Chewing gum and oil stains, which we were told could be easily cleaned off. But it isn't.

The state of the roads is something that residents complain about all the time. They cannot understand how 'our Borough Conservatives' constantly fail to influence the County Conservatives who run the highways, some of whom are here tonight.

It's not all so bad though. Recycling is finally improving.

Reigate Liberal Democrats have been banging on for years about better recycling. A survey on the Reigate Lib Dem website shows that 87 percent of people want Plastic collected with their other rubbish and recycled.

It appears that somebody's listening at last.