Were you, like me this morning, barely able to keep down your Ready Brek this whilst listening to Radio Northampton telling of our beloved Borough Council's latest wheez? Apparently they are moving heaven and earth to find various sites around the borough to accommodate hoardes of gypsies and other travellers.
That's right, the same council who thwarted our attempts to relocate within the town are bending over backwards to make room for the horse racing in our streets, every lead roof in the town vanishing overnight, and the decimating of the hedgehog population.
KBC certainly weren't quite so welcoming to the Poppies when they nixed, and then attempted to steal the joint Asda / ground proposal. Or when they said we couldn't use Cohen's Yard because of the access. And then built the exact access we were told we couldn't have, so serve a site that several years later is still empty!
The Council are still purring about the design award they received for the central skate park A.K.A. The Market Place. And taking the credit for the double roundabout on Northampton Road, which, in all likelihood was the work of the County Council. If they weren't busy patting themselves on the back over these developments I'm sure they'd make it their main task in life to f*ck up our proposed move to Latimer Park!
To add further insult, the local councillor spouting guff this morning on the radio about how great it would be to fill the town up with pikies was none other than former Poppies Director and Safety guru Zippy Zanger! It's good to hear he can still talk drivel with the best of them.
So, if Ritchie is reading this, and it's not too late, he might want to put in a ground development proposal to the Council whilst they are in a generous mood. Just be sure to mention bare knuckle boxing, selling pegs, lucky heather, metal thieving and filling the streets with mountains of rubbish, and I'm sure we'll be onto a winner!
I love council bashing! Football fans getting irate because their club wasn't given land/planning permission/cash to build a stadium - not for a second thinking about how large their fanbase is in proportion to the population of the Borough.
ReplyDeleteKettering Borough's population is probably 100k or close to it. KTFC's fanbase? 1,000? Maybe 1,500. So 1.5% of the Borough and we all moan because the council reject plans or don't give support to a stadium that would be used by 1.5% of the population around 25-30 times a year.
Come on people! I'd love a stadium in Kettering as well but really, let's be realistic and try to understand the other point of view.
Fanbase of 1500 or 1000 don't make me laugh. 90% of the old fans have f@!ked off and deserted the club. These days it's 300 at a push.
ReplyDeleteI was talking historically. Obviously now it's 300 and I wouldn't surprise if that dropped further.
Delete1500? In our dreams!
ReplyDeleteI never agree with the, "the Poppies support is only X% of the population" so why should KBC help?
Everything within the Borough Council's borders is used by a small percentage of the overall population. Barely a few hundred cars use the road where I live over the course of a week. Should it be closed? Should the street be lit, or the road be re-tarmacked?
What percentage of the town visit the museum every week? Or use the swimming pool? Or the Corn Market Hall? Or call the Police? Should they all be closed because the majority of the town's population don't use them? Of course not.
KBC have sabotaged the Poppies at every turn. Both the incidents in the above piece show how little regard the Council has for the Poppies. No cash was ever sought from KBC. Just fairness. Just them not trying to steal work the club had done to get themselves new Council offices built.
A succession of Kettering councillors have fell out with a succession of Kettering Chairmen, and the people of Kettering have suffered for this.
Have they? The people of Kettering have a funny way of showing it then - not being bothered in the slightest, apart from the 500-1000 of our fanbase...
DeleteHow much did it cost KBC to bring the National Volleyball centre to Kettering and how many people in the Borough would attend any games?
ReplyDeleteKTFC raises the profile of Kettering as a Town far more than many other events or clubs! Revenue from drinks etc to people vistiing the town on a match day!