Dean Gardner, owner of the popular DJ’s Cafe on Queen’s Drive, Exmouth, was in the Midlands looking after a sick relative, when he heard the bad news.

Mr Gardner, who has run the cafe for 11 years, said he had been told by East Devon District Council last month that the cafe could remain open for the “foreseeable future” in the run up to the redevelopment of the Exmouth seafront.

But in the early hours of October 1 a small number of contractors, went to the premises changed the locks and boarded up the premises up.

A notice, signed by Richard Cohen, Deputy Chief Executive EDDC, stated that council had taken possession of the premises.

The notice also indicates that: “as you have not made an application to the court before the expiry date (of the notice to terminate the lease) EDDc has exercised the right to take possession.”

Mr Gardner said: “It is a living nightmare. I restocked the cafe on the basis of being told that nothing was going to happen for the foreseeable future and now they have taken possession and boarded the place up without any notice.

“I have to say that when the Carriage Cafe was hauled away I wondered what was going on but I knew they had had enough and had a new site set up in Cornwall.

“I didn’t expect this to happen and I am now heading back to Exmouth straight away to find out what on earth is going on.”

Mr Gardner added that he had spent thousands of pounds on the cafe but was being offered “less than £15,000” in compensation.

According to campaigners opposed to the seafront development, EDDC said on its website that businesses operating in Queen’s Drive will be able to continue to trade beyond 30 September 2015

A Council spokesperson said previously: “East Devon District Council would like to make clear for the benefit of local residents, as well as its Queen’s Drive tenants and customers, that businesses currently operating at Queen’s Drive, who have formally notified the council that they wish to renew their tenancies, will continue to trade beyond 30 September 2015 until the necessary legal processes have been followed and concluded regarding their future.

“The council would like to apologise for any misunderstanding that has occurred.”

http://www.exeterexpressandecho.co.uk/Exmouth-seafront-caf-owner-shocked-premises/story-27904199-detail/story.html

Posted by

East Devon Watch

Posted on

1 Oct 2015

Posted under

Newton Poppleford

Newton Poppleford targeted again by developers

Poor Newton Pop – assaulted on all sides by developers whose sleight of hand with regard to so-called “community benefits” is quite breathtaking:

East Devon councillor Val Ranger said:

“Ultimately, I’m concerned about the number of homes, I’m concern about the flood risks, and I’m concerned that housing needs are not being met.”

The original plans submitted in February listed designs for a village hall with space for a badminton court, indoor bowls, a function room and garden.

These plans have been omitted from the refreshed plan after criticism was raised when, according to Cllr Ranger, it became apparent that the village hall plans were a proposition for the community of Newton Poppleford to install – with developers merely providing the space.

http://www.exeterexpressandecho.co.uk/Major-East-Devon-development-40-new-dwellings/story-27903248-detail/story.html

Posted by

East Devon Watch

Posted on

1 Oct 2015

Posted under

Affordable and Social Housing, EDDC, Exmouth, Regeneration, Seaton/ Colyford / Colyton

“Regeneration plans and meetings” – are they worth the effort

A correspondent writes:

“For years Exmouth and Seaton have had regeneration areas and Regeneration Boards. Until recently, all the Regeneration Board meetings were secret – now they are published but often with redacted parts.

But are these meetings, Boards, plans, consultations worth the bother?

Seaton’s regeneration area began life with a relatively small supermarket, housing, community and leisure facilities and a hotel, with 40% affordable housing in a total of over 400 houses. What they got was an enormous Tesco, less than 300 houses and no affordable homes.

Exmouth is now going the same way: it started as a purely seafront-themed “upgrading” but changed into expensive housing and cloned businesses.

So, we must ask ourselves: what were all these plans, meetings and consultations actually FOR? What we are ending up with on both sites is nothing like what was initially planned, or discussed or consulted on.

Regeneration Boards are top-heavy with the developers on each site, who appear to use them to push forward their plans, unchallenged either by councillors or officers – in fact, the total opposite, leaving said officers and councillors to ram through their development agendas.

Surely, this makes a total mockery of our officers, councillors and Regeneration Boards but, more importantly, the electors of East Devon, who were sold pups – coincidentally just before two major district elections.