R.I.P. Old Harwich

Kukri said:
I've pulled David's leg about this before, but when Hervey Benham wrote his book on local government, "Two cheers for the Town Hall", he remarked that Mersea Urban District Council had appointed the local builder as Chairman of the Planning Committee.
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That was long long ago. Also he was only the Chairman of the Planning committee, what about the other members of the committee, perhaps with different political opinions ?
 
Tomahawk said:
Chalk that up to the stupidity of people who say it’s a brownfield site and should be developed.
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Dead right. Dig up a nice flat field of grass instead; much easier & cheaper to develop. Who needs that silly green belt any way.
Although come to that why should we build more houses? I've got mine, so s.d everybody else !!!
Try telling that to a couple wanting to get married & bring up a family
I am sure they will really appreciate looking at some run down manky old corner of Harwich for the next 40 years whilst they struggle to find somewhere to live.
Those "rabbit hutches" you speak of are far better quality & more efficient that anything built in the last 100 years, given the same space restrictions & some would bite your hand off to get one.
People talk about quality. I have spent years refurbishing some of the rubbish round the east end of London & i know what I would rather have- !!!! I also know that nice detached houses with big gardens & double garages just are not possible for the masses. The proposed development, as shown on the link would have my vote every time. Let's see if it sells- then you know what others think
 
You are either being deliberately awkward (perish the thought), or I am not explaining myself adequately.

Houses can be built anywhere.
You can only access the water at the waters edge where there is deep water. Just because no one says they want it as a port today, doesn’t mean that people won’t need to access the water in the future. Remember how the wind farm industry suddently created the demand for large numbers of workboats to have a place to operwte from.
There is no work in Harwich so any houses will cause commuting out of the town. It will be by car as the train service is inflexible and slow. That is contrary to planning objectives.

There is plenty of land that can be built on in locations that are close to work opportunities.
 
Tomahawk said:
There is plenty of land that can be built on in locations that are close to work opportunities.
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But they will be built on -so what then? & there is not enough viable housing locations, in spite of your protestations- Unless we start using more green belt. Do you think that developers are not searching every inch of land for opportunities? They would not build in an expensive place like this one if they could build somewhere more lucrative, if available
Saying rail links & the like are poor is a different argument- It is poor almost everywhere- Try telling the kids of today that - And for once they WILL believe you- start another thread in the lounge for that one
 
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Kukri said:
I've pulled David's leg about this before, but when Hervey Benham wrote his book on local government, "Two cheers for the Town Hall", he remarked that Mersea Urban District Council had appointed the local builder as Chairman of the Planning Committee.
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Thanks: a dimension to Mr Benham's writing of which I was unaware - being just into Down Tops'l, a serendipitous find at my local Oxfam bookshop this Christmas. :)
 
Kukri said:
I've pulled David's leg about this before, but when Hervey Benham wrote his book on local government, "Two cheers for the Town Hall", he remarked that Mersea Urban District Council had appointed the local builder as Chairman of the Planning Committee.
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You can't take Hervey Benham too seriouly he was a great yarner. I have jut been reading a book where he claims that he comes ashore at Mersea hard after midnight, and the walks home to Colchester in one and a half hours. He also talks about fighting in the pub at Rowhedge when he was a lad. My Grandmother lived in Rowhedge at that time, and she said that this was nonsense
 
DavidofMersea said:
You can't take Hervey Benham too seriouly he was a great yarner. I have jut been reading a book where he claims that he comes ashore at Mersea hard after midnight, and the walks home to Colchester in one and a half hours. He also talks about fighting in the pub at Rowhedge when he was a lad. My Grandmother lived in Rowhedge at that time, and she said that this was nonsense
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Which book is that? I had the pleasure of meeting him a few times and I think I have most of his books, and I certainly don’t recall either of those anecdotes.
 
DavidofMersea said:
You can't take Hervey Benham too seriouly he was a great yarner. I have jut been reading a book where he claims that he comes ashore at Mersea hard after midnight, and the walks home to Colchester in one and a half hours. He also talks about fighting in the pub at Rowhedge when he was a lad. My Grandmother lived in Rowhedge at that time, and she said that this was nonsense
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I must offer the memory of Hervey Benham an apology, I know who he is talking about, the Chairman of the Planning Committee was Clifford White. CW was not only a builder but also the local undertaker, estate agent, insurance broker, etc., and he also owned the local builders merchant (Which I was later to buy)
 
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Michael Frost’s hour and a half to Colchester was covered at a run, from Peat Tye Common, which is just East of Langenhoe, a bit short of halfway,* rather than from Mersea Hard, in the dark, for the very good reason that he had been ‘de-bagged’, a now extinct form of horseplay once popular with young Englishmen which involved the victim having his trousers (« bags ») forcibly removed by his friends, for arguing to boredom point about boats...

* As a boarder at Colchester Royal Grammar, incidentally Hervey Benham and Michael Frost’s old school, with my first boat on a drying mooring off Mersea Hard, I cycled that distance rather often!
 
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Kukri said:
Michael Frost’s hour and a half to Colchester was covered at a run, from Peat Tye Common, which is just East of Langenhoe, a bit short of halfway,* rather than from Mersea Hard, in the dark, for the very good reason that he had been ‘de-bagged’, a now extinct form of horseplay once popular with young Englishmen which involved the victim having his trousers (« bags ») forcibly removed by his friends, for arguing to boredom point about boats...

* As a boarder at Colchester Royal Grammar, incidentally Hervey Benham and Michael Frost’s old school, with my first boat on a drying mooring off Mersea Hard, I cycled that distance rather often!
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I remember reading about the de-bagging incident, but I think I am talking about Hervey Benham going from Mersea hard ..... I maybe wrong, but I can't check it now as I am abroard
 
Daydream believer said:
But they will be built on -so what then? & there is not enough viable housing locations, in spite of your protestations- Unless we start using more green belt. Do you think that developers are not searching every inch of land for opportunities? They would not build in an expensive place like this one if they could build somewhere more lucrative, if available
Saying rail links & the like are poor is a different argument- It is poor almost everywhere- Try telling the kids of today that - And for once they WILL believe you- start another thread in the lounge for that one
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Daydream..

Please don't be a day dream.. There is plenty of viable land that can be used for providing people with places to live. The only shortage is the willingness to allow it. For some odd reason people seem to think that building homes and places to work is a bad thing..

But we don't call the homeless priveledged for having the benefit of living in the environment. We recognise the homeless are destitute, vulnerable, deprived etc. Yet try and build homes for people to live in together wit the infrastructure to support a thriving economy and everyone complains.
 
I've visited Harwich frequently over the past 20 years as a client of the port (Parkeston.) I'm always struck by how run-down the place is given that it's in easy commuting distance of London and it is a busy international port - albeit overshadowed by Felixstowe.

Continental colleagues arriving in, or departing from Harwich make it their business NOT to stop there as it's remarkably grubby and overpriced.

I think that the proposed development could help bring new investment and new opportunities.
 
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