TO:� 2007 WHITCHURCH ASSOCIATION AGM - 2006 PROJECT REPORT
Town Action Plan Project News
Most of you will be aware that in addition to WA Trustees focus and preparations
for the opening of the new Community Hall, the WA has retained responsibility,
within our limited resources, for progressing the Healthcheck
initiated Town Action Plan Projects. Here is a quick summary of the main
activities and achievements over the past 12 months:
- Town Entry Gateway SIgns - we are finally emerging from the
very complex legislative processes and expect to see the 5 new Gateway signs
being implemented by Summer 2007. The design is
based on Greg Harris's winning entry to a competition we held 2 years ago
and the signs will depict All Hallowes
Church, a River Test Trout and show the first charter date for the Town
- Heritage Display - Plans are progressing for
a 'rolling' display of items of local historical significance at the new
Library. There are a number of ideas and contributions, but I know the team
would welcome additional contributions from any of you here present today.
- The
Whitchurch
Web - The Community website has gone from strength to strength
thanks to Phil Cooper's wizardry and the regular contributions from Church
and Community Groups plus local Businesses in the Town. I do encourage you
to take a look (www.thewhitchurchweb.org) especially if you want to find out about
'forthcoming events and what's happening generally in and around the town.
Many of you will also have received the first issue of the whitchurchweb magazine before Christmas thanks to the
design skills and investment of John Buckley and the team. Again I urge you
to support the magazine in terms of both editorial and advertising as it
will have to pay its way in order to become a regular feature of our lives.
- Town Centre Revitalisation - this has been the
major Town Action Plan focus and will continue to be so in 2007/08. The
first task after successfully submitting the preliminary bid to the regional
development agency SEEDA in September,
is, with HCC and BDBC support, to develop and submit our final detailed
bid, hopefully in February or March, for matched funding. A successful
outcome will enable the proposed visual improvements to the Town centre to
be made. It is anticipated that the public consultation will take place in
April or May. WA and local retailers are represented on the Steering Group
that has been established to oversee the project. In the meantime, the
project team led by Stewart Parrington has already successfully delivered
Christmas in Whitchurch 2005 and 2006 - the former winning a
Community and Social award from the South East Rural Towns Partnership - won
funds for the retail survey and subsequent training programmes and developed the
Whitchurch
welcome Pack for new residents. Stewart's team has also been working with
Tourism South East to try and get Whitchurch
more firmly recognised as an attractive Tourist
destination. We can look forward to some exciting developments and some new
events being announced as we go through 2007.
We have been well supported by
Hampshire
County Council who have provided a Town Project Officer, Tony Corbin, one day
per week throughout 2006. That contract is now at an end and in 2007 we will no
longer have Tony's direct support. So we have asked Jim Seamons to take on the mantle of WA support to the Town
Action Plan Teams. Tony will however be available over the next couple of months
to help the WA develop its
final bid to SEEDA.