There's a general feeling of unrest.

(My column in the Herald Express 1st may 2014)

A little while ago I wrote about what I considered to be the master plan phenomenon because more and more of these colourful projects seem to be popping up. Curiously when the consultants write master plan it appears as one word and perhaps that is part of the trendy attraction. Anyway the other day I pitched up at a meeting hosted by the consultants employed by Torbay Council to produce a new Paignton master plan. There were other meetings for Torquay and Collaton St Mary but I didn’t attend them. Simply ran out of time. I want to share a couple of points about what is going on because for me it is a worry.

One word that seemed popular with people attending this event was apathy. The suggestion was that many local people were simply apathetic and show no interest in local development. That in my opinion is simply not true. Apathy can be defined as a lack of enthusiasm or interest and in the case of our increasingly cosmopolitan population that is not the case. It seems to me that the constant smoke and mirrors of various socio-political adjustments have produced a general feeling of unrest and perhaps community disengagement. So I have an issue with the suggestion that we, the people, are apathetic!

The second point is the level of engagement. Who do we actually expect to pitch up at these focus events? One observation from someone in my little gathering was the fact that most of the people there were older citizens and that was sadly an obvious truth. We were given maps to play with and the area in question was outlined with a large black line. It was immediately obvious that important parts of the town have been ruled out. Our hosts said that they were simply following instructions. I think that we might want to question those instructions.

The meeting was held in a room under the Paignton Club on the edge of Paignton’s lovely little harbour. That venue is not frequented by many local people and it seemed to me that the library might have been a better location. For those that prefer to use public transport the library in Paignton is next door to the bus station.

The public meeting for the Paignton and Collaton St Mary master plan was the previous day and I gather that only sixty people attended. That is a very small cross-section of the local population! Given that these meetings seem to attract older people it might have been an idea to use South Devon College and Paignton Community and Sports Academy. Both can be reached easily by bus and have campus populations of many thousands.

These plans will potentially shape the future community for generations to come. I worry about many things because that is my nature but an increasing concern is the platform that we are building, or not building for our young citizens.

Thinking about our younger citizens I have to record my disappointment over the semi-closure of the wonderful Parkfield building. I was so excited when this £4.5 million centre opened a few years ago. For a while I thought it would become the beating heart of South Devon for youth but the draconian funding cuts have left the facility somewhat beleaguered. Hmm.

On a more positive note you will be pleased to know that the six wonderful tennis hard courts at Oldway Mansion have been re-opened.  A big thank you goes to Torbay Council for taking the decision to re-open them. Three of the six are floodlit and the playing surface is really excellent. I have no idea where the Oldway Mansion project is heading but watching families playing tennis again is a real tonic.

Finally something I want to share that will to make you chuckle. A few mornings ago I had to nip over to St. Marychurch. I parked my vehicle in the car park and found that parking was only £2 for the whole day. My time there was likely to be less than an hour but sadly the option for a short stay wasn’t offered. Now, about that joined up thinking when it comes to parking policy!

Keep the smile.