Oh Dear… Was It Something I Said?

Readers of the Middy will know that I have got embroiled in a spat on the letters page of the Middy. My two opponents being Councillor Gill Balsdon and Frank Milligan of the Bedelands Residents Association.

Gill Balsdon I have criticized for being a representative for Leylands Ward while not actually living in it. Of course many politicians live away from where they represent. But this is the same Gill Balsdon who led the attacks on Claire Penn Sayers when she defected from the Lib Dems to the Tories. Her complaint? That Miss Penn Sayers no longer represented the people who had elected her.

Councillor Balsdon calls my views "ill-informed" and do you know what? I agree with her. After all we have a council that does things on the quiet. I admit that I was ill-informed about the situation regarding Sidney West recreation ground, but you can't hardly describe the council's behaviour as being one of its finest moments.

I didn't even know there was to any building on Sidney West. How did I find out? Because someone reading the planning notices, who had been fobbed off by Councillor Balsdon saying that there was nothing to worry about, and remaining unconvinced, wrote to the Middy. It was then that I found out that an obscure advert had been placed in the new year edition of the paper regarding planning permission.

We weren't kept informed of the Sidney West situation until several letters had been printed in the paper, then MSDC planning department finally sent a letter to local residents reacting to the criticism. Without the criticism there would have been no letter and the first time residents would have known of any new building was when the bulldozers moved in.

Compare this behaviour with that over the new sports hall at Burgess Hill School for Girls. The council opposed its planning permission. Residents were kept closely informed of the situation. There was a rowdy meeting at the Triangle, when the school had to argue its case. How organised the council is when it opposes development, and how quiet when it wants development to go ahead.

If it wasn't for people like me the council would have got a free ride over the Better Mid Sussex project. £450,000 it cost in consultant fees, all paid for by us mugs who pay our council tax. The residents of Crescent Road were interested to learn that their houses were to be pulled down. Thanks to troublemakers who hold people to account, the council now says that no-one's house is to be compulsory purchased.

Then we come to Bedelands Residents Association. Councillor David Shevels said that the council had consulted over Sidney West with "residents groups". Well, obviously they spoke to St Andrews Cricket Club, I know that. Who else? Well, I am accused of jumping to conclusions but, surely, that means Bedelands Residents Association?

In fact, Tim Wickham and Frank Milligan do a lot of speaking on behalf of other people. Let's hear Frank from the other week: "We have submitted a proposal that we have no objection to Burgess Hill Town FC playing cup matches to ten o'clock, providing it's Burgess Hill's first team playing, and not any Tom, Dick or Harry."

In this weeks Middy, Mr Milligan states that Bedelands Residents Association has nothing to do with Burgess Hill FC's problems and that they have only written supportive letters about the football club. Well, just look at the aforementioned quote. Is that supportive in helpful way or supportive in the way the gallows supports the condemned man?

And who's this "We" anyway? Now that Frank disowns the Bedelands Residents Association activities from that of the Football Club's problems, who does he speak for? Is he a-much-respected-member-of-the-community or someone the Middy phones up for a quick quote on a quiet news day?

Of course I don't know the Bedelands Residents Association. I thought of going to one of their meetings, but two people I know went to one, felt very unwelcome and were left with the impression that it was run by a clique. I know someone else, who passed them as they left one of their meetings. She had her dog with her. The dog jumped up at a lady. My friend apologized. "Can't you keep that animal under control!" she was told. Nice people!