Other Business

Alvin Aaron:

The most important issue facing the parish , is with out doubt, the proposed financial development, at the esplanade, the sinking of the 6 lane dual carraigeway, will lead to 3 or more years of utter traffic chaos.

And if those who propose this development say different, they are not fit for office and are out of touch with realality, and should resiegn.

Simon Crowcroft:

While I would like to put 'community safety' at the top of my priority list, because there is a lot of ongoing work being done by States, Parish and the Safer St Helier Group, which I chair, to tackle crime and anti social behaviour in the Parish, I would have to say that the most immediate direct threat to the Parish's future is the proposal to sink La Route de Liberation and build the new finance district across a sunken road and roundabout.

This plan is being rushed through by the Council of MInisters who are seeking a States debate in March. If it goes ahead it will have far reaching impacts on the Parish and the rest of the island, disrupting traffic for several years, blighting the hotels in the area which are either new or have reinvested heavily, and having a serious impact on the rest of St Helier by sucking out retail and restaurant trade.

The original scheme for Esplanade Square did not affect the main road or require Les Jardins de la Mer to be dug up. The pretext for the scheme is to join the waterfront with the town but the crossing of the road is very easy at present in this area - the difficult crossings will actually get worse if the project gets the go ahead. No, the real motive is money.

Alvin Aaron:

This is an unfair tax, on the less well off in our community and certainly immoral to tax food and medical supplies. And dont forget.

Mr crowcroft originaly voted for gst.

Again the public are being forced to pay, for politicians overspending.

Simon Crowcroft:

I originally supported the Fiscal Strategy, of which GST was one part, but lost faith in it when the new Council of Ministers started spending or 'reinvesting' the money they promised to save.

During my time at the Parish we have cut our budget by 10% - if the States had done likewise (10% of £550m) they would not need to introduce GST, at least not for the time being. In my six years in office the States have never asked me or my staff how we achieved our savings at the same time as improving front line services.

As a result I took the petition of 19.000 signatures to the states to seek to defer the implementation of the new tax but it was defeated by five votes.

The more I talk to town traders about the impact of GST, especially the nightmare of red tape and administration that is involved, and the more I find retailers who are simply unprepared for the new tax starting in May, the more I am persuaded that it may be necessary for me to take this matter back to the States at the start of the new session this January.

Alvin Aaron:

The waterfront development has been a disaster.

We need to just stop. Stand back, and look at what they have done.

We need to seek advise from a developer, that has experience in water front development.

Do we need 14 office blocks? I'm not sure we do, with empty office space available around the town now.

Simon Crowcroft:

The waterfront is developing already. There are currently three big schemes under construction - the new offices/hotel at the end of the Liberation Site, a large shopping mall behind the bus station, and across the road the large residential development on the former Les Pas site called Castle Quays.

I believe that we should wait and see what impacts these projects have on the rest of town, especially in terms of traffic congestion and retail drag, before any new developments are approved.

Let's face it, the esplanade car park is one of the most used and it provides valuable greenery in the area of the esplanade. Many of the finance houses have already relocated to larger offices on the esplanade anyway, and I haven't seen any evidence that there's a huge unsatisfied demand for new offices on the Esplanade car park.

While I support the idea of a national gallery if it is seen in conjunction with other tourism related facilities, especially a conference centre and some kind of botanic garden, perhaps, I think that the Weighbridge is the wrong place to put it. We are creating a fantastic new square at the Weighbridge with views down the old harbour - let's not clutter it up with another building.

I would like to see the Hopkins proposal to sink La Route de la Liberation scrapped as it is more suitable for Hong Kong than St Helier. The underpass does a good job when traffic builds up - the experience of driving east-west will be miserable if we are sent underground and round a roundabout to access a huge new car park that will itself treble the amount of traffic using the area.

I would like to see the corner site on the other side of the road from the Esplanade car park and before you get to the hotel developed into a tourism related use such as a gallery and conference centre. But the Town Park should be done first.

Alvin Aaron:

Yes absolutly. Lets not turn St Helier into a concrete jungle.

There are a lot of bedsits and flats in this nieghbourhood. It will be fabulous for familys and teenagers to take time out from the hustle and bustle of town living.

I say to Mr Frank Walker. Lets have some of the interest from the rainy day fund. Get the park built. Its 7 years overdue.

Simon Crowcroft:

Yes. The second largest petition in recent history was approved by the States in 1999 and the project is therefore seriously overdue. Some 11,000 people live within walking distance of the park and should be provided with the open space necessary for a decent quality of life in the urban area.

The petition also called for car parking to be provided - the current plan is to provide this when the Housing Dept moves residents from Ann Court into new accommodation by building a multistorey there rather than an underground parking area beneath the Town Park. This makes good sense as the ground conditions are marshy.

Some of the delay in delivering the project can be put down to the need to do a thorough survey of the ground contamination but now that's finished and the Council of Ministers have increased the available funding for the project it should be delivered without delay. I don't believe there's a pressing need to develop the Esplanade car park, in fact, the States top priority now should be to bring forward the timetable for developing the Town Park.

We should be encouraging investment by the private sector in the northern part of St Helier as well as in the southern part, and getting the Town Park project up and running this year is the best way to do that.

Alvin Aaron:

The parish doesent do enough for the teenages.

Moving them around town, is not the answer.

We need the millinium park. Skateboard parks and basketball parks. Free facilities for the young. And fort regent should be once again the center of sport and entertainment.

With an olympic size swimming pool, access from snow hill. And not developed into more luxury apartments.

Simon Crowcroft:

I have successfully lobbied the developer of the Liberty Wharf buildings (the former abbattoir) to ensure the continued life of the Move On cafe. I've taken the proposal to build a skateboard park on Lower Park to a Parish Assembly and received approval for it, should the Council of Ministers' preferred scheme on the Waterfront car park not move ahead in the coming year.

With the support of the Parish deputies I have started a new Youth and Community centre in the former La Pouquelaye School, and have also introduced young artists into the old chapel at Almorah Cemetery and the former Parish yard at Westmount Works.

I am currently looking at the possibility of creating an alcohol-free cafe in conjunction with other community uses in the Old Magistrates Court behind the Town Hall which would provide another place for young people to relax and socialise in if it comes to fruition.