Come and protest with us Friday 14/8/26

Pierremont Park Depot Protest 14/8/26 at 4pm - please come!
 
If you, like us, are furious at Thanet District Council's stated decision to sell of the old Pierremont Park Service Depot to "the highest bidder" (announced last Thursday evening) - come and join in our protest this Friday 14th August at 4pm at the Depot and through the town to the seafront.

At this stage TDC are seemingly saying that they can't or won't take into account the savings to public money and multiple benefits to the park and community outlined in the Town Council's detailed bid to purchase the site and start using it again as it is intended to be used. It is so obvious to all of us that it should be deployed as a gardening and community base for the park.  The Town Council gardeners are crying out to be able to use it and stop having to work from a remote site that wastes hours of their working week. It seems that TDC just want is as much cash as they can get to offset the gap in their finances. the gap is so huge that the Depot sale will make little impact, as far as we can tell.  As they will shortly cease to exist we think they should consider much more carefully this plan to sell off a piece of land that is important to the community - which the town council first expressed interest in acquiring in 2024, shortly after TDC stopped using it - and which is protected by a Covenant which we are all the beneficiaries of.  (You can read a transcript of that here)

Protest against the sale of Pierremont Park depot by Thanet District Council, Friday 14/8/26 4pm

Protest against granting private access through our public park and the disruption that will be caused by construction work - the only access to this site is a narrow leafy pathway, just wide enough for a single vehicle, which we refuse to believe will not be affected by any commercial development.

Protest against encroachment into our precious open spaces - the access path will surely be blocked during construction and there is no question that shrubs and trees in the depot itself which currently add to the quiet and green aspect of that corner of the park, will be lost if houses or flats are built there.

We won't stand for this!

We are STILL asking for the depot to remain in public ownership for the benefit of the park and the residents of Broadstairs.  If TDC won't change their minds, the developer who is planning to buy it needs to be aware of the level of resistance from the community that they are going to face.

We understand that a number of councillors have now called in the sale decision to the Overview and Scrutiny Committee and are waiting to hear about that.  To us, the decision to sell this site to a devloper for a high price is both cynical and ill thought through and makes a mockery of the planning commitee's previous decision to refuse planning permission because of the access and waste disposal issues. 

Meet at the depot gates at 4pm.

Write chalk slogans on the tarmac stating your concerns (this has started already - add your words!)

Bring a placard

Raise your voice

Walk with us along the pavement to the seafront

Where we will stage a "die in" in support of the so called "unimportant trees" 

Share this event with your  networks on Facebook

Photo opportunities 

Thanks to all who supported us last Saturday at the Folk Week parade.  Together, we are a strong community and we are not beaten yet.