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Newsletter 238 - January 2009

In this issue:

• Happy New Year...
• Gone at last!
• Lovely to look at
• Breakfast at New Year
• Another Year Another AGM
• A New PCSO on the Block
• Robbery in Regency Square
• Car Thefts Solved
• Police Officers Bearing Gifts
• Abbotts Fights Communal Bins
• Just like "The West Wing"
• Glimpses of the Past
• Any Views on the Venue?
• The Birdcage Bandstand

Happy New Year...

... to all members. And good luck with all those resolutions. Ours is to keep plugging away at what seem like intractable problems. Our next story shows that it can be worth it.

Gone at last!

After more than two years of campaigning, we have at last got rid of the two trade waste bins which were blocking this pavement. We have thanked the Council enforcement officers for sticking at it, and finally getting the problem solved.

There are plenty of other bins on pavements in our area and we will keep on asking Cityclean to get them moved.

Lovely to look at

Each morning and evening the sky is briefly filled with thousands of starlings as they leave and return home to the ivy on the north wall of the Metropole Exhibition
Halls in Queensbury Mews. It is a breathtaking sight, not to mention the eerie sound of their wings.

But spare a thought for those who live nearby. Cars, pavements and windows are plastered with bird muck. Locals likewise, if they find themselves on the street at the wrong time. Some residents of houses near the ivy daren't open their windows for fear of the smell.

The birds are likely to migrate in a month or so. We have approached the Council's environmental health department for advice on what can be done to prevent them returning to this particular corner. They used to occupy the old West Pier theatre when it was still standing. In those days we had the spectacle without the mess!

Breakfast at New Year

About twelve members enjoyed a communal breakfast on New Year's morning. Unlike recent years when the breakfast table was bathed in sunlight, 2009 started with rather grey skies, but the coffee and conversation flowed just as well as always. Many thanks to all at the Regency Restaurant for looking after us so well.

Another Year Another AGM

Our 30th annual general meeting will be held in the Hilton Metropole Hotel at 7:30 pm on Wednesday 25 March. Put it in your diary now!

We will be electing officers and committee members at the AGM. It is always good to have new people with fresh ideas helping to run the Society. We will need to find a new secretary this year as Rhidian Hughes will be stepping down.

Would you be interested in joining the committee or standing for election as secretary? Or you could nominate someone else (with their permission of course). If so, notify the Secretary or simply come to the AGM.

The committee meets once a month for an hour or two; at present meetings are at 8pm on the last Monday of each month. If you'd like to have a chat before deciding whether to stand for election please contact Roger Hinton (Tel 321794) or Rhidian Hughes (Tel 710809).

A New PCSO on the Block

There have been quite a few changes recently in our local policing team.
We now have a new community support officer, Siobhan Salihi. She will look after the area between Cannon Place, the seafront, Montpelier Road and Western Road. So you're quite likely to see her when you're out and about.

If you want to contact Siobhan about anything, her email is Siobhan.Salihi@sussex.pnn.police.uk and her telephone number is 0845 607 0999 ext. 27379.

Robbery in Regency Square

Siobhan came to meet the Society committee last month. One of the things we talked about was the robbery which occurred near the north east corner of Regency Square on 16 December. An elderly lady had her bag snatched and was slightly injured.

The robber is described as a man with olive coloured skin tone, aged about 30, around 5'5" tall and of medium build. He had short dark coloured hair and was wearing a light coloured zip up coat and light coloured trousers.

If you have any information which might help the police please call 0845 6070 999 and quote crime number CC1/136873/08, or ring crime stoppers on 0800 555111 if you would like to provide information anonymously.

Car Thefts Solved

Police have obtained a conviction relating to a number of thefts from cars in this area, including the Regency Square car park. The culprit is now in prison and the number of such thefts locally has dropped significantly.

Police Officers Bearing Gifts

The police are keen to prevent crime as well as solve it. For example, they try to make people aware of the risk of pickpockets in crowded places. One solution is to attach your valuables, such as a purse, keys or wallet, to your belt or handbag. Then if someone tries to lift it unobtrusively, they are unlikely to succeed.

We have two security lanyards for this purpose provided by the police, so if you think you can make use of one, contact Roger Hinton (first come, first served).

Mobile phones and small cameras are also easy to lose. You are more likely to get them back if you have your postcode and street number written on them using a special pen which can only be seen under ultra violet light. The Police have also provided the Society with one of these pens, so if you would like to use, it contact Roger Hinton.

Abbotts Fights Communal Bins

Like many blocks of flats, Abbotts, on the corner of Regency Square, has its own bin on the premises. These are emptied once a week by the Council.

Residents have now been told that there is to be a communal bin placed in Kings Road, just outside their block. Once it is in place, the Council will no longer collect from their on-site bins and they will need to go into the street to dump their rubbish.

The residents' management committee is appealing to the Council against this new arrangement.

Just like "The West Wing"

The February production at Brighton Little Theatre is "The Browning Version" by Terence Rattigan. According to the Theatre website it features "betrayal, dishonesty, infidelity, friendship, love, marriage, expectations, ambition, sex, money, education and intellect. A bit like The West Wing, but in a public school."

The Theatre is very local, in Clarence Gardens. We are planning a group trip to see the play on Thursday 19th February (7:45 pm). If you would like to come please send £7.50 per ticket to Ros Boulden, 8 Abbotts, 129 Kings Road, Brighton BN1 2FA, by 6 February.

Glimpses of the Past

It was a fairly cold and dark December evening, but about twenty members and guests found the Fisherman's Chapel in St Paul's Church where they were welcomed with a glass of wine, a roaring fire and committee members selling raffle tickets.

The occasion was a talk by Society member, Suzanne Hinton, who took us on a stroll from the seafront opposite the war memorial, through Queensbury Mews, Russell Square, St Margaret's Place and Cannon Place. With help from the Regency Society's James Gray photo collection we were able to see what various places en route had looked like at different times in the past, together with a reminder of how they look now.

Suzanne's enthusiasm for her subject was matched by that of others present, who chipped in with comments and questions along the way.

Many thanks to Suzanne for a fascinating talk and to Churchwarden, John Burdett, for making us so welcome.

Any Views on the Venue?

This was the Society's first time at St Paul's and the committee would welcome any comments about its suitability for future events. So if you were there, or if you weren't, please let us know what you think.

The Birdcage Bandstand

Big things have been happening down on the seafront. The whole structure of the bandstand has been removed and taken to Derbyshire where it is being grit blasted to remove at least twenty coats of paint. When it is reinstated it will be painted in its original colour scheme of Brunswick green and cream, rather than the blue-green and cream currently used for seafront railings etc.

The copper roof will look very bright to start with but will dull down, but only fully after about eight years! Concealed lighting is to be fitted inside the roof cavity.

The floor of the upper area will be tiled and accessible from the upper promenade via the bridge. The lower part will be used as a cafe with outside seating.

The structure should be back in place by the end of February. There will be more work to do after that, but all the signs are that it will look splendid when complete.

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