Gedling Eye continues its look back on local stories making the headlines during 2020. Here’s a selection from July to September…
JULY
The leader of Gedling Borough Council was one of 40 people who gathered outside County Hall to take a knee in support of Black Lives Matter in early July. Councillor John Clarke knelt for eight minutes and 46 seconds, along with the rest of the group. This was to reflect the length of time George Floyd’s neck was knelt on before he died.
Police in Gedling borough urged drinkers to stay safe and know their limits as pubs prepared to reopen their doors for the first time in three months. Hairdressers and restaurants were also being allowed to trade again as lockdown rules were lifted on what was being called ‘Super Saturday’ But despite the hype around the event, police said that most pubs in the borough were remaining shut. Inspector Chris Pearson said: “To date, only seven pubs in the Gedling borough are confirmed to be reopening today which are in Arnold, Mapperley, Calverton and Gedling.
Lincoln Cathedral, St Mary Magdalene Church in Newark, Gunthorpe Lock, and Belvoir Castle are just some of the sights visitors were able to see from two new viewing platforms that opened during July at Gedling Country Park. The two platforms were officially opened by the Mayor of Gedling and will offer visitors views as far as Lincolnshire and Leicestershire.
Officials were investigating reports of dead fish in the lagoon at Gedling Country Park. Around 100 fish are thought to have died in the incident. Officers from the Environment Agency visited the site after concerned visitors contacted them via their emergency hotline after hundreds of dead fish were spotted floating in the waters. The Environment Agency said the cause of the deaths was ‘unknown’.
Wildlife supporters hit out at plans to build new homes in Carlton which they said would impact rare creatures who have made a green space their home. An application was made to build three modern homes on the site of the Burleigh House Orchard, off Midlands Crescent. Campaigners said the land is home to badgers, barn owls and bats and were planning to object to the plans in a bid to protect the local wildlife. Burleigh Close resident Paul Farrant said: “Residents are very concerned about noise, additional traffic, safety of residential roads, the effect upon small businesses, and about the wildlife that relies heavily on the orchard for food if these plans get the go ahead. Many surrounding gardens are visited by orchard’s resident badgers – including rare white erythritic badgers. They are protected by law in the UK. A spokesman for Gedling Borough Council said: “A decision on the application is expected to be made by the council later in the summer.”
AUGUST
A community and local councillors called on Severn Trent Water to back their bid to bring a village hall back to life in Stoke Bardolph. Residents in the village teamed up with Trent Valley councillors Sam Smith and Mike Adams to try and get the hall on Stoke Lane reopened and back in use. The hall was at the heart of the community for over 100 years and was the only meeting place apart from the church, and was provided for the use of the villagers by the Nottingham Corporation who then owned the Stoke Farm estate. The group were preparing for fresh negotiations with Severn Trent Water, who own the hall, and hoped to secure a more favourable lease that will allow them to bring their plans to fruition. The councillors and Village Hall Trustees also approached Persimmon Homes, who are building the Rivendell development, and the developer agreed to renovate the whole of the Village Hall at no cost.
Plans for a new Sainsbury’s supermarket in Colwick were approved by Gedling Borough Council at the start of August. A new Sainsbury’s supermarket, Argos store and petrol station will now be created on land next to Colwick Loop Road. The new store will open in summer 2021. Patrick Dunne, Sainsbury’s Property Director said: “We’re excited about the plans for our new store, which will provide a significant investment in Colwick, supporting economic growth locally, creating jobs and providing a convenient shopping location for residents. We are delighted that our amended plans are recommended for approval and hope to welcome the local community into the new store by next summer.”
Gedling Borough Council generously footed the bill for a clean-up operation on a historic plane targeted by vandals in a Colwick school playground. Colwick Ward councillor for Gedling Borough Council, Cllr Meredith Lawrence approached the authority and asked if they would pay for a large graffiti tag to be removed from the plane, which rests in the playground of St John’s C of E School in the village.. The council pledged to pay the bill and a cleaning team were dispatched to the site on Vale Road who used pressure washers and cleaning agents to remove the tag. Head teacher Rachel Ireland said: “It’s been fantastic to see the local community, parish and borough councils all come together to show their support for our school. The graffiti tag was an eyesore and I’m glad it’s being removed.”
A construction firm apologised for sending large vehicles down narrow village roads in Gedling. Residents in Gedling village voiced their anger after HGVs and large construction vehicles were spotted using Shearing Hill and Arnold Lane to gain access to the Gedling Access Road (GAR) site near the village. Locals said the vehicles were having a ‘devastating impact’ on the local community. Geoffrey Pope, 77, lives in the village and said the narrow roads can’t cope with this kind of traffic He said: “The roads simply can’t cope with these huge vehicles. They weren’t built for that. I worry some pedestrian is going to get hurt as it gets very narrow. They need to stop now. It’s having a huge impact on the village.” Village resident Francis Rodrigues said the recent activity proved how much the Gedling Access Road is needed.
Building work began on a new £18.5 million joint police and fire headquarters in Arnold. The new three storey building is being built on land behind the existing Nottinghamshire Police headquarters at Sherwood Lodge, which will remain in use as part of a wider joint campus.
Gedling Borough Council unveiled their final plans for improving Carlton Square following a consultation with local residents, businesses and the shopping precinct owners. There will be improvements the car parking layout, including identified spaces for electric vehicle points, and improved disabled parking spaces in the southern car park. There will also be new planting and boundary treatments, new paving and improved access between the car park and shopping area and a revised siting of payment machines and lighting.
SEPTEMBER
Gedling Borough Council were hoping to get the go ahead to transform a former railway line in Netherfield into a green cycle and walking route to a country park – with a tram line also being proposed too. The route would start at Netherfield Railway Station and go as far as Gedling Country Park.
A Newstead pub landlady blamed the latest government restrictions for her decision to close for the foreseeable future. The Pit Micropub on Tilford Road shut its doors on Sunday, October 4. Landlady Lorraine Horrocks announced the decision on Facebook. She said: “It is with deep regret that I have to inform you that due to the latest mandatory obligations on the hospitality sector, The Pit Micropub will be temporarily closing over the autumn and winter period. This of course is a huge blow not only to the community of Newstead but also our customers from the surrounding areas and even further afield, our amazing staff and not forgetting the grassroots artists that we have always keenly supported and vice versa.
Eight takeaways in Gedling borough were issued with warnings by police after breaching the new 10pm curfew. A team of pro-active Special Constables issued the warnings after carrying out spot checks across the borough on Friday night. The team visited dozens of restaurants and takeaways and observed staff from eight of the visits agreeing to serve customers after the 10pm curfew. Police said that each of the premises that had breached the closure rules would be issued with warning letters, outlining their responsibilities as a business to comply with the latest Government rules.
A Netherfield supermarket reintroduced the rationing of essential goods. Morrisons, which has a store on Victoria Retail Park, was limiting customers buying products such as toilet roll, disinfectants and bleach to a maximum of three items. All the major supermarkets had introduced temporary restrictions in March after shelves were stripped bare of essentials such as toilet rolls in the weeks leading up to the COVID-19 lockdown. Morrisons said they had seen stocking up on certain products like soup, pasta, cleaning items, etc. “Due to this we’re now introducing some max caps into store so we can ensure good availability for all our customers,” they said.
A rabbit who was abandoned and left for dead by fly-tippers was given a new life and home in Arnold after being rescued by a police officer. The white lop-eared rabbit was spotted by Inspector Marcus Oldroyd whilst he was out on a morning run. The rabbit was left to fend for himself after he was callously thrown out by fly-tippers, who dumped a load of household waste on land near Newark.The bunny was named after Operation Reacher, a proactive policing initiative which began in Bestwood during April 2018 to tackle serious and organised crime, and was led by Inspector Oldroyd. Reacher found a new home with the Ellis family in Arnold, where he also has a bunny best friend called ‘Honey’.
One very appropriate name for a new apartment complex in Carlton raised smiles locally after property developers decided to make light of a the fact the building was formerly a police station. Constable Court is the name they chose for the 67 apartments that were created out of the old Carlton Police Station building on Foxhill Road. Documents submitted to Gedling Borough Council back in November 2019 reveal that Sergeant Court and Commander Court were also under consideration by developers. And the new name was raising smiles locally. Carlton resident Tom Greenwood said: “It’s a great name. It’s a pity the apartments are quite roomy otherwise they could have called them cells. Maybe they should consider renaming Foxhill Road… Letsby Avenue.”
