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Somerset County Herald and Taunton Courier. Saturday 16 Feb 1957
Page 4 Column 3 and 4
Taunton May Spend £836,365 Next Year
Clearance Schemes, Market and Street Lighting
IN the 1957-58 financial year Taunton Town Council propose to spent <sic> £836,365 on capital schemes. Estimates for this amount were provisionally approved by the Council on Tuesday, after considerable discussion on the merits and urgency of some of the schemes.
The schemes include:
ALLOTMENTS: £1,000 (allotments at Lyngford).
MAIN DRAINAGE: £50,250 (payment towards the new works at Ham, £32,000; Galmington stream improvements, £8,250, including £725 from the Ministry of Transport; sewage disposal works, clearance and reinstatement, £10,000).
GENERAL PURPOSES: £10,000 (riverside development works).
STREETS AND HIGHWAYS: £114,215 (Crescent car park extension, £12,000; Paul-street car park, £5,000;' High-street-Paul-street redevelopment, £15,000; inner relief road, £45,500, including Ministry and County Council grants; street lighting in the central area, £9,000, including £4,000 Ministry grant; Kingston-road lighting £4,500 and Priorswood-road lighting, £2,000).
WATER: £192,750 (including £150,000 towards the Clatworthy scheme).
MARKETS: £10,000 (reorganisation and improvement).
HOUSING: £485,150 for schemes at Priorswood (including houses, shops and flats, £346,900); the Lane estate; Galmington; King-street-Duke-street (demolition contract and building of 12 traditional flats, £11,250); Holway (including 37 aged persons' dwellings); Pyrland and Holway (61 Woolaway garages); Pyrland (212 houses and flats, £9,000, and land, £9,000).
The Finance Committee is to ask committees to revise their capital estimates for the next three years, to include only projects which there is a “practical probability” of carrying out.
Large Derelict Area
Ald. A. W. LOVEYS (Finance Committee Chairman) said some of the items were the first phases of big schemes. Because of the Council's capital demands and the credit squeeze all proposals had to be carefully considered; there must be priorities.
Ald. C. H. GOODLAND (Streets Committee chairman) said that between Paul-street and High-street there was a large area of derelict land which should be rebuilt.
A lot of property in Paul-street was very sub-standard. It would probably be necessary for the town to acquire some of the poorer property abutting on the street to make a really good job in what at present was “largely a useless area.”
Ald. GOODLAND added, “It is no good thinking we serve the town's best interests by spreading out and having brand new development on the outskirts if we allow the centre to go down and down until it becomes derelict.”
The Central Lighting
The street lighting in the central area was not so modern as in other parts. But in the present state of their finances he personally was very doubtful whether the central lighting was so bad that a lot of money must be spent on improving it. The lighting in Kingston-road was definitely bad.
Ald. F. C. SPEAR (Water Committee Chairman) said that the £150,000 for the Clatworthy reservoir was the first instalment of what would probably be a £1,150,000 scheme.
Market Must Be Improved
Ald. S. GOODMAN (Markets Committee chairman) said the committee had been very patient but must now have more money. The market was still growing. The lorry park must be resurfaced. A portion of the allotment land was to be given up for a new car park, and the roadway in the market was to be enlarged.
Future proposals included loading and unloading ramps and a ring to prevent cattle getting loose; a new pig shed on the car park; and a new entrance from Canal-road into the market to relieve congestion.
Ald. GOODMAN said that Taunton had the biggest pig market in the country and he was told that their cattle market was among the first six in the country.
“Astounding” Figure
Mr. F. G. DOWELL (chairman) described the £458,000 required by the Housing Committee as “quite modest.” He said that Priorswood was developing rapidly. Roads and sewers on the Lane estate, to cost £6,000, would make developments possible there. He hoped the 37 aged persons' dwellings at Holway would soon be occupied.
In reply to Mr. A. H. SOUTHWOOD, Mr. DOWELL said that £14,000 for salaries and expenses of the architect's department was a very small percentage of the whole cost.
Mr. SOUTHWOOD: I think it is an astounding figure.
Mr. R. J. PERRY moved the deletion of the £9,000 for lighting in the central area. He did not think anyone could say that the lighting of the Parade and the surrounding area was in such a state as to need renewing. Mr. H. V. ELLIS seconded.
“Disgrace”
Ald. S. GOODMAN, opposing, said, “Half the town is lit properly and the middle, the most important part, is badly lit. Take away the shop lights and what have you left? It is a disgrace for a town of the size of Taunton to lag behind smaller towns like Chard, Ilminster, Bridgwater and Wellington.”
Ald. F. C. SPEAR said they ought to consider carefully whether they should make the centre of the town a “brilliant spot” at the expense of the suburbs, where the lighting was bad.
Mr. PERRY's amendment was defeated.
Market Finance
Mr. H. V. ELLIS said the markets were a financial investment by the ratepayers. Could they be told when they might expect a return on that investment?
Ald. GOODMAN replied that three markets were held during the week. They brought thousands of people to the town, who were bound to spend money.
Mr. W. WOODBURY said that every effort should be made to ensure that the market itself did become a paying proposition.
Ald. GOODMAN agreed that they must obtain as much revenue as possible. They could not assess the value of the market to the town as a whole. It was a very small debt so far as the rates were concerned.
Mrs. UNMACK said Taunton was a very important agricultural centre and she was surprised that the “modest sum” required by the Markets Committee had been questioned.
Mr. J. STEEL thought there was
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a danger of losing trade to the town if the market improvements were not carried out.
Ald. LOVEYS, replying, said they were doing their best to improve the town, but it must be remembered that Taunton had one of the highest rates in the county.