Welcome to Broxtowe Enews, brought to you by the Liberal Democrats and edited by David Watts, on behalf of the Lib-Dems in Broxtowe. It’s quite a short newsletter this week – it just doesn’t seem that there is too much to write about!

1. EU Referendum
The referendum on the EU is just over a month away now. If you are not yet registered to vote you have until 7th June to do so. I was told that there was a rumour floating round Facebook this week that you need to register to vote specifically for the referendum. This is not the case. If you are already on the electoral register then you should receive your polling card shortly. Mine arrived yesterday. If you are a Bramcote resident and usually vote at Bramcote Hills Primary School then please note that the polling station has changed. This time round the polling station is at Bramcote College, further along Moor Lane.

I have been disappointed generally with the quality of the debate around the referendum, but especially from the leave campaign. I saw a government minister saying on TV today that the UK does not have a veto over new countries joining the EU. This is simply untrue, every country currently in the EU has a veto over any other country joining. Equally I saw a claim from the leave people today claiming that 5 million more immigrants are coming to the UK. Leaving aside the fact that immigrants are net contributors to the UK economy this claim is again totally untrue. I even had a leave campaigner on Facebook today threaten to beat me up. He was upset that I had deleted a message he put on my Facebook page – I removed it because he was swearing and I never allow that on my page. I’m sure that many people will be thoroughly bored by the time we get to the referendum, but please do come and vote even so – it is too important not to have your say.

2. Beeston Square
Broxtowe Borough Council has purchased the leasehold interest of Beeston Square in a multi-million pound deal to help secure the future development of the town. The Council purchased the leasehold interest from owners Henry Boot for £7.565 million following negotiations over the past few weeks with the Council’s Property Consultants. The Council say that they will work with all the existing tenants to maintain and improve the retail, service and leisure offer in Beeston. The Centre, which was originally built in the 1960’s and is home to tenants including Peacocks, Birds, Argos, Wilkinsons, Costa Coffee and Pure Gym, totals some 80,000 square feet of retail accommodation together with 3 Apartments. The council say that the purchase will allow them to bring in significant income and have more control over the Phase 2 redevelopment of the area. This is undoubtedly good news for the local area and I hope that it will lead to a quicker and more imaginative development of Phase 2 of the Square.

3. Hemlock Happening
The programme has been announced for this years Hemlock Happening, which will take place at Bramcote Hills Park on 11th June. The event will begin at 1pm and will conclude at 10pm with a firework display. I will be in the marquee for the Bramcote Hills Community Café promoting our attempts to get a permanent café and toilet block built and look forward to seeing people there. Full details of the programme can be seen at http://www.broxtowe.gov.uk/index.aspx?articleid=16245&utm_content=&utm_medium=email&utm_name=&utm_source=govdelivery&utm_term=.

4. Firework Display
Having mentioned the fireworks at the Hemlock Happening has reminded me to mention the firework display near Stapleford last Saturday night. It was spectacular but was extremely loud. My younger daughter woke up screaming as it had frightened her so much. It turns out that the fireworks were part of a wedding celebration. The organisers have apologised for the noise and will try to ensure that it is not repeated in the future.

5. Brinsley and Underwood Arts Trail
This is something new to me. The Brinsley and Underwood Art Trail takes place on 4th and 6th June at 34 and 36 Moor Road, Brinsley, and at 41 Smeath Road in Underwood, the neighbouring village. This is a contemporary art trail between the villages. Artists include painters, potters, garden art, glass art, work in wood, collage, and art with found materials. Demonstrations will take place throughout the day and refreshments will be available. The strap line for the advert reads “see art, buy art, meet the artists.”

6. Kimberley Triathlon
The Kimberley Triathlon will take place on Sunday 5th June, starting at 7am for six hours. This is a fun introduction to triathlon for both adults and juniors. It is a beginners event which can be enjoyed by friends, families and work colleagues, including a swim, a bike ride and a run. The adult event starts with a swim in the pool at Kimberley Leisure Centre, followed by a bike ride on the surrounding roads in Watnall, Moorgreen and Underwood. The event finishes with a run on pavements and grass areas surrounding the leisure centre. The junior event follows a similar format but takes place within the grounds of the leisure centre. The bike ride and the run will both take place on the leisure centre’s field and will not enter the public highway. The distances are suitable for people who have never tried an event before, as well as for those who are looking for an additional challenge to take part in. The event will be chip timed with medals for everyone!

7. Beeston Arts and Crafts Fair
There will be an art and craft fair in Beeston Square on Friday 10th and Saturday 11th May. Each day the event will start at 10.30am and finish at 4.30pm. Full details can be found at http://www.artsandcraftfairs.org/.

8. Chilwell Garrison
A meeting took place at the Village Hotel in Chilwell last Sunday to discuss the MOD’s plans for Chilwell Garrison. The MoD intend to close the garrison by 2020 and have proposed building 800 houses on the site. It was suggested by the borough council that there would in fact be space for 1,600 houses on the site. Local residents were concerned about the impact on traffic levels if so many homes were built.

9. Business Start-Up Units
11 new starter units for businesses are to be built at Moorgreen Business Park. The aim of start up units is to provide tailor made premises for new businesses so that they can establish themselves and develop without unnecessary problems. The new units are being built by a commercial provider rather than the council (who have built a number of these in the past) and after planning permission was granted last week they said that they hope to have them operating by September.

As ever thank you for your support for this newsletter. Any feedback is gratefully received. There will not be a newsletter next week as it is the bank holiday weekend, so the next edition is in two weeks time.

Best wishes

David
www.davidwatts.org.uk
www.broxtoweliberaldemocrats.org.uk
Follow me on Twitter @davidwatts12.

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