Danbury Society

Danbury Village Hall – Centenary Year

2012-02-01T11:23:00.001Z

Most village halls are owned and operated by the local parish council. Danbury’s Village Hall is a little unusual in that it is run by a charity whose Trustees are representatives of its users. This post is to mark the hundredth year since Danbury Village Hall was opened and is mainly based on the first account book, which is now at the Essex Record Office.

The story appears to have started about 1908-9 when interested individuals identified the need for an assembly hall in the village. The subscription list opened in June 1910 when Lt. Col. the Honourable Alwyn Greville and Mrs Greville donated £100, equivalent to £8,235 in today’s money. They subsequently made more donations but even so their generosity spurred others so that in that first month £220 was raised. Among other donors were the Reverend Plumptre and his family who gave £65. By the end of the year a total of £553 had been subscribed. To raise an equivalent amount in 2012 would mean over £45,000!

The first interest to be earned was £5-11s-8d on a balance of £623 – an interest rate not much better than the Village Hall gets on its money today. That year saw the Coronation of King George V and a Coronation Committee was set up. What celebrations were arranged is not known but they generated a net income of £12-4s-6d.

Subscriptions in 1911 totalled £762 so there were sufficient funds to start building. The Church Commissioners had provided the land and a firm called Allen Brothers of Bealden, Chingford was engaged as builders. Construction appears to have started in October 1911 with a progress payment of £100 made on the 16th. The account book shows the final account to the builders a year later when a total of £959-0s-9d had been paid. A sum of £64-10s-0d was spent on furnishings and £69-6s-0d on fixtures and expenses. Adding in a few pounds for miscellaneous items gave a grand total of £1,100-15s-7d for a complete Village Hall ready to run.

Could the hall be built and equipped today for the equivalent of about £88,000?

When was the Opening Day? The cash proceeds of the opening entertainment were recorded as £11-5s-0d on 25 April 1912. That was a Thursday. Was the opening that day or possibly the day before? It was over two weeks after Easter, which fell on the 7^th that year.

The first recorded letting was on 12 June 1912 when the Coon Minstrels paid 15s-0d to hire the hall. The next month the Rector held two meetings and paid 2s-0d while the County Council had to pay 15s-0d. Fifty chairs were hired out for 8s-4d and the Band of Hope came along to give an entertainment on the evils of drink and paid 7s-6d. Other income came from subscriptions, which were set at half-a-guinea or 10s-6d. It is unclear from the accounts the purpose of the subs.

There were expenses in that first year, of course. Fuel comprised 2 cwt of coal and 10 cwt of coke and cost 16s-6d. (1 cwt = 50kg) The first caretaker was a Mr A Enefer who was paid 4s-0d a week from which 4d was deducted for tax – or perhaps for Lloyd-George’s national insurance scheme introduced the previous year.

No annual accounts were reckoned in 1912 but in 1913, the first complete year of operations, a surplus of £3-6s-5d was declared – say £266 today. The year after was 1914 and the start of the Great War. The finances of the Village Hall - and what it was used for - changed dramatically.

Read the next post.

Olletts – a new development

2012-01-11T13:49:00.003Z

Readers may recall previous mentions of Olletts, part of the erstwhile sheltered housing scheme in West Belvedere that has been empty for a couple of years. It looks as though it is now coming down to be replaced by houses.

Olletts was originally opened and run as a warden supervised building with one-bedroom accommodation by Chelmsford Borough Council. It passed to Chelmer Housing Partnership (CHP) when the local authorities surrendered their housing stock.

New government guidelines on the standards for old people’s dwellings were introduced in the early 2000s. Among the guidelines was a requirement that every apartment should have private bathing facilities. Olletts had shared bathrooms so was not up to scratch. CHP decided that the cost of rebuilding to the new standards was not worthwhile. As residents died or left to live elsewhere, the accommodation was not relet. Eventually Olletts became empty in 2009.

Both buildings and car park of Ollett are now empty. Beyond the wall at the end, is the Royal British Legion Business Park..
Now CHP has come up with a redevelopment plan for the site. It has filed planning application 11/01885/FUL with the Borough Council that can be examined at www.chelmsfordbc.gov.uk > view planning applications. Alternatively the following link takes you direct to the application http://bit.ly/zAnvjH

Site plan for Olletts redevelopment outlined in red

The planned terrace of eight homes with car parking spaces in front.

The existing building is to be demolished and a terrace of eight 2-bedroom affordable houses built in its place. The terrace will run roughly north-south with the front doors opening onto a small parking area with two spaces for each dwelling. Each house has a small rear garden that backs on to the fence surrounding the Royal British Legion Business Park (industry area). In front of the parking area is a small landscaped piece of land.
The houses appear to be of uncontroversial design, in keeping with the style of other houses in the area.

Front elevations of the proposed new houses.

The Parish Council considered the planning application on 10 January. No date has been set for consideration by the Borough Council but public consultation ends on 20 January 2012. Danbury Society sees no grounds for objection to this development but hopes that CHP ensures proper access for those who live in the five old people’s bungalows that remain on the site. (marked within the blue line on the site plan)
The Society anticipates great difficulties in getting construction vehicles, plant and materials on to site. West Belvedere is a narrow and winding cul-de-sac dominated by street parking. One solution to that problem might be to ‘come in the back door’.

Winding, narrow and congested - the West Belvedere access to Olletts.

As the site backs on to the industrial estate and in particular a car park used by employees and visitors, access from that direction might be easier. It would need negotiation with the existing users, of course.

View of rear of existing Olletts building as seen from the RBL Business Park. (all photos Norman Bartlett)

Why enlarge the village?

2011-12-14T12:02:00.001Z

Readers will have seen articles in recent issues of The Journal and Contact magazine from the Landisdale Almshouse and Unknown Donor Charity (number 206928, popularly known as the Landisdale Trust) and its hope to build houses on a green field site outside the village boundary. Danbury Society opposes any development that encroaches further on the fields and woods around our village.

The location of Sandpit Field at the eastern edge of the village on Maldon Road.

Landisdale Trust advances its cause on two grounds: shortage of low cost accommodation in the village and the creation of a Community Land Trust that would preserve the land from developers. On both grounds Danbury Society disagrees.

The posting on this blog of 24 March listed a number of empty properties including two that were intended for older people, one of the categories that Landisdale Trust wants to benefit. Landisdale Trust says “…there is an increasing need for affordable housing…” but if there is such a demand for this type of property, why have they been left empty in Danbury?

Community Land Trusts (CLT) were started in 2006 as non-profit, community-based organisations run by volunteers. They develop housing or other assets for long-term community benefit. The occupiers pay for the use of buildings and services but the CLT owns the property in trust for community benefit.

Sandpit Field is 5 acres or about 2 hectares in area. According to planning guidelines there can be 75 dwellings per hectare to less than 25 dwellings per hectare depending whether the development is high or low density. Although Landisdale Trust talks blithely about building just 2 dwellings it is unlikely that any CLT that aspired to provide “long-term community benefit” would be content with that. Danbury Society is concerned that once the door was opened to a modest 2 dwellings it would not be long before a fully-fledged scheme for 100 dwellings or more was in the pipeline. (Some may recall Berkeley Homes proposal for the same site a few years ago).

One of the criteria that an aspirant CLT has to develop is a local consensus. Now Danbury Society along with the Parish Council and many interested residents has spent some years, many hours of debate and detailed consultations with the community to develop a Village Plan. The Borough Council accepted that Village Plan, a copy of which was sent to every home in the village, as providing part of its own Borough Plan. It sets out very clearly the development boundary to stop Danbury spreading.

After all that work Danbury Society, at least, will not allow its principle to be eroded.

The view across a green Sandpit Field towards Runsell Green on which the Landisdale Trust wants to build houses.

Danbury Society thinks that it would be more sensible if the Landisdale Trust looked at opportunities to build within the village, not outside it. According to the CLT National Network, some of the most successful CLTs have benefited from partnering with a not-for-profit housing association to develop and manage their homes. There are a number of ways that Landisdale Trust could partner with Chelmer Housing Association, for example by rejuvenating Ollets, the erstwhile old peoples accommodation in West Belvedere.

Danbury Mission Rises Anew

2011-11-27T21:13:00.000Z

The new auditorium for Danbury Mission on Maldon Road is beginning to take shape. It looks huge and some people are beginnning to wonder if it will be out of scale with its surroundings.

We reported in July when the old front of the building was pulled down and the building work started. Now, four months later, the building is starting to take shape although perhaps a bit behind schedule according to the original plan. By now the brickwork and blockwork should have been completed but it is clearly not so. The picture shows the still bare steelwork; the last was put in place by a large mobile crane a day or so before this picture was taken

However, as the picture below shows, the materials are on site, so it should not be long before the building begins to take on what will be its finished appearance.

After the blockwork is done, windows and external doors will be installed. The roof is due to go on before Christmas. Completion date is set for 15 June 2012. This will be a week or so after the Queen's Diamond Jubilee Celebrations marked down for 5th-6th June.

Just as a reminder, you can view the design online at http://bit.ly/ddoNY5 and click on the links on the left-hand side.

And of course, you can always leave a comment on what you think about the new building by clicking on the 'post a comment' link below.

Parish Council Award

2011-11-26T22:13:00.001Z

Most residents will have just received the latest issue of Danbury Times, the occasional newsletter from the Parish Council. Either from modesty, oversight or lack of space, no mention appears in its pages of a recent award to the Council.

The Communications Competition of the Essex Association of Local Councils (http://www.essexinfo.net/essex-association-of-local-councils/) invites Councils to submit a copy of a document they already produce in order to communicate with their electorate, to include events and achievements during the past year. There are two categories with Certificates awarded to commend winners in each category with an overall winner's prize, all awarded by the judging panel. Councils submit either or both of the following categories; Newsletters and Annual Reports.

At the AGM of the Essex Association in September, the results were announced. There were two semi-finalists, as it were. The winner of the Newsletter category was Bowers Gifford North Benfleet while the winner for best Annual Report was Danbury Parish Council.

The judges said they liked the Chairman’s Report, short clear reports from other councillors,and particularly liked the list of achievements.

Unfortunately in the final, Bowers Gifford North Benfleet was favoured and won the overall award. Danbury came away with just a certificate and Parish Secretary Margaret Saunders and Parish Chairman Stuart Berlyn are seen here showing it off.

The Communication Competition was sponsored by Monster Play Systems, a Hertfordshire supplier of playground equipment.

Better Broadband from BT

2011-09-14T13:57:00.000+01:00

British Telecom (BT) has announced that it is to upgrade the broadband performance at 114 telephone exchanges. Danbury is on the list!

Danbury's unlovely telephone exchange in Butts Lane. (Norman Bartlett)
It forms the latest part of BT's programme to offer fibre-based broadband to around 16 million premises, or two-thirds of the country, by the end of 2015. After all the widespread moaning from all and sundry about broadband services, BT claims its new rollout is one of the fastest in the world and is on track to pass 10 million homes and businesses in 2012. Danbury, along with the 113 other exchanges will be upgraded by the autumn of 2012.

Most of the premises - about three quarters of the total - to get this high-speed broadband will get fibre-to-the-cabinet (FTTC) connectivity. This means that there will still be a copper connection between the green cabinet in the street and your home or office. It means a download speed limit of around 40Mbps. The upload limit is around 10Mbps.

The remaining quarter of the newbies are due to get fibre-to-the-premises (FTTP), which offers speeds closer to 100Mbps, with scope for increasing that rate. However, BT has encountered technical difficulties in carrying out its FTTP plans.

Whether Danbury users will get FTTC or FTTP remains to be seen.

Danbury Palace - Latest Chapter

2011-08-27T21:39:00.001+01:00

At the meeting of Chelmsford Borough Council's Planning Committee on 19 August 2011, Application number 10/01922/FUL, the latest plans for redevelopment of Danbury Palace, got the nod to go ahead.

The old building will house 13 self-contained apartments.

The application covers the "conversion of Grade II listed Palace into 12no. two bedroom apartments and 1no. one bedroom apartment. Single storey side extension to Palace. Demolition of Coach House wing and Conference Centre. Conversion and extension of Coach House to form 3no. three bedroom houses and 3no. two bedroom houses. Erection of 27no. four bedroom terraced houses. Associated car parking, cycle and bin storage and landscaping".

This the old student accommodation block that will be pulled down.

For those who have been following the long-drawn out drama of Danbury Palace, the the argument over the question of providing affordable housing appears to have been resolved in some way.

So now the work can start provided the architects - and the appointed contractors - can work through the many conditions imposed on the development. The official wording of the permission was "subject to a S106 agreement". Section 106 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990 allows a local planning authority to enter into a legally-binding agreement or planning obligation with a landowner in association with the granting of planning permission.

Thus the permission comprises several pages that set out the tight specifications to be followed for the restoration A key limitation is that the historic buildings must be completely restored before the 13th of the new build homes is occupied.

Phasing of all the work has to be agreed with the Council beforehand. Clearly the Council wants to be assured that the new development does not get prioritised over the restoration work.

The old wall surrounding the old kitchen garden is to be kept.

Preliminary work must be done on the drive from Main Road. It has to be made 17 feet wide for at least the first 50 feet then passing places put in every 100 yards or so. Trees, landscape management, archaeological report, surface water, flood risk assessment, bat survey and herpetofauna survey are all specified in some detail. And no swimming pools.

There are several sections covering preservation of trees.

Small wonder that new homes cost so much when all these costs have to be absorbed by the buyers.

Let's hope that the developers, Wilson Properties (London) Ltd, can continue and make a success of the development.

Mission under way

2011-07-11T17:10:00.000+01:00

Re-development of Danbury Mission that was described in a post in this blog on 19 August 2010, has now started.
The old entrance hall and main assembly room that fronted on to Maldon Road has been knocked down completely.

The building now looks somewhat sad but the Community annexe and the office are still there. The builders and their container cabins are in the front but a footpath has been opened alongside for access.

The car park at the back can be accessed from Mill Lane.
The rubble is being cleared before the construction phase can start. This will be a handsome modernist building - but it does not meet with everyone's approval. Just as a reminder, you can view the design online at http://bit.ly/ddoNY5 and click on the links on the left-hand side.
More building work ought to be seen soon a few metres from the Mission in Hitchcocks Meadow when work on the new medical centre starts. That will be to the right of the footpath shown in the photo above. It appears that financial arrangements are now in place for that construction.

Car Park Completion?

2011-06-20T14:11:00.000+01:00

The new car parks at the Sports and Social Centre are almost finished and look great but for a few snags and one mistake that ought to have been spotted earlier.
Work on the new car parks started at the beginning of April - first the upper one on the Main Road and then down the hill on Mayes Lane.

The final product is an enormous improvement on what went before. Some have remarked on the lack of space markings but the absence of lines is deliberate. If parking lines are laid they should be of standard dimensions as advised by Whitehall. The size for a parking space is 2.4m x 4.8m with 6m between blocks of parking bays. If the 6 metre manoeuvring room were applied, the effect on the upper car park would have been to reduce parking to a single line.

Other improvements have been made in the lower car park. There are now attractive gates to stop access beyond the car park itself and a barrier to prevent over size vehicles entering.

Framed by the entrance, the wooden 5-bar gate further on blocks access to one of the play areas.

The serious mistake was with the upper car park. There the the low level pathway lighting was put on the wrong side of the path to the Club and too close to the kerb. The result was predictable. Unable to see the low posts in rear view mirrors, drivers began knocking them over in the first week.

This was one of the first posts to go. But even for the most careful driver, the low level posts were difficult to avoid.

Work is now in hand to move the lighting but it will involve additional trenching and cable laying. And cost, of course.

On the right, one of the posts to be replaced. On the left, the stake marks where the replacement will go.

Another snag involves relaying a small patch of asphalt in the lower car park where a drain has to be repaired. That was a result of someone disregarding a simple instruction: "Don't drive the roller over the drain cover".
Ah well.

Laying and rolling the asphalt in the lower car park. This is when the drain got damaged. (all photos Norman Bartlett)

The Griffin Awakes

2011-05-30T21:40:00.001+01:00

Danbury's landmark pub, the Griffin, opened again on Thursday 18 May after being closed and derelict for just over a year. New owners, Red Comb Ltd, have acquired a 21 year lease from Punch Taverns and have carried out a thorough refurbish of the building.

Danbury Society, along with other local organisations, was invited to inspect the property shortly before it opened. We were given a description of the challenge Red Comb faced when acquiring a rather rundown building yet one that is grade 2 listed. Some structural repairs had to be done by Punch Taverns while the leaseholders, Red Comb, saw to the refurbishment of the inside.

In the lounge of the Griffin, Parish councillor Dave Bolwell, Danbury Society committeeman Chris Sharpe and Mr & Mrs Spurgeon discuss the refreshed Griffin.

Those familiar with the Griffin will not find anything amiss from the pub that they know. The general arrangement is unchanged with the bar in the centre and two lounge and/or dining areas to either side. There is a new paint scheme inside as there is outside. The toilets are much improved although disabled access is still very difficult. It appears that heritage won over convenience. (pun intended)

Natasha, the manager, showed off the features and outlined her plans to provide a friendly service and attractive menu. A notable improvement is to the rear garden area which had become overgrown and neglected down the years. It is now a very attractive sunken patio, away from A414 traffic noise. It will be an ideal spot - at least in the summer - for smokers to indulge their vice.

John Anderson [above] shows that he is one of the hands-on school of entrepreneurs.
Red Comb working director John Anderson told Danbury Society a little about the background to the company. He is one of three directors, the other two mainly being involved in the financial side. The Griffin is the third pub the company owns, the first is in Charlotte Road, Shoreditch and the second in Wendover, Buckinghamshire. Having set up the Griffin, he is now off to Box Hill in Surrey where the company’s fourth pub is awaiting refurbishment. All the company’s properties have similar features being buildings of character, appropriate to the image of gastro-pub with brasserie style menu.

The strategic aim of the company is to build up to sufficient size with a sound trading record to make it an acquisition target. Each manager and chef de cuisine will gain incentives to participate in the company’s future.

Parish councillors and other invited guests tried out the dinner menu, compliments of the management, a day or so before opening. The general opinion of the food was favourable while the service was satisfactory for a new team settling in. Menu prices indicate the Griffin is aiming at the mid-market sector.

In the days following opening, the car park was well occupied so it seems the Griffin has got away to a satisfying start. Danbury Society wishes it well.

Natasha, the new manager of the Griffin. (all photos Norman Bartlett)

The Strange Case of the Sudden Pharmacy

2011-05-19T10:56:00.001+01:00

In a planning application (11/00650/FUL) made with a minimum of warning, Danbury Medical Centre has applied for change of use from D1 (Doctors Surgery) to A1 (retail pharmacy) at its Lee House site. The existing small dispensary would be converted to a large commercial pharmacy.

As patients at the practice in the centre of the village will know, the Medical Centre is already woefully inadequate for its stated purpose. It has had a couple of Portakabins in the grounds for two years. So why would it would wish to use some of its valuable floorspace as a shop, albeit a pharmacy?

The existing Village Pharmacy, pictured below, now owned and operated by Boots, is next door. Who would think two pharmacies in a village could be financially viable?

The narrow, concealed access to the proposed pharmacy in the Medical Centre is invisible from the road so is unsuitable to get any passing trade. A new doorway is shown on the plans. It is beyond the existing entrance and close to where a down pipe can be seen in the picture below. Which entrepreneur would think this a receipe for commercial success?

There are a number of empty retail premises in other, more suitable commercial locations in the village. The shop lately trading as Bertie's on Maldon Road is one example, shown below. Why does not the practice rent one of those?

The Medical Centre has applied to open the proposed pharmacy for seven days a week. Yet its own medical and nursing staff work much more restricted hours. Why the discrepancy?

There is already considerable traffic congestion in nearby roads due to the inadequate parking available on site. Look at Butts Lane, below, with the exit from the Medical Centre car park on the left. Has no one at the practice thought of the consequences of additional traffic because of the proposed pharmacy?

The answer to these questions may lie in the fact that the Medical Centre is due to move to another site in Bay Meadow on the other side of the A414 near Danbury Mission. This was subject to a public meeting and a planning application that was approved in 2008. It may be that within, say, three years that the move will be achieved. And then what will happen to the Lee House?

Prior to the arrival of the Medical Centre in the early 1980s, the site was a farmyard that had belonged to Butts Farm. A large barn stood where Lee House now stands. It is unlikely to ever be returned to agricultural use but houses that comply with the requirements of a Consrvation Area would be appropriate.

However if the redundant property, located right in the centre of the village had seven-day A1 retail planning permission, it could be sold for a very high price.

Perhaps getting A1 planning permission is the real aim and talk of another pharmacy is simply a ruse?

Danbury Society will strongly oppose what appears to be an insidious development.

Car Park Improvements

2011-04-01T14:38:00.001+01:00

At long last the car parks at the Community Centre are being upgraded.

Parish Council Chairman Stuart Berlyn was able to announce at the Annual Parish Meeting on 28th March, that resurfacing of the upper and lower car parks was to start imminently. The unexpected award of a grant had made it possible. The slight drawback was that the work had to start straightaway before the end of the financial year. It meant there was scarcely any advance notice.
This is the view that unsuspecting drivers got if they turned into the car park on Tuesday.

The initial work involved cutting a channel for the drainage and low-light cables the length of the car park.

Then the backhoe was moved to the hardstanding close by the Community Centre. Here the driver is making the first strike with the concrete breaker.

Work on the upper car park had to start first because of the lie of the land. The consequences of drainage means it would be inapproriate engineering practice to do the lower car park before the upper, despite the great urgency of repairs to the one below.
The two pictures here illustrate the lower car park and the state to which it has degenerated.

Will the grant fully cover the cost of construction and future maintenance? Unlikely. The choices are either a further call on the precept or perhaps the Parish Council might consider a modest charging scheme for those who use the car park?
According to statements at the Annual Meeting, about half the users of the Community Centre are from outside the village.

Danbury's Empty Properties

2011-03-24T13:59:00.020Z

Danbury may be an attractive place to live but there is plenty of empty accommodation in the village. Some is described in this post.

We have identified seven properties listed below. If readers know of other properties, please add them in at the 'comment' link at the end of this post.

Property . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .owner . . . . . . . . . . . .empty . . . . . . . . . . . . . .status
__________________________since______________
Danbury Palace . . . . . . . Wilson Properties . 2005 . . . redevelopment
Private house . . . . . . . . . . CHA . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2009 . . . uncertain
Wickham House . . . . . . . . ? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ca. 1985 . . unknown
The Griffin . . . . . . . . . . . . . Punch Taverns . . . 2010 . . . refurbishment
Ollets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . CHA . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2010 . . . uncertain
Hoppitt . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Gordon Service . . . 2008 . . . redevelopment
Hopping Jacks Hall . . . ? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2008 . . . for sale
Altogether, these represent about 130 bedrooms, sufficient accommodation for 250-300 people - theoretically at least.

Danbury Palace is the most celebrated and significant empty property in the village. What was then Anglia Polytechnic University, the previous owners, moved out in 2004. The following year it became Anglian Ruskin University but its plans to convert the site to residential use were unsatisfactory. It sold the site to developers Inner Circle who prepared a promising outline. The firm ran out of cash. Derelict, the site decayed and the decline has only recently been arrested by the interest of today's owners, Wilson Properties. The latest plans were described in the 22 January 2011 post in this blog.

By complete contrast is the 3-bedroom semi-detached house on the Belvedere estate. This is owned by Chelmer Housing Association (CHA). The previous tenants were moved out when the dwelling suffered subsidence last year. It is rumoured that the cost of rectifying the problems are greater than the value of the house so it may stay empty for some while but hopefully not as long as the next property.

The old house (Wickham House) on Runsell Green is sometimes known to children as the Haunted House because of its mysterious appearance. Under the proprietorship of Mrs Smith, this house was a small village grocers. (Until the 1950s teas had also been served there) When Mrs Smith died in the early 1980s, the house passed to her heirs and has remained unoccupied ever since. The Homes & Research Officer of Chelmsford Borough Council considered an
Empty Dwelling Management Order in March 2007 but thought it inappropriate because of the building's poor condition. Discussed in a recent post (4 October 2010), the Griffin pub still remains empty as it has done for almost a twelvemonth. Punch Taverns, the owners, have applied for planning permission for some internal changes to the Grade 2 listed building. In the present state of the economy no one can make predictions when it may be re-occupied.

Another property on the Belvedere estate is Ollets, once a busy and popular home for the elderly, it is now empty. After spending a considerable sum on repairs to the roof and other parts of the building in 2008, the CHA finds itself in a quandary. The accommodation comprises single bedrooms with en suite toilet and wash basin. Baths and showers are in communal facilities, an arrangement that no longer is an acceptable care standard. Perhaps the whole site may be cleared and redeveloped for housing.

Another site for redevelopment in the centre of the village has what used to be a doctor's surgery as its main building. Outline redevelopment plans for sheltered accommodation have been approved. The owner, Gordon Service, seeks to sell the site with the planning permission for someone else to redevelop.

And round the corner from the Hoppitt is Hopping Jacks Hall, another site that is awaiting a new owner. This time without any planning permission on the horizon. This one may stay empty for quite a while.

Quinlan Court, Mill Lane

2011-03-20T21:48:00.006Z

Progress continues on the grand edifice that is Quinlan Court.

Click on the link for a 15 second video showing the imposing facade.

On the entablature below the pediment, is a dedication that may not be to everyone's taste in this secular age.
"Your Love O Lord, reaches to the Heavens
Your Faithfulness to the Skies"

The words are verse 5 from Psalm 36 as it appears in the New International Bible of 1984 not the traditional translation from the Authorised Version (or King James) Bible of the 17th century.

As far as the building itself is concerned, one needs to step round the back to see that work continues on the balconies and outside access. There has been adverse criticism from local residents whose homes and gardens are overlooked from the upper floors of Quinlan Court.

When up close, the dominance of the eastern end of the crescent over narrow Mill Lane is quite striking.

Is the building out of place for such a rural setting? The arguments will continue for some time no doubt. From an architectural point of view it is a fine building albeit in a style that would not find favour with modernists.

(video and all photos by Norman Bartlett)

Minerals Extraction

2011-02-01T13:35:00.011Z

Essex County Council's minerals information team recently visited Danbury.

Those who ignored the signboards for "Sell your old gold" outside the Village Hall and ventured inside on 1st February were rewarded - not with cash but information.

Display panels and printed information were set out in the main hall. A knowledgeable team was on hand to assist and provide additional explanations.
By the end of day around 100 people had walked in to see what the County Council had to say about its Minerals Development Docuument.

Most local interest has been focused on Tyndales Farm, a 47ha area on the east of the village alongside the A414. A great furor arose when this was first listed as a potential site at the end of 2008. (See the post on this blog in January 2009 http://bit.ly/h3tRYE)

The exhibition showed how the consultation is proceeding. It is not finished yet.

Other matters were considered before individual sites were reviewed. Where will growth be in Essex? How much aggregate can be recycled from old construction? Where can existing sites be extended rather than develop new sites? How can minerals usage be reduced in construction?

Initially forty-three potential sand and gravel sites came from the minerals industry and local landowners. There were also three sandpits and a brickclay site but these do not affect Danbury. The County Council undertook an initial screening with four essential criteria:
* geology - was the stuff actually in the ground?
* exploitation - could the stuff be dug out in the timescale?
* transport - was the site next to a road, rail or waterway?
* environment - would it adversely affect any nature reserve, SSI or other sensitive area?

Any site which failed these tests was no longer a 'preferred site' - but it was still in the overall assessment but obviously under a severe handicap. The general assessment was made under twelve headings and for each a score of up to four points was possible. Graphical presentations used a 'traffic light' coding 4 points = green, other points = amber and nul point = red.

The criteria were unweighted (i.e. each was rated as important as the others) save for sites in the west of the county had an arbitrary six points added as there is a shortage of sites in that part of the county and the M11 corridor is identified for growth. Haulage of aggregate over about 25 miles is uneconomic.

Some 3,000 comments were received by the County Council. After the assessments, the sites were ranked according to scores. The capacity of each was added to a cumulative total and when the total reached 42.3 million tonnes, a line was drawn. Whence 42.3 milion tonnes? That is derived from Government Guidelines on what extra Essex has to provide in the period to 2028.

The result was that a line was drawn across the ranked list and those nineteen sites above the line are preferred sites and those sixteen below plus the eight rejected on phase 1 are non-preferred. Tyndales Farm is below the line and thus not a preferred site. Here is how the scoring went for a total of 39.

Mineral resources 4
Timeframe 4
Mineral processing 4
Planning History 4
Landscape 1
Ecology & Designations 3
Historic environment 3
Agriculture 2
Proximity to sensitive uses 0
Water & hydrology 4
Traffic & transport 2
Recreation 2
Pollution 2
Restoration & after use 4

Sadly, for those opposed to the Tyndales Farm site, the consultation is not closed.

This is the mark 1 version. It is now for any interested party (like residents) to try and lower the score of a preferred site to take it 'below the line' or (like property owners) to try and enhance a non-preferred site score to get it 'above the line' to become a preferred site. As the consultation document says, "As equally important as your views on the Preferred Sites, we also need to be confident that the suggested sites which have not been selected have been fairly and robustly assessed."

You can read the full Minerals Development Document at www.essex.gov.uk/MDD-consultation

If you wish to contribute to the debate you can easily do so on-line at http://consult.essexcc.gov.uk

Danbury Palace Architects Reveal All

2011-01-22T19:06:00.018Z

The architectural team for the Danbury Palace project made a presentation recently to the Chairman and other members of Committee.
Property Lande Architecture Ltd sent along two of their professional staff to explain the thinking behind the scheme and the details that have now been submited to Chelmsford Borough Council Planning Department. The submission followed earlier discussions with the Department to try and accommodate the Planners' wishes.
Architects Laurie Winter and Emma Burrow show the plans to Chairman Curt Brown

The outline of the plan had been shown to the Parish Council at the end of last year. (see this blog for November 2010 http://bit.ly/f1WiW2) The essential features are
- The original Palace building will be refurbished, retaining the central corridor and creating one 1-bedroom and nine 2-bedroom apartments.
- Coach house will be refurbished and six 2- and 3-bedroom homes built in it.
- The student accommodation block built in the 1960s will be demolished and a crescent of eleven 4-bedroom homes built.
- In the walled garden - presently a car park - two terraces, each of eight 4-bedroom houses will be built
- The boundary wall to be retained
- The gardens will be restored to the pre-existing layout.
Thus there will be 44 new dwellings in and around the Palace, a
reduction in number from the plan made by the previous developers in 2008. (see this blog for Augsut 2008 http://bit.ly/hKLvan)

The satellite photograph below shows the Palace building at the top, the white curve of the old student block that will go, the coach house on the left, close to the farm buildings and, at the bottom of the photo, the rectangle of the car park that will see 16 homes built within it. Virtually all this development will be masked from the front of the Place by the mature trees that can be seen across the centre. The garden behind the Palace will be restored while the greensward in front will stay that way.
(satellite picture from Google Streetview)

The Planners have specified that the new houses should not project above the height of the walled garden. This means flat roofs. They also wanted to see irregularity in the roofline and elevation to echo the varied outlines of the Palace. Thus each house is of a visibly different design. They will be brick-built using materials that match the listed building and have aluminium windows.

Rear elevation of the Palace with end elevation of housing terrace at Chapel end

Front and rear elevations of the terraces of houses to be built where the walled garden was.

Now the need for these expensive houses is born of the cost of getting the Palace back to livable condition. It is presently in a very poor state of health. While there is now 24-hour security paid for by the developers, Wilson Properties, prior neglect has taken its toll. Being without an effective roof for so long has resulted in water ingress that has not only taken down the ceilings but also made many floors too dangerous to walk on. Windows have become distorted and can no longer be closed. The building’s back is broken in two places and, depending on survey results, may require underpinning. It will require a seven-figure sum of money to repair the Palace even before any conversion is undertaken.

Speed is required and the developers want to move forward as soon as possible to get planning permission and start construction.

Growing awareness of the blog postings on this topic has brought forth comments from those who worked at the Anglian Management Centre in its early days. Sue Harris, as she then was, lived in Bicknacre and recalls her time there with great fondness.

"I have such happy memories of the place that I like to believe it’s still there, exactly as it was," she wrote. More of her comment at the end of this post.

One of her colleagues remembers when the Dean of the Mid-Essex Technical College (predecessor of the Management Centre) drove up to Danbury Palace when it was being acquired from the Civil Defence agency - the then owners.

"Oh, I dare say it will only need a lick of paint," he declared. On arrival he found the state to be, apparently, pretty dire. The Chapel, in particular, had been used as a squash court by the ambulance service. This was converted at considerable expense into a first rate library complete with mezzanine floor and spiral staircase. Much other restoration work had to be done as well.

Plus ça change.

Heavy rain overnight...

2011-01-19T13:53:00.003Z

There was very heavy rain overnight on Monday/Tuesday 17/18 January.
It caused localised flooding and blocked roads. The usual suspects turned up: Paper Mill Lock, Hammonds Road, The Causeway at Ulting and, of course, the water meadows between the Baddow By-pass and Chelmer Village.

What was unexpected was the appearance of a small lake in the Sandon P+R car park. A couple of dozen parking slots were lost during the morning rush hour.

The P+R's private windmill kept turning.

Another Village Green - latest

2011-01-14T21:07:00.005Z

At the end of the village between Capons Lane and Gay Bowers Lane is a triangle of land that has been fallow for many years. (see satellite picture above: St Josephs Nursing Home is at the bottom) It is crossed by a footpath from the end of Pedlars Path. In a posting on this blog in October 2009, (http://bit.ly/dXtXr8 ) we described the suggestion to make this a village green. The suggestion has now become a formal application to do so.

Colin Budgey, well known for his concern with the environment and a Green Party member, has been worrying at this issue for some time. His moment came on Tuesday 11th January when Mr Martin Elliott, an Inspector from the Planning Inspectorate, began a formal enquiry into the matter at the County Hotel in Chelmsford.

Although three days were reserved for the enquiry it was readily apparent that it would be over by lunch time that day. The application was made under the 1965 Commons Registration Act. There was no agreed definition of a village green – here the Inspector quoted various cases – but there had to be a degree of cohesiveness to the land specified.

The land is owned by a Mr Ballard, a local gentleman of 85 who has recently suffered a stroke. Although he had verbally objected to the application he was unable to attend the hearing. He had submitted no written evidence nor had he briefed anyone to represent him.

Colin Budgey made his presentation, setting out the merits of this piece of land as a place for public enjoyment. Although Mr Ballard had professed to be committed to keeping the land in its natural state, in 2007 he had ordered the land to be bulldozed. Later it was placed in the hands of agents for sale. By getting the land declared a 'village green', its status as undeveloped would be secure.

Norman Bartlett spoke in favour of the application on behalf of Danbury Society because it conformed to one of the Society's objectives in retaining the rural aspect to the village.

Other people who spoke in favour of the application included Mr Neville Smith, Mr Chabat, Mr & Mrs Eady and Mrs Julie Barker.

The Inspector conducted the proceedings in a careful and precise way. He was at great pains to get everyone's views and evidence. He said he would be reporting to the regulating authority (Essex County Council) in 8-10 weeks. Essex County Council would then decide what to do about his recommendations.

(The Inquiry in session chaired by the Inspector Martin Elliott. Colin Budgey sits at the table on the left.)

Should the land end up with the status of village green, it will still be owned by Mr Ballard. What is entirely unclear is who will pay for the management of the land? Although it is simply covered with brambles, bracken and bushes at present, (see picture below) is that the way it will stay if it is utterly uncared for?

In its present stretched financial situation, it is unlikely that the Parish Council would look kindly on the prospect of additional land management. Nor is the owner likely to be too co-operative if he feels the value of his land has been diminished by its status - if it does become a village green.

(Google Streetview)

So whatever the Inspector's decision, there is still some mileage in this matter.

LOCK YOUR DOORS!

2010-12-12T12:44:00.010Z

The quiet Danbury street where an intruder entered.

She was sitting quietly in her kitchen last Saturday evening when she heard a couple of unusual noises from the garden. The lady, who does not wish to be named, thought nothing of it until a couple of minutes later a strange man walked in through the back door.

This alarming incident happened on 11th December at around 8.30 pm in West Belvedere, Danbury. The lady reacted promptly.

"Who the hell are you?", she demanded. "Get out of my f...g house at once!"

Instead, the man came nearer and sat down next to her. She reached for the nearby phone to dial 999. He stopped her and mumbled something about a taxi. She pushed his arm away and made the emergency call about the intruder, all the while calling for her husband who was in the next room.

He, an old soldier who served in the Black Watch, bundled the intruder outside and locked the door. The police arrived within 3 minutes. The reason for their fast response became clear - they had been only half a mile away at the Tesco shop in Maldon Road, Danbury, where a robbery had been reported. (Tesco staff confirmed the incident but declined to give details.)

"There were coppers all over the place", reported the lady. "There was the dog van and the helicopter was buzzing around overhead". The helicopter had been launched because of the reported robbery. Now it was hovering directly over the gardens in West Belvedere.

A few minutes later, some youths walking in Butts Lane were accosted by a man claiming to have been hiding from the police in a hedge. "Where can I get a drink?" he demanded.

Around 9 o'clock, he walked in to the nearby the Bakers Arms.

"There was obviously something wrong with him", said Alice the barmaid. "He was all dishevelled with scratches on his face. He was waving his arms about and knocking things over."

His appearance and behaviour aroused the suspicions of people in the dining room sufficiently for at least one of the customers to phone the police to report the strange man.

"He emptied his pockets of a load of rubbish like sweet papers and receipts and put a tenner on the counter. He said, 'If any one asks, say I have been here for 10 minutes'. 'Who would be asking', I said to him as I pulled him a pint," said Alice. But at this point the police burst in.

"They came in from everywhere", she said. "Front door, side door, back door from the garden and arrested him there and then. He was accused of robberies in Maldon as well as Tesco down the road."

Many passers-by wondered at the Essex Police Incident Unit trailer taking up all the room in the Bakers Arms car park. It emerged later that the man had knocked at doors in West Belvedere trying to get someone to give him a lift or phone for a taxi. By that time the helicopter was circling, the infra-red cameras were focusing and the suspect knew he had to get under cover.

"He picked the wrong one when he picked on me", concluded our lady philosophically.

Maybe so, dear lady, but for someone of a nervous disposition, perhaps living alone, it could have been very traumatic. The lesson is clear: keep front and back doors locked at all times.

The Tesco Express store on Maldon Road, Danbury as it would have looked to the robber on Saturday evening. (all photos: Norman Bartlett)

Danbury Palace again

2010-11-24T10:51:00.008Z

After a couple of years of neglect, it seems that the rejuvenation and restoration of Danbury Palace may happen after all.

At a meeting of the Danbury Parish Council Planning Committee on 15 November, Property Lande Architecture Ltd, (www.propertylandearchitecture.com) agents for the owners, Wilson Properties (London) Ltd, gave a presentation. The key elements are
- The original Palace building, will be refurbished and twelve 2-bed and one 1-bed apartments created.
- Coach house will be refurbished
- The student accommodation built in the 1960s will be demolished and be replaced by 27 new builds
- overall there will be 44 new dwellings in and around the Palace
- boundary wall to be retained and gardens restored

A very upbeat assessment was made at the presentation. The builder is keen to retain all the original features and carefully restore the old building to its dignified image. However the whole project is only financially viable as a package: refurbishment of the Palace plus the new build elements. The number of proposed dwellings is now somewhat less than that planned in the original development of 2008.

It is certain that work needs to be done to stop further degradation of the site. The old building is only protected from the elements by temporary cover since the roof was stripped. There is now said to be 24-hour security yet despite this travellers have got on to the site. They have now moved on but it does demonstrate the vulnerability of an unoccupied site.

Property Lande Architecture claims to specialise in "obtaining difficult planning consents whilst incorporating sensitive design skills high quality presentations and exceptional technical expertise". One of the firm's projects is the adaptation of an old dairy that sits on top of archaelogical remains and has the second oldest building in St Albans as part of the development. There are sixteens mews cottages that presumably provide the new build elements of the scheme.

Wilson Properties (London) Ltd is based in Enfield, Middlesex. It is currently engaged in something similar but on a smaller scale at Bengeo Hall, just outside Hertford. Like Danbury Palace, Bengeo Hall is a Grade II* listed building with an 18th century cottage adjoining and walled garden, each listed as well. It fell into disrepair due to financial problems of the previous owners, was derelict, vandalised and at risk. In order to restore the existing properties, planning permission was sought for a new build house as 'enabling development' to finance the scheme. The planners thought the scheme was appropriate but local councillors gave it the thumbs down.

Yet earlier in 2010, the same local council - East Herts - sold Bridgefoot House, in Buntingford, Hertfordshire to the same developers. This building had been used as a hostel for the homeless and as district council offices. Some had already been converted into flats.

But back to Danbury Palace. "The noises from the committee were positive to the proposals", said our reporter at the local planning meeting. Let us hope the Borough Council planners take a similar view.

Pub decline

2010-10-04T15:27:00.013+01:00

Its a familiar story: village pubs closing. Is Danbury about to feature in that story soon? Because the biggest pub in the village is now dark.

Those who drive up Main Road hill will not have missed the sign outside the Griffin, seeking new management. The previous tenants, Barrie and Tony Drewitt-Barlow, the gay couple who have achieved a certain prominence, surrendered the lease during the summer. [After proceedings were brought against them by the Insolvency Service, both men agreed to sign undertakings preventing them from being company directors for the next eight years.]

The Griffin is owned by Punch Taverns now advertising that the lease is available for an Investment Amount of £59,680. The weekly rent is rumoured to be £1,000. It is described as a Gastro/Restaurant/Food-led Pub.

It is a far cry from the days when the Griffin was THE village pub. Then owned by Taylor Walker it had three handsome and friendly bars and was always busy.

Taylor Walker was taken over by Ind Coope in 1959 and Ind Coope merged with Ansells and Tetleys in 1961 and so on and on with all the changes in the brewing industry until it became part of the Punch Taverns empire. Relaunched under the Chef & Brewer brand, the bar overlooking the garden was converted to a silver service restaurant.

It was never the same as a pub after that. Food quality and service went up and down according to who the manager was. Latterly the management team put in by the Drewitt-Barlows was sadly adrift if the stream of poor reviews in the last 12 months are a guide.

In those distant days - say 30 years ago - while the Griffin was flourishing, the other village centre pub - the Bakers Arms - had a well-deserved reputation as the village boozer. Owned by Gray & Son, then a local brewer but now simply a distributor for Greene King, the pub retains its popularity with the locals. Still tenanted, it also does food now.

The Anchor, the Bell and the Cricketers are all at the edges of the village. All do food and the Anchor (below top) is particularly noted for it. The Bell, (below centre) Danbury's first pub as one enters from Chelmsford has a good passing trade.
The Cricketers, (below last) sitting on the edge of the Common is popular with walkers and cyclists at the weekends.

While other villages have lost their pubs, Danbury has still hung on to its five - so far. [There had been a sixth - the Black Boy in Woodhill Road - but that was a beer house, closed by the magistrates in 1910.]

So is Danbury likely to lose one of its pubs? The key may lie in the fact that the four that are still open are all either tenanted or privately owned - run by people who have a vested interest in seeing their business succeed. By contrast the Griffin has been a managed pub for many years - and it shows.

A likely outcome is the Griffin being turned into a restaurant, pure and simple.

Indian anybody?

St Johns Stonework Appeal

2010-08-28T13:59:00.007+01:00

The Rector of Danbury, the Reverend Canon Graham Blyth opened Danbury Society's 38th Annual Art Exhibition on Friday 27th August.

At a short ceremony to mark the opening and demonstrate how Danbury Society's activities are directed towards maintaining and enhancing the village, Society Treasurer Bob Booker presented the Reverend Blyth with a cheque for £2,500 as a contributiuon towards St Johns Stonework Appeal.

"One of the key aims of Danbury Society", said Bob Booker, "Is the preservation, protection and improvement of historic features of the village. Nothing could be more historically significant in Danbury than its only Grade 1 listed building - St John's Church."

Bob Booker explains Danbury Society's aims. The Rector looks on.

He went on to present the cheque, which represents 10 percent of the Appeal's target of £25,000.

"On behalf of the Church," replied the Rector, "I would like to thank Danbury Society most sincerely for the impressive gift. The Appeal is going well and we are only a short way off from our target, due in no small part to the generous amount from the Society".

Reverend Canon Graham Blyth praises Danbury Society's activities watched by Society Treasurer Bob Booker.

He went on to praise the work of the Society in initiating so many activities of benefit to the village - including the Art Exhibition. He was delighted to declare it open.

The Exhibition features over 350 paintings from local artists in all media: oil, watercolour, pastel, acrylic, linocuts, pen & wash, gouache, charcoal and on several bases: canvas, board, silk, handmade paper and metal. Entrance is free and a catalogue costs £1.

Art Exhibition organiser Glad Deamer joins Revd. Graham Blyth and Bob Booker for the photocall at the opening.

St John's Church Treasurer Michael Green holds the real cheque while the Rector holds the presentation version.
[All photos Norman Bartlett]

Topping Out

2010-08-22T11:21:00.004+01:00

The Mill Lane development has reached a milestone on being 'topped out'.

On Friday 20 August 2010, a topping out party was held when the cupola and filial that stands on the clock tower of Quinlan Court was unveiled. A marquee was erected in the grounds and those concerned with its development, design and construction had a suitable celebration.

There is much work still to be done, of course, but completion is on track for early in 2011, it is believed.

Mission Statement

2010-08-19T15:31:00.006+01:00

If the Planners agree, Danbury will be seeing a new eye-catching building in a prominent position.

Danbury Mission has outgrown its accommodation - yet again. The first building on the site in Maldon Road opened in 1976. As the congregation grew, an extension was added in 1993. The larger congregation begat a need for a more social ministry to embrace youth and the community. Thus in 2005 behind the main area for worship, a new structure was built with kitchen, assembly room, sports hall and offices.

Now another stage has been reached as the area for worship is inadequate for the size of congregation.

In this view from Bay Meadow, the pale structure and all to the left of it will be removed and replaced by the new building pictured below in an artist's impression

The church Elders have engaged a distinguished firm of architects, experienced in ecclesiastical designs, who have come up with an imaginative scheme.

All the pre-2005 building (that is the structure that can be seen from Maldon Road) will be dismantled and a new building in the Art Deco style erected. The obvious effect will be of a lot of glass and rendered surfaces. Hidden will be the features to make this a very eco-friendly design: heat source pumps, water recycling, high levels of insulation and solar panels. The mature trees along the frontage will be maintained.

Part of the design brief was for the building to be sympathetic to the new medical centre promised for the adjacent green space. (When or whether that will be built is another matter.) The new building will feature a semicircular auditorium to create a better community feeling.

If planning application goes forward and permission is granted to build, the intention is to start at Christmas 2010 with completion within 12 months. The budgetary price for the building has been reported as £2 million. However competitive bids will be invited from construction companies and the contract price is expected to be lower.

The plans are posted on a corridor in the Mission and visitors are welcome to look at them. Alternatively you can view them online at http://bit.ly/ddoNY5

Philip Watts - a small tribute

2010-08-05T11:45:00.005+01:00

Philip Watts, a long time member of Danbury Society's committee, died on 26th July.

Philip, seen above in a relaxed moment with a lady from Cockney Pride (Philip is on the left), moved to Danbury in the late 1990s. He got involved in village affairs, being co-opted to the Society's executive at the AGM in November 1998. The next year he was asked to represent the Society on the Parish Council Planning Committee. This he did, uncomplainingly, until his death. His last Committee meeting at which he reported was only ten days before he passed away.

He was also a participant in the painstaking work that a small team undertook to produce the first Parish Plan in 2004. Other village organisations in which he was involved included the Twinning Association, Meeting Point, Over 60's Club, and University of the Third Age (U3A).

The Society has received two very nice tributes from people who knew him.

"I also came to know Philip as a very genuine and polite man, one of life's gentlemen. I never heard Philip ever say an unkind word about anybody. I liked Philip a lot and I will miss him".

"Whilst we no longer live in Danbury we still remember Philip with affection and send our sincere condolences to his family and friends".

This blogger's view is that he was a lovely teddy-bear of a man. Gruff, kindly, tolerant, matter-of-fact and very conscientious. Certainly his contribution to the Society's committee meetings will be missed. [If you wish to add your own words, please do so by clicking on 'Post a Comment' below.]

Prior to retirement he worked in sales and marketing for a metal extrusion company. He was 88 when he died, a widower for about the last six years. He leaves a daughter, Judy.

Deep in the Woods

2010-07-27T16:39:00.006+01:00

Can we expect a new dwelling deep in Bellhill Wood?

At the distant end of Moores Bridge Lane, the track that runs down from Main Road on the big bend, past the Scout hut and into the woods, a plot has been cleared and entrances laid down. Ground drains have been put in and old culverts cleared. What's going on?

A search on Chelmsford Council's list of recent planning applications gives no clue. The land is newly demarcated with wire fencing. It lies immediately to the south of Chris Ablitt's large property.

The photos taken at the end of July and beginning of August show that the clearance work is quite recent as no vegetation has re-appeared.

And, Danbury Society hears, someone has been enquiring about the 'old house' that used to stand there. If such a building existed that would make it easier for someone to get planning permission.

Sadly for the enquirer no one can recall a building there. Nor is there any cartographic evidence of previous construction.

Watch this space as they say.

Latest on Mill Lane

2010-07-27T09:18:00.009+01:00

What the grand development in Mill Lane will look like, is beginning to emerge.

From the road, the curve of the building can now be discerned. The fine new building will contain 14 apartments. We would like to think that this will be Danbury's answer to Bath's architectural curves but the preserved trees in the foreground - as these pictures make clear - gives a more bucolic aspect.

And Danbury's Quinlan Court is somewhat smaller than Bath's Royal Crescent.

Tidy it ain't

2010-07-11T14:27:00.004+01:00

It's summer. There will be lot's going on: fetes, open days, boot sales, gatherings of all kinds. Each of these events needs to promote itself so look out for the signs going up.

That little bit of verge at Eves Corner, by the bus stop and opposite the Village Hall seems a favourite location to put out the message.

Drivers approaching from the Maldon direction get the whole delightful display full in the face. But how much of the messages displayed there will they have time to read as they negotiate the double-miniroundabout and drive on by?

Now Danbury Society is not wholly innocent of posting signs. However we do claim to display just one sign with a clear, bold message. The picture below shows what we put up last year. You should be seeing it again in time for the 2010 Art Exhibition.

And we'll take it down as soon as possible to keep that corner of the village tidy.

Footpaths again by Arthur Allen

2010-04-16T20:41:00.008+01:00

There are some in the village who will never be satisfied until our rural and historic village footpaths are permanently and irrevocably transformed from footpaths into footways by de-facto paving them over with road planings.

This material is alien, it is dangerous in that it creates a hard irregular quasi-permanent uneven surface as opposed to the natural earth and stones that blend into a homogenous surface that is easier to walk for a rural footpath. I keep using the word rural because that is exactly what these footpaths are they are rural both in character and setting; they are not 'town footpaths' as one representative of ECC once described them, perhaps wishing to set a descriptive precedent, who knows, I have never been able to find a classification and description of town footpaths.

Rural footpaths by their very nature are just what they say - paths across the rural landscape created over many years by the passage of people on foot habitually placing one foot in front of the other. That is what a rural footpath is and that is how they sit within a rural character and landscape. The fact that housing development may have appeared around them over the years is no reason whatsoever to alter their appearance or surface make up which continues a heritage which has developed over hundreds of years in some cases. Defined rural footpaths will inevitably become softer underfoot during wet weather, especially if such conditions are prolonged, but that is the nature of the beast, they are footpaths, not footways.

As in most situations one also has to bear in mind that the right equipment has to be used for the right situation. Lightweight trainers or ordinary lounge shoes may be acceptable under normal and drier circumstances to pass and re-pass over a footpath. However, if residents (or visitors) who use the footpaths don't like getting their shoes dirty, or cannot reconcile themselves to the fact that a footpath will not always be passable when wearing lounge shoes in wet weather then the answer is simple - don't use them. there are plenty of normal metalled footways around the village which provide the kind of walking surface they believe should cover the footpaths as well.

Of course when it comes to maintenance only natural materials should be used which will re-instate the natural surface of beaten earth and stones; to use anything else can only destroy the rural character and landscape of our village. Certainly those such as the Ramblers, many of whom do not even live in our village, have no business at all telling us what the footpaths in our village should look like; they of all people should be aware of the necessity to use the correct footwear when walking rural footpaths.

We have to also ask ourselves why do the footpaths from time to time need repair; certainly not from the normal level of walking that goes on them. One of the main causes of damage to our footpaths is the indiscriminate, anti-social and not to mention illegal use of the footpaths by those icons of the environmental lobby, cyclists, and more particularly the mountain bike variety. Some footpaths are clearly marked with 'No Cycling' signs which are blatantly ignored by these environmentally aware and concerned cyclists. Both my family and myself have several times had very near misses from mountain bikers travelling at speed on the footpaths as if they were their own private race track; they rut the surface of the footpaths and cause even further damage to the softer areas but do we see ECC rushing to curtail this wanton damage cause by an overtly illegal activity, no we do not. What we do hear is a throw away line from the former ECC footpaths officer suggesting the encouragement of cycling on the footpaths. When it was pointed out that such activity was illegal there was a hasty retraction, however the hidden agenda is perfectly clear.

Living adjacent to two of our footpaths I have had cause on a significant number of occasions to draw the attention of CBC when they were responsible, and latterly ECC, to the nuisance and the danger these vandals cause; in a nutshell they are not at all interested because they do not want to be seen as anti-bike and they do not want to be seen to be doing anything to restrict the actions of cyclists even when they are being a menace to society and behaving illegally. They claim that the erosion is through rain water run-off; this is utter rubbish. The only surface washed away is the earth loosened by the cyclists as they perform their hard braking locking the wheels and skidding their wheels as they power ride the footpaths. They ride through red lights and the wrong way down one way streets and no-one does anything so they believe they can also get away with riding on the footpaths as well heedless of the danger to young children and the elderly residents who walk them legitimately.

It is not cost that will determine the fate of our footpaths because in all truth there is very little cost in maintaining a defined rural footpath as exactly that - a rural footpath. The cost and the threat comes in what ECC will try and do with them under the facade of following a so-called green agenda just because it suits their purpose at the moment. Going hand in hand with that is the threat to the footpaths from residents who do not recognise rural footpaths for what they are; they believe they should be no more than an extension to the paved footways. They expect to have the ambience of the character and landscape of a rural village but all the convenience of living in a town centre. Well sorry, but Danbury isn't a rural visitor centre with easy walk tarmac between exhibits; if you choose to live in the countryside you have to accept that you may get a little mud on your boots (or should that be designer trainers) because it comes with the product.

With respect to footpath 18; this footpath is a total anomaly and should not be considered at all in the same breath when debating the village footpaths relative to surface treatment. The footpath was moved during the construction of Beaumont Park and presumably metalled over by the contractor who thought that was a sensible thing to do. Had the footpath stayed put it would have the same kind of surface as all of the others; it is a mistake and by no means a yardstick by which the others should be judged. Road planings are a menace; I, and I know others have suffered injury resultant on their usage; when you use a naturally trodden footpath the maxim, as already mentioned, of user beware applies; once you start introducing the presence of foreign materials in order to try and create an artificially rustic surface you also introduce the question of liability in the event of an accident because whoever lays that surface must also be responsible for it on an ongoing basis.

There is nothing wrong with our village footpaths except in the minds of those who want to find problems where none actually exist and to create an artificial environment in the process, just so they can claim to be aware and concerned for our village environment. During the Parish Plan survey and questionnaire not one person complained about or questioned the state of the footpaths. By contrast the huge majority did say they valued above all else the rural character and landscape of Danbury and that is why they enjoy living here.

Our footpaths are part and parcel of that character and landscape; stop trying to turn Danbury's footpaths into an urban townscape, stop trying to appear to be doing something that doesn't need to be done, stop seeing problems that don't exist. To paraphrase the old adage - Our footpaths are not broke so they don't need fixing; please leave them alone.

Footpaths latest

2010-04-13T21:31:00.018+01:00

Although not a new footpath as such, a modest improvement has been made to one to make things easier for wheelchairs.

Where the unofficial footpath runs from Dawson Memorial Field, past the beacon, along the southern boundary of Flettons to meet Footpath 20 behind the water tower, the path was obstructed by a hedgerow hump. The Parish Council, with the agreement of Strutts, land agents for the field, have cut an access through the hump. On 12th April, Robin the groundsman did the necessary with his backhoe/digger.

Robin will allow the cut to settle for a week or two before completing the work.
Meanwhile the Parish Environment Committee continues to be exercised over the debate about materials to be used on footpaths.
The issue arises when a footpath becomes difficult or impassable due to poor drainage. And if the footpaths are official, numbered footpaths, then the responsibility for maintaining them is one for Essex County Council.
Here are a couple of examples of the problem at two spots on Footpath 17 at the beginning of April.

The solution is to use some filling. The two materials usually considered are pea shingle or road scrapings or tailings. (Scrapings are the byproduct of road resurfacing, tailings are the residue from sweeping and traffic use) Pea shingle is favoured by some as it is regarded as an indigenous and local material. Pea shingle is a mineral that has to be extracted, washed and carries a mineral tax. Road scrapings are preferred by ECC as the material is free and footpath repair provides a ready means of re-cycling it.

It would seem to be a no-brainer but others feel very, very strongly about the matter. It was rumoured that one councillor resigned over the issue but this has been strongly denied by the Parish Office.

But for a rural footpath, who cares much? These pictures show paths treated in both ways plus another with old hard core. After a couple of seasons, whatever material is used gets sublimated into the micro-landscape and it's difficult to notice the difference. Most ordinary walkers would be happy to avoid walking in mud, and wouldn't care what firm surface they trod on.

Of course, one solution would be tarmac like Footpath 18 but is that desirable in a rural setting? Or building nice structures like the planking near Woodhill Road that also provide refuge for various creatures underneath, one supposes?

Environment and character aside, it's likely that finance will be the decider for the forseeable future.

The High Spots of Essex by Dave Bolwell

2010-04-05T21:28:00.009+01:00

Looking south from the water tower there is no doubt than one is greeted by a magnificent view.

view to the south-east

view to the south-west

(photos by Norman Bartlett)

On a clear day the North Downs in Kent are clearly visible, to the left one has the tower blocks in Southend, to the right the shimmering waters of Hanningfield reservoir. In fact with a pair of binoculars the shipping on the Thames can be seen. With this in mind it is easy to imagine that these views are as a result uniquely of the height of the land one is standing on.

A few years ago “Contact” magazine stated that Danbury Church was the highest point in in Essex, a view I have heard expressed by several people. In the recently published volume three of Jill Goodsons interesting book “Around Danbury and Little Baddow” this topic is discussed on page 76. At the bottom of the page there is a chart which compares the heights of Thaxted church and St. Pauls Cathedral with Danbury Church. Unfortunately it is completely misleading since the ground heights are omitted. Thaxted church is almost the same height above sea level as Danbury. If this is added the 182 ft spire at Thaxted would tower above Danbury!

Topographically Essex lies on a tilted plane with its south- eastern side at the Dengie peninsular at sea level. It then rises in the North West corner around Saffron Walden to 147 metres (482 ft) at Chrishall Common near the Hertfordshire border. This sloping plane is divided by the rivers Chelmer and Blackwater (or Pant), both of which surprisingly rise within a mile or two of each other near the old airfield at Debden (now Carver Barracks) at a level of 120 metres. The ridges between these rivers have many high points above that of Danbury, particularly when one gets beyond Braintree.

For this reason “One of the highest points in Essex” is a bit of an overstatement and would be better replaced by “ One of the highest points in South-East Essex”

Sadly the congregation at St. Johns have had since to reconcile themselves that there are others in Essex who are closer to God!

Ashdowns Coaches

2010-03-26T12:19:00.005Z

This blog is normally devoted to topical events. Topicality is brought to this posting by a recent enquiry at the Parish Office.

A gentleman is seeking information about the history of Ashdowns Coaches, of which the enquirer was a regular customer from 1949 to 1955. He would particularly like to find pictures and possibly contact any descendants of the firm’s owners.

With helpful members of Essex Buses Yahoo Group (http://uk.groups.yahoo.com/group/essex-buses/) and references to two books: Crawley, MacGregor and Simpson: The Years Between, Oxford Publishing,1984 and Geoffrey Mills: Gone But Not Forgotten - East Anglia's Lost Double Deckers, 2006, the following narrative may be of interest.

Francis Hawthorn Ashdown traded initially as the Rodney Bus, with a service from Chelmsford to Little Baddow (Admiral Rodney) via Danbury. The first bus is believed to have been a 14-seat Chevrolet registered TW777.

Timetables in 1930 showed that most journeys ran from Rodney, Generals Arms [note NOT Little Baddow but Rodney] to Chelmsford Station via Danbury and Great Baddow, but certain buses extended to the Rodney Inn and a few started from Danbury, Cricketers. The service ran daily with 18-21 journeys each day. The return fare was 1s. 2d. (6p). By 1933 all journeys ran between the Generals Arms and Chelmsford, Market Road. There were 11 journeys a day (10 on Sundays), which could all be worked with one bus.

Francis Ashdown is reported to have enjoyed considerable local support, not only as the local operator, but also because he offered a more frequent service than Eastern National. He was frequently in difficulty with the licensing authority over the misuse of relief buses. The number of buses that could be operated was laid down in the operating licence. Competitors watched this closely and cried ‘foul’ if a firm ran any extras. Ashdown did it a bit too often and the concession was eventually withdrawn.

The bus service (only) was sold to Eastern National on 4 December 1937, to become part of the then 1A service. (It was renumbered as 31A in 1956 when all low numbered Chelmsford routes had 30 added). No vehicles were taken over by Eastern National but it paid £4,500 for the goodwill. Ashdowns kept his excursions and tours business, which with private hire and contract work, continued for a quarter of a century. The business was incorporated as Ashdowns Luxury Coaches Ltd on 4 April 1941. The livery was orange and cream.

Both new and second-hand Bedfords and Dennises were operated pre-War. After 1945 he acquired more coaches including three new Thurgood half cabs, 2 on Leyland and 1 on AEC chassis and six Bedford OBs. Schools work must have been important as well, as Ashdowns was running as many 4 of them at various times. They were certainly used on contracts from the Danbury area to Moulsham Schools before Sandon school was built.

The coach company was wound up in 1963 but Ashdowns continued as motor dealers and repairers at the premises on Maldon Road, initially with a Ford franchise. In the 1980s the business was acquired by Bates of Maldon but still retained its local identity as Ashdowns garage. It was rebuilt with a showroom and service garage – latterly just a showroom - until a massive fire in a paint factory behind the site on 10 July 1988. Bates sold the site to Esso and developed the site. A filling station and convenience store was opened in 1991 and instantly became known as the Esso garage or sometimes the Tesco store.

And that really saw the extinction of the last association with Ashdowns Coaches.

Runsell Green latest

2010-03-12T14:36:00.007Z

Danbury Society marked the Silver Jubilee of HM The Queen in 1977, by planting a tree and putting a protective iron seat around it.

Unlike our own dear Queen, sadly the tree never prospered. It gave up the ghost after a few years. Even a replanting failed and the culprit for failure turned out to be the subsoil. This may have been an old roadway - possibly the original line of the road from Woodham Walter - or maybe a dump of road tailings. Whatever the cause, it was distinctly unhealthy for young trees.

The second replanting was made some distance away in the centre of Runsell Green itself. The young tree is about 4 metres tall now and seems to have 'got away'.

The iron seat remains. On firm solid concrete foundations, it will need some heavy gear to move it. Should it be moved? The Environment Committee of the Parish Council thinks maybe so. Certainly the seat looks rather abandoned in its present location yet in one sense it has become a legacy token, particularly as it has a nice dated plaque rivetted to it.

The flooding of the roadway at Runsell Green that caused so much nuisance during the winter rain has had a fix. Robin the groundsman has dug out the ditch which drains into the pond. There is another drainage pipe under the road and an inspection cover that is damaged. The County Council has both these items on its 'to do' list but in the meantime the main problem has been dealt with.

Come the Spring - and it will come eventually - the Runsell Green pond will be a delight to the eye without being a source of annoyance.

Money, money, money

2010-03-08T17:12:00.008Z

It's that time of year again when the dreaded Council Tax demand plops through the letter box.

How have we fared in Danbury? Essex County Council - the major element of the Council Tax - has increased its demand by only 1.9% - much less than inflation. Chelmsford Borough Council by 2.9%, which is about the level of inflation. Police, Fire Service and our own Parish Council at rather higher rates. Here's a chart to explain. (Just click on the chart to enlarge it and hit the back button on your browser to come back to the blog)

Oops! That looks like a black mark against Danbury Parish Council. Biggest percentage increase of all the agencies that can take our money.

But how does Danbury compare with other parishes? The numbers are all in this year's guide to Council Tax shown at the top of the page. Residents of Runwell have been severely whacked with a massive increase that is close on to 20%. Whew! Springfield and our next door neighbours in Bicknacre have not got away much easier with whopping 17%+ increases.

Here's the bigger picture, in a chart showing all the Chelmsford parishes that have expenditure greater than £50,000. Danbury squeaks by at around the average. (Again, click on the chart to enlarge it)

So against a general recognition that expenditure must be restrained by all levels of government - well, perhaps not the European Union - we are probably not too badly off. Except if you are on a pension with a fixed income.

Mill Lane Latest

2010-02-01T11:55:00.010Z

Progress continues on what must be Danbury's biggest building project for some years. The severe weather at the beginning of the year caused a loss of 2 weeks.

Instead of going up, the present work involves going down as in the picture below. Because of the fall of the ground, construction is not straightforward. In addition to the large excavation, there is also a separate smaller one to the right by the small compressor, which is probably for a retaining wall. The pale blue things at the back are containers, stacked and used for storage and site-offices. The two large mature trees in the centre, originally stood in the garden of Woodpeckers. Beyond is one of the buildings belonging to Danbury Mission.

In the next picture, the large excavation is a basement for the utilities. Below the black polythene layer is a mass steel cage ready to have concrete poured. The steel can be seen in the bottom right corner of picture near where the compressor stands. The polythene protects the steel from frost & debris.
The excavation was much deeper than can be seen now, as down below are service ducts and drains. However not all the water will be going into the sewer. The retirement apartments to be constructed are to eco-friendly standards, so all the rainwater is stored for various uses. This area of the site, when completed, will be for refuse bins and general storage.

[photos: Norman Bartlett]

This blog will keep you updated on how the work is going. It is believed that the main contractor, E J Taylor & Sons (http://www.ejtaylor.co.uk/), has an 18-month completion contract. If true, this indicates everything should be finished by about April 2011.

Higher! Wider! Stronger!

2009-12-10T17:19:00.005Z

The 2009 Christmas tree was put up in time for the annual 'Carols Around the Christmas Tree' occasion on 9th December.

This year the tree at Eves Corner shelters behind a formidable palisade: chestnut palings reinforced by galvanised steel tubing. The setting is a long way from the informal, village green arrangement that residents were familiar with from previous years. Circumstances such as village vandalism, 'elf & safety regime and the advancing years of Danbury Society's tree erection team have combined to create a more urbane scene.

The picture shows the strong structure of the protective fence. In the background, sitting on a bench and soaking up the sun, is Patsy Curtin, a familiar village personality.

For those interested in such things, the lighting also has a smaller carbon footprint. The tree used to have about 40 coloured 100W electric light bulbs. Today it has, perhaps, ten times more lights but they are all low-voltage ones.

The tree is procured by the Parish Council, erected and decorated by contractors, who also put up the fence, arrange electrical connection and remove the tree after the Christmas season for green disposal. It is believed the total bill is about £1,000 this year.

Danbury Society provides a grant to limit the call on the Parish precept (Council tax).

all photos by Norman Bartlett

Site cleared and ready to build

2009-12-04T12:07:00.012Z

The Mill Lane site was completely cleared in the first week of December. It now seems ready for ground work to be started with the builders likely to move in in the New Year.

The picture above is of the whole site seen from the next door neighbour's driveway. The following pictures show how first number 72 and then Woodpeckers met the wreckers ball. (metaphorically speaking: there was no ball - simply a large backhoe/loader that did the work)

72 Mill Lane hiding behind its leafy hedge (above) and ....

...exposed after the shrubbery was removed, ready for razing to the ground.

The last remaining corner of 72 Mill Lane before it disappears into a large skip.

A charming vision of Woodpeckers in August...

...and with the contractors fencing in place in mid-November...

...and all gone by the end of the month. This is the entrance to the erstwhile Woodpeckers. The buildings seen at the back are part of the Mission that stands on Maldon Road.

The unsuitability of Mill Lane to carry heavy traffic was amply demonstrated when the heavy plant was delivered. The low loaders managed to squeeze through only to face a difficult manoeuvre when getting on to the site. That is, presumably, why the contractors surfaced a new passing place by the entrance.

More heavy vehicles will no doubt appear as the construction of the new development proceeds. What this space for pictures!

Messing up Eves Corner

2009-11-25T11:38:00.007Z

After only a couple of weeks of the brand new car park, vehicles are already churning up the edge of the green.

When the car park, carriageway and footways were repaired and renovated recently, (see blog below, 8 November) lowered kerbs were put in place to help those with mobility difficulties. Because of a gap in the line of protective posts around the green, it has provided an opportunity for drivers to drive more easily over the footway.

Careless drivers?
Lazy drivers?
White van drivers?
I've-got-a-4-wheel-drive-and-I-can-go-anywhere drivers?

Who knows?
But while it may not be too bad at present, as the winter progresses it is likely to get worse. The gap in the posts may even tempt some impatient moron - if the car park is full - to drive fully on to the green.

Can the Parish Council get a couple more posts fixed to stop this happening?

Comments welcome - click below on the right.

Long established Danbury trader leaves

2009-11-14T17:10:00.006Z

Changes are afoot at the trio of shops at Eves Corner.

Mrs Pam Southgate, proprietor of Danbury Antiques, is closing her business on retirement to Lincolnshire. She has been trading in the village for 22 years, originally in a shop on Main Road. She moved in as the first tenant at the Eves Corner shops when they were opened in 1992.

The shop premises are on two floors. Mrs Southgate has sold jewellery, silver, porcelian, pottery, furniture, rugs, copper and brass artefacts there for 17 years.

During her last week of trading she has staged a 'closing down' sale and there has been a stream of her regular customers through the doors. Her last day was Saturday 14 November and here she is seen with two of her regular assistants Vera Viner and Margaret Main.

A new business is moving in immediately and will be opening as a delicatessen and bakery. It hopes to open before Christmas.

Eves Corner car park - part 2

2009-11-08T17:13:00.003Z

The car park at Eves Corner is now almost resplendent with a smart black surface and gleaming white lines.

During the night of 4th/5th November, an asphalting team got busy and laid a fresh surface. The picture shows them at work under lights, disturbing the local residents for a while. In fact they soon moved on along Little Baddow Road to continue the rest of the resurfacing job.

It appears that they put down a subsurface layer followed by a 30 mm wearing layer. There is still seems to be some snagging to be done but it looks quite attractive.

The lining team arrived over the weekend following and marked up ten parking bays. In fact the last one is oversize and two cars can squeeze in without too much trouble. In the picture, a close look at the furthest bay shows a Jaguar and a Mercedes parked alongside each other.

Dare we ask how soon it will be before one of the utilities has to dig a hole? Or is that being cynical?

It will get worse before it gets better

2009-11-01T19:28:00.006Z

The small car park at Eves Corner has been a cause of complaints for a long time.
Now, at last, something seems to be happening. At the beginning of October there were the first signs of something happening when the signs went up.
Work started and new kerbs were set.

Obviously time must be allowed for the concrete in which the kerb is set, to properly cure. Yet the weeks went by.
Now at the beginning of November we have seen the old surface scraped, burnt and swept away. The subsurface is certainly one to slow the traffic down.

No doubt we shall see a smart new Eves Corner soon.

Land for Sale

2009-10-19T15:40:00.006+01:00

A plot of land on the edge of the village is on the market.

The 'for sale' sign has been vandalised, either as a random act of youthful exuberance or as a forceful demonstration of resentment. The land is around 6 acres in size, three sided and lies between Gay Bowers Lane and Capons Lane.

It is entirely uncultivated and has been so for the best part of 20 years. Parish footpath 36 stretches across it southwards from a point opposite Pedlars Path towards St Josephs.

There have been suggestions that this piece of land would be suitable as a second village green. Enquiries by the Parish Council of the agents, Belle Vue Estates (http://www.bellevue-estates.co.uk/index.aspx) for an indicative price have not really led anywhere. However its present condition is far from any recognisable type of village green. It is rough scrubland and would take many thousands of pounds to clear and level.

But does the village need another green? Danbury is already well supplied with public open space both within the village and on its edges.

Could the village afford it? As well as the purchase price, whatever that might be, ongoing maintenance would be significant.

Perhaps it might be better left as another Danbury green wedge and natural feature.

Declining standards in Danbury?

2009-09-24T17:47:00.007+01:00

Is Danbury facing the same declining standards as the rest of society or have Mr & Mrs Nasty moved into the village?

Fresh notices have appeared above the counters at the Barclays Bank branch at Eves Corner. Customers have been surprised to see warnings about the abuse of staff. The management promises strict action against those who use threats or bad language against staff.

Not in Danbury, surely? Oh, yes.

Questioned whether the notices were meant locally, a teller said, "Yes, there have been one or two incidents. That's why the notices have gone up"

We may have issues about banks and, according to the latest figures by the Financial Services Ombudsman, Barclays has one of the worst records for complaints (http://www.ombudsman-complaints-data.org.uk/). Yet staff, as the notice says, are entitled to be able to work without threats or intimidation.

Royal Mail and Danbury's post

2009-09-06T11:56:00.008+01:00

A technical problem at Danbury's sorting office means more traffic and more emissions.

A few weeks ago the lift at Danbury's local sorting office behind and above the Co-op supermarket packed up. Carting sacks of mail up and down stairs meant the postmen and women had to spend extra time on their shifts. Royal Mail decided their worked hours could not be extended. Instead Danbury's posties were transferred to Victoria Road, Chelmsford to sort the post.

And how do they get the mail from Chelmsford to Danbury? Royal Mail provided vans. So the staff sort the mail in Chelmsford, load it in a van, bring it to Danbury and drive round their 'walk'. Some of them choose to park the van at the Co-op and pick up their bike there and deliver the mail to homes and businesses as usual.

So a few extra miles to and from Chelmsford, a few more wheels on the road and a bit more CO2 discharged.

But at least the Royal Mail has saved money by not having the lift repaired.

Illegal Immigrants at Eves Corner

2009-08-12T19:48:00.005+01:00

There is a touch of the exotic in Eves Corner pond.
In the last two weeks a colony of goldfish including what may be golden orfe have appeared in the pond in the centre of the village. They do not seem to have disturbed the present avian residents - a couple of moorhens. Whether the word has gone out to the local herons is uncertain.
Where they have come from is something of a mystery. The most likely answer is that someone has an overstocked garden pond and decided to remove the excess population to a new home.
The National Trust, whose pond it is, tends to look askance at non-native species. Can we expect that body to reject the implicit application for fishy asylum and launch a dragnet to get them out?
Watch this space.

More Road Works

2009-07-21T15:32:00.005+01:00

The Society continues to get complaints about poor road surfaces. It has taken these up with the Highways Authority and some improvements have been made.

A major work programme is lined up for Little Baddow Road and The Ridge this summer. Work started on Thursday 21st July and will continue for some weeks.

This was the scene at Eves Corner as the traffic management was put in hand.

Side roads accessing the main works have also been closed to the discomfiture of regular users of the rat run through Butts Lane. The signed diversion is, apparently, some 12.5 miles in length. Local residents will, of course, know shorter cuts.

Phase 1 of the programme covers footway reconstruction from Eves Corner to Runsell Lane. The road will be closed from 07.30 to 17.30 hrs, Monday-Friday and sometimes on Saturday mornings until mid-August.

Phase 2 covers reconstruction for the short section of footway from Parsonage Lane to the Generals Arms. Nevertheless the whole road from Runsell Lane to Colam Lane will be closed for a week at the end of August. Hours of closure as for Phase 1.

Phase 3 will see the same section of road affected but for a period of 7 weeks in September and October. There will be traffic lights with traffic moving in convoys with a slow-moving pilot vehicle at the front. This restriction will enable reconstruction of various lengths of footway along this part of the closure.

Phase 4 will be on dates to be advised in October. It is likely to involve full night time road closures for resurfacing of the entire length of carriageway between Eves Corner and Colam Lane.

(all pictures: Norman Bartlett)

Agricultural development

2009-03-29T18:08:00.006+01:00

The erection of agricultural buildings is often an irritation to residents as such building is outside the normal planning procedures.

A recent case is at the distant end of Hopping Jacks Lane at its junction with Twitty Fee. In February building workers moved on to the site and began the rapid construction of a prefabricated barn that will probably be used as a grain store.

Within a day or so, the building had been erected. It is certainly large and dominates the distant view to the Blackwater estuary.

But look closely at the enlargement below. Close planting has been done around the barn. In a few years, the plants will have grown and there will be a stout hedge around the building, softening its outline.

In a decade it will be part of the landscape itself.

Mission Moves

2009-02-16T14:44:00.007Z

A century after it was built, a link with Danbury's evangelical past may be on the way out.
Hidden away in the woods along the lower part of The Common is the old Danbury Common Mission Hall.

At the end of the 19th century, William Baker, a local builder and devout Christian, began preaching, often in the open air on Eves Corner green. In 1910 he built the Mission Hall on land he owned and from which he had dug sand and gravel.
Both mission and business prospered. The former with a growing congregation that became Danbury Mission Evangelical Church http://www.danburymission.org.uk/new/index.html with an impressive building on Maldon Road and the latter becoming the well-established firm Bakers of Danbury www.bakersofdanbury.co.uk/ with offices at Eves Corner just behind William Baker's old residence.
And what became of the old Mission Hall? For some years now it has been used by Christian Evangelical Film Library as a store and dispatch centre.
both photos Norman Bartlett
And the future? Planning permission (08/01678/FUL) has been given by Chelmsford Borough Council to demolish it and build a house and garage on the land. Special care has been specified to ensure trees are preserved.

No news about Danbury Palace

2009-02-02T21:30:00.005Z

Back in August last year we commented in this blog about developments at Danbury Palace.

Front and main entrance to the Palace building

There were two planning applications: 08/01260/FUL for demolition of the accommodation blocks of the old Anglian Conference Centre and construction of 49 apartments and 08/01261/LBC for internal refurbishment of the Palace to form 11 residential units. The latter has been approved but the former has not. There were many comments from interested parties.

Danbury Society thought the number of units too high and we were concerned at the extensive use of glass in the elevations. We suggested it was like “a glass box” and if the elevations were more varied it would be more in keeping with the Palace building as well as reducing heat loss.

Danbury Parish Council, http://www.danbury-essex.gov.uk/ among other points, was “disappointed to note that there is a lack of truly affordable housing in the proposal”.

The Listed Building people said of the Conference Centre, “Although the building is accomplished it is not of the highest quality and due to its layout arrived at through the intended function is a difficult building to reuse”.

Natural England http://www.naturalengland.org.uk/ was “minded to object to the proposed development. Our concerns relate specifically to the likely impact upon great crested newts, bats and native reptiles”. It went into some detail on how these creatures might be adversely affected.

On the other hand the Garden History Society http://www.gardenhistorysociety.org/ welcomed the demolition of the conference centre but wanted the opportunity taken “to improve this important historic designed landscape”. It also thought the number of residential units too great.

The Twentieth Century Society http://www.c20society.org.uk/ took a contrary view and wanted “the conversion of the existing Conference Centre on the basis of its architectural merits and good condition”.

Whether these contrary views are the reason the decision is delayed is not known. The decision was timetabled for October 2008 and now seems to be in some sort of limbo. In the meantime, the weather takes its toll, the vegetation becomes more unkempt, wild creatures roam and dereliction looms.

At least Natural England will be pleased.

The Conference Centre accommodation buildings. The archway gave access to and from the car park built in an old walled garden.
photos Norman Bartlett

More sand, more gravel?

2009-01-28T11:52:00.011Z

Danbury sits on top of a lot of sand and gravel.
At each end of the village there are pits where these materials are being taken - St Cleres and Royal Oak. There is plenty of evidence of other places where it has been dug out in the past. Hoynors, the Heights and the British Legion Industrial Estate are three of them.

Now there is the possibility that another site may be earmarked: Tyndales Farm on the west of the village and straddling the boundary with Woodham Mortimer.

The site has been identified in the consultation document issued by Essex County Council on minerals planning. This document is much, much more than simply a list of sites as it covers reducing mineral use; recycling old aggregate; protecting resources; finding alternative sources; protecting the environment; working, restoration and after-use. Read the details of the Minerals Development Document or MDD at http://consult.essexcc.gov.uk/portal/mdd_-_further_issues_and_options/mdd_-_further_issues_and_options?tab=files

Re-use, recycle, conserve is the mantra that runs through the MDD. Nevertheless there is still a need for new material and that has been assessed as almost 40 million tonnes over the period 2011-2026. About 35 sites have been identified that contain estimated reserves of 88 million tonnes.

Tyndales Farm is site A35 in the MDD. It is located to the south of the A414 Maldon Road and north of the B1418 Southend Road. The area is 47.5 ha and has an estimated yield of 3 million tonnes. This would be recovered over a period of 15 years. The extracted material would be taken away by road and the land would be returned to agriculture afterwards.

Nobody likes the prospect of gravel workings because of noise, dust, dirt and heavy vehicles on nearby roads. When the site is close to residential property it is particularly unpleasant.

The issue for Danbury is how to deal with the threat. One way is to respond to the County Council's call for observations on the MDD.

There may also be strategic gtrounds for objecting. The County has suggested four strategic options (1) to continue to exploit existing sites with additional care; (2) dispersed sites to minimise travel distances; (3) to concentrate as much extraction as possible in the centre of the county; or (4) a mix of these strategies.
Examination of the sites shows that almost all are along a swathe either side of the A120. The only significant exception is the Danbury site.

Thus if strategy (3)were adopted, Danbury may well be out of it.

One aspect of the MDD is the need to safeguard resources for future generations and ensure that potential sites are not sterilised (i.e, unable to be exploited) by over building. These may be designated Minerals Safeguarding Areas (MSA). That could be the ideal solution: have Tyndales Farm designated an MSA. It would not be exploited until after 2026 - if then - and in the meantime this field would stay as it is without houses on it.

[all photos Norman Bartlett]

New pub sign

2008-12-18T16:46:00.006Z

A new pub sign has appeared outside the Bakers Arms, the pub in the centre of the village on the A414.

This may not be your usual pub sign although it is very clear about what it means. It announces that the pub is now doing fish and chips in addition to the usual beer and spirits.

There is a little story behind the sign apparently. Originally the sign was in a bracket attached to the pub itself. The bracket can be clearly seen in the smaller picture (below). According to Chelmsford Council Planning Department there was a complaint about the sign. A saloon bar expert said, a sign can say who you are but not what you do. Signs fall within planning regulations when attached to a building but not when standalone.

And what's the view in the saloon bar? "We're only trying to make a living", said Gary from behind the bar.

War Memorial

2008-10-19T17:51:00.010+01:00

Did anyone notice the brown stains across the names of the Fallen on the War Memorial?
Was it vandalism?
Was it decay?

It turned out to be rather more mundane that that. It was mud plastered across the names to make recutting of them easier.
At the beginning of October a stonemason set up his equipment and began to re-incise the names. This is a small maintenance task that has to be done about every ten years to keep the carving in the Portland stone fresh. The work is paid for by the Parish Council.
Here are a couple of photos of the work being done.

photos by Norman Bartlett

The mud washes off either naturally in the rain or with some water. No doubt someone from the Royal British Legion will make sure it is spick and span for the Remembrance Day service.

More trees down

2008-09-09T17:25:00.004+01:00

A line of hedgerow trees that marked the boundary of two fields along Runsell Lane were felled in the first week of September.

This may be straightforward farming management without any ulterior aspect at all - but some people are twitchy. The hedgerow is on the the controversial site that was marked for residential development a few years back. Who remembers Berkeley Developments' grand plans for Danbury East Community Village? This hedgerow is slap bang in the middle of it as this map shows.

For the record here is a picture as it was last winter while the picture below that shows the view a week or so after the felling. Note that the white house is clearly visible in the later picture.

About 10 trees were taken down and here are the trunks and stumps that remain.

photos by Norman Bartlett

Danbury Art Show - background story

2008-09-02T11:48:00.007+01:00

The Art Show result is 3 days of colourful display, hundreds of visitors, proud artists and, hopefully, a contribution to Danbury Society's charitable funds.

But what goes before?

The clever and dedicated work is by Glad Deamer who starts earlier in the year contacting artists to invite them to take part in the Art Show later. Some artists let her know their intentions straightaway, others need prompting and a few need hard chasing. Glad's phone bill tells the tale.

Good promotion of the Art Show means more visitors and more visitors means better sales. Advertising and announcements are placed in the local press and just before the exhibition, roadside notices are put up.

Pictures are accepted a day or so before the Exhibition opens. This enables the catalogue to be finalised and printed. This year for the 36th Art Show, sponsorship from Bairstow Eaves Danbury office www.bairstoweves.co.uk/content/002_Offices/#East enabled a fine colour catalogue to be produced.

The heavy gang starts work on the day before the exhibition. Stands are brought from the Society's store, courtesy of Bakers of Danbury www.bakersofdanbury.co.uk who provide driver and truck.

The stands are assembled and set up.

Then it is time for the helpers with the artistic skills to hang the pictures.

And finally the shop is opened for everyone to see the fine show.

[photos by Norman Bartlett ]

Danbury Palace latest

2008-08-20T22:11:00.008+01:00

Until 2004, Danbury Palace was operated as a conference centre by Anglian Polytechnic University (now Anglia Ruskin University www.ruskin.ac.uk/). It then became redundant to the university’s requirements. The university prepared a plan to adapt the historic building for residential use and convert the existing conference facilities into apartments. For various reasons the application was withdrawn. The university apparently had no Plan B. Instead it put the whole site on the market and it was subsequently sold. Nothing further was heard until earlier this summer when rumours began circulating that a new plan had been proposed.
This blog is our present understanding of the facts of the matter.
Application 08/01260/FUL was submitted to Chelmsford BC (CBC) on 16 July. It is for the “Demolition of former Danbury Conference Centre and replacement with a residential scheme of 34 units, with refurbishment of the Grade II listed former Bishops House to form 11 residential units. Conversion of the unlisted coach house to 4 residential units. (49 units in total)”.
The drawings show that the residential part scheme is modern and not dissimilar from what went before. However it has a more interesting roofline that, in part, echoes the roofline of the listed building.

upper: West elevation (front of building) lower: East elevation (rear of building)

CBC has set a target determination date of 16 October www.chelmsford.gov.uk/index.cfm?articleid=8379. Comments had to be received by 15 August. Application is by the Inner Circle Group but is being handled by Andrew Martin Associates Limited of Great Waltham, the architects. Inner Circle www.innercircleinvestments.co.uk/ is based in Harpenden, Herts. It is a property and development company specialising in affordable housing. It lists a dozen or more projects mainly in London - Tottenham, New Cross, Walthamstow and Wood Green - but also Harwich and Southampton.
Comments have been invited from 17 bodies. CBC does not list any comments on its website from Danbury Parish Council, ECC Highway Authority, Trees And Landscaping Dept, Head of Parks Leisure, ECC Archaeological Development Control, English Heritage, Natural England, Essex Gardens Trust or The Twentieth Century Society.
Environmental Services and the Access Officer appeared to have given the Application the nod with minimal remarks.
The Listed Building section were only concerned about the old conference centre that was to be razed. It says, “Although the building is accomplished it is not of the highest quality and due to its layout…is a difficult building to reuse…The new block replicates the curved form of the existing block, and although deeper, does not replicate the southern projections”.
The Garden History Society says that “Danbury Park is a site of national importance, as signified by its inclusion at Grade II on the English Heritage Register of Parks and Gardens of Special Historic Interest…The Garden History Society welcomes the demolition of the conference centre but feels that this proposal…wastes the…opportunity … We therefore must object to this current application”. Essentially the Society wants a smaller replacement for what has gone before to enhance the historic landscape.
The School Services simply reports that there will be sufficient primary, secondary and early years places locally to accommodate any children from the development.
As the opportunity for comments is now past, and unless there is some significant objection from a statutory body, it seems likely that the application will be approved with or without amendment.

Changing face of Little Baddow Road

2008-08-16T14:35:00.010+01:00

Bakers of Danbury, www.bakersofdanbury.co.uk/ our local building firm and regular supporter of Danbury Society, is moving its funeral parlour.

The old office, with its fine traditional timber facade in funereal black, is being succeeded by a an office along the road - where the hardware store used to be.

photos by Norman Bartlett

The view on Little Baddow Road now, with the new parlour in the foreground and the old one at the far end of the terrace.

Welcome back to the Website

2008-08-10T13:22:00.003+01:00

Danbury Society is delighted to announce the return of the Society's website to active status.

Find it at www.danburysociety.idps.co.uk

Our webmaster, John Bowen, will maintain this.

Mis-taken name

2008-08-05T10:00:00.003+01:00

The blog on 2nd July about the new medical centre, calls the open area on which it is to be built 'Hitchcock's Meadow'.

Unfortunately the Hitchcock name more properly belongs to other pieces of land owned by the Essex Wildlife Trust. http://www.essexwt.org.uk/sites/Hitchcocks%20Meadows.htm

The mis-taking of the name arises because of the field's history of ownership. The fine late 19th century villa in Mill Lane known as Bay Lodge was owned, together with much land around, by a Mr Hitchcock. His name was applied to the meadows acquired by the Essex Wildlife Trust and heedlessly to the land on the other side of Mill Lane, opposite Bay Lodge.

The error was perpetuated in the Danbury Parish Plan, a booklet published in 2003 and distributed to every home in the village.

Older residents suggest the name of the piece of land was also known as Bay Meadow, showing its link to Bay Lodge. On the planning application the land in question is simply described as 'land adjacent to Danbury Mission'.

Decline of Hopping Jacks Hall

2008-07-08T20:43:00.005+01:00

photos Norman Bartlett

Tumbleweed may not be blowing across the drive but the garden is rapidly becoming overgrown. Nor do boarded up windows - however necessary - lend enchantment to the view.

Hopping Jacks Hall

2008-07-08T20:19:00.003+01:00

How much longer will the neighbours to Hopping Jacks Hall have to wait to find out the future of the erstwhile old peoples' home?
It is now around 18 months since the residents moved out and a short while later that Bill Davey, the proprietor, sold the site and building. Since then a planning application that met widespread opposition for several reasons was rejected. A further application that went some way to meeting the objections was submitted in January this year then mysteriously withdrawn.
Since then, nothing. Nowt. Zilch.
The pictures tell a sad story of an attractive building slowly becoming an old wreck.
The sudden decline in the housing market probably means things won't change much in the near future. The level of planning applications reviewed by the Parish Council is the lowest seen for many, many years.

Hitchcock's Meadow

2008-07-02T10:23:00.002+01:00

photos by Norman Bartlett

Medical Centre

2008-07-02T10:14:00.000+01:00

At a public meeting in May, plans for the new Medical Centre on Hitchcock's Meadow were described. If you were among the 150 or so people who attended, you will know that concerns were raised about the total size of the building and access to and from the large car park that would be needed.
These concerns appear to have been taken account of as the planning application has been withdrawn. No further information is presently to hand.
On the next post are a couple of pictures of Hitchcock's Meadow taken in February, showing where the Medical Centre would be built.

New opening, traditional standard

2008-07-01T20:40:00.000+01:00

Danbury Society is re-launching its website in a blog format.
For many years John Bowen provided a careful and colourful record of Danbury Society activities. His efforts have been greatly appreciated by Committee, members and the others who found the Danbury Society website.
The Society is now going forward in a slightly different format. Hopefully it will be as attractive and informative as before but with some new features that new technology has made available.