Well only a couple of weeks to the start of this years' Folk Festival and it will certainly be interesting to see how EDDC cope with managing the seafront traders after changing areas of the seafront into 'Consent Streets' for the stalls.
It appears that traders will still be allowed to set-up along the main part of the promenade albeit not opposite any of the road junctions - surely their pitches will still conflict with the desire of performers to strut their stuff for the pleasure of the masses and 'Bill Oddie' lookalikes.
They should have coralled them at one end of the esplanade - Port Royal end would have been better, nearer the car-park and conveniences - where they could be easily managed.
Still - the word 'manage' and EDDC just do not go together. One of the EDDC Cllrs - Christine Drew - has been reported in the Herald as saying that it will be 'trial and error' this year.
'Trial & Error???' Surely this is not the way to administer this issue - I just wonder if we get any value at all for our council tax.
Bring on the single Devon Council.
There were more district council high visibility jackets on the prom this morning than Bill Oddie lookalikes!
Quite a few of the Folkie traders hadn't arranged their permits so it looked as though some were doing the paperwork and paying their fee on the spot. It did look as though the marked out pitches were a bit smaller than they would have liked.
One stall was selling CASSEROLE DISHES !! - more like a Farmers Market than Folk Festival.
One noticeable change brought about by selling 'consents' to the traders is that they do not have to rush down to secure the best pitch every morning - because they have pre-booked, they appear to be having a lie in and setting up a bit later in the day.
It looks ok so far ......... plenty of REACT staff from EDDC checking that none of the keepers of 'dogs on a rope' are drinking or smoking in the weather shelters - and a few council yellow jackets are administering the traders pitches.
If this is deemed a success then it bodes well for a Farmers' Market doesn't it?
It certainly looks as though the traders and performers have managed to co-exist fairly well on the esplanade this year. Although the weather has not allowed many performances so we can't really tell.
A lot of the festival has been centred on the pubs as people seek shelter from the rain.
Its a pity but they've decided to put up the prices in The Old Ship Inn for Folk Week (only) - bit of a rip off!
I thought the reason behind formalising the 'consents', or whatever they're called, to allow traders to officially set up shop was to restrict the number of stalls along the front to 50 - at least this is what the district councillors talked about.
I noted that, by moving the goalposts and using a bit of creative accounting, the officials allowed about 60 stalls on the esplanade by adding a suffix letter to any pitch above the number 50. IE - 50A 50B 50C etc etc.
Hmmm -
I wonder when the council are going to clean all the 'grafitti' off the esplanade that they painted on it before Folk Week. I thought that the markings for the traders pitches were going to be temporary - we've had buckets of rain during and after Folk Week and no sign of the markings fading yet.
It looks disgusting - not the sort of thing we want in Sidmouth along our 'Jewel in the Crown' promenade. The council should award itself an ASBO !!
Put the ASBO application away Local - it looks as though the council have done your bidding and all that 'grafitti' has been removed from the prom.
I still think it should have been left for the 'Farmers Market' though.
Copyright © 2007 Archant Regional Limited. All rights reserved. Terms and conditions