Street name debate by Sidmouth councillors

TOWN councillors had a tough decision to make after being asked to provide six suggestions of names for the new Stowford Rise development.

Having gone round the table gathering ideas from the 18 councillors present at Monday's Sidmouth Town Council meeting, it was suggested an e-mail vote be carried out to determine the six favourite names.

It was then muted that readers of the Sidmouth Herald be asked to choose the top six from the list.

Then, at the end of a two-and-a-half hour meeting, councillors voted with a show of hands.

Councillor Frances Newth's suggestion of Napoli, after the stricken cargo ship that sank off Sidmouth, was vetoed, as was Olympic, suggested by Councillor Stuart Hughes.

After much deliberation the top names chosen were Delderfield - after well-known author Ron Delderfield who lived up Peak Hill; Dunkley - after former town council chairman John Dunkley; Woodley - the name of the farming family whose land is being used for the development; Lindemann - to commemorate the scientist and right-hand man of Sir Winston Churchill, who lived at Sidholme in his youth; Betjeman to celebrate the poet John Betjeman who loved his visits to Sidmouth and Keith Owen which remembers the Sid Vale Association member from Canada who left a substantial bequest to the association to be used for the benefit of the community.

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