I was surprised to read in the news letter of the decision havering been made to hold all future gala days in Charlestown and not shared between Charlestown and limekiln's. Have the residents of Charlestown, limekiln's and Pattismur been consulted prior to this decision being made if so this is the first i have heard of it.
There are quite a few reasons why we have taken the decision to have the Gala at Charlestown in future. As a Limekilns resident myself, it was not the easiest decision to make but we have good reason. Last year (with the terrible weather)is a prime example of the validity of our decision.
1. Limekilns Park often has poor drainage problems. This can make the ground very difficult to drive on when it comes to delivering all the Gala equipment. Note that there is only one vehicle access point and this involves driving over grass. If the ground is waterlogged, it takes only one to get stuck and there are major problems. Charlestown is surrounded by a road. Vehicles have every chance to not get stuck. We also need to consider the condition the football pitch is left in when we leave. Deep gouges in the grass caused by stuck vehicles have given cause for complaint in the past.
2. We have to get a licence for the beer tent. Last year we only just managed to get it shifted from Limekilns to Charlestown in time. The beer tent brings the Gala a good revenue, and if we had to lose it because we couldn't get the change made in time it would be a shame. This licence changing took one Gala Committee quite some time to make, as well as informing both the Council and Police. We are short in numbers as it is and this really wastes valuable time on the lead up to Gala Day.
3.We try and set up the marquees on Friday night as, again, we are so short of Committee members and helpers. As the football is played at Limekilns Park on the same Friday, this means that we wouldn't be able to set them up until after the football matches finished. If we were at Limekilns, the only option would thus be to set up at 20:00 on Friday, or begin our work on Gala Day at 06:30 on Saturday. You can probably imagine how many volunteers would come out and help us at these times!
4.Parking. Limekilns doesn't really have all that much space for car parking, especially along the main road. Charlestown has the whole promenade, Charlestown Brae and even on the way out. The road is wider, there aren't as many houses in some of the areas, so I would suggest it is safer and more convenient place.
5. Safety. If there was a serious problem at Limekilns, there are very few exits to leave the area, or for emergency vehicles to come in. As Charlestown Green is surrounded with a road, and has a wide access to the main road, it seems like the wiser choice.
For our decision, we didn't consult with many of the residents of the three villages. The Park and Green are not that far from each other so travelling is not affected that much. We based it on the above points. The Gala Committee take their role and thus positions very seriously. We are all voluntary and there are only seven of us. We rely on friends, family and volunteers to help us make each Gala Day a success. You are probably aware that we spend the year trying to make around £4,000 to pay for the week itself. If more village members joined our committee we could probably change plans rather than go for the 'easier' option.I hope this answers your question.
I was surprised to read in the news letter of the decision havering been made to hold all future gala days in Charlestown and not shared between Charlestown and limekiln's. Have the residents of Charlestown, limekiln's and Pattismur been consulted prior to this decision being made if so this is the first i have heard of it.
ReplyDeleteThere are quite a few reasons why we have taken the decision to have the Gala at Charlestown in future. As a Limekilns resident myself, it was not the easiest decision to make but we have good reason. Last year (with the terrible weather)is a prime example of the validity of our decision.
ReplyDelete1. Limekilns Park often has poor drainage problems. This can make the ground very difficult to drive on when it comes to delivering all the Gala equipment. Note that there is only one vehicle access point and this involves driving over grass. If the ground is waterlogged, it takes only one to get stuck and there are major problems. Charlestown is surrounded by a road. Vehicles have every chance to not get stuck. We also need to consider the condition the football pitch is left in when we leave. Deep gouges in the grass caused by stuck vehicles have given cause for complaint in the past.
2. We have to get a licence for the beer tent. Last year we only just managed to get it shifted from Limekilns to Charlestown in time. The beer tent brings the Gala a good revenue, and if we had to lose it because we couldn't get the change made in time it would be a shame. This licence changing took one Gala Committee quite some time to make, as well as informing both the Council and Police. We are short in numbers as it is and this really wastes valuable time on the lead up to Gala Day.
3.We try and set up the marquees on Friday night as, again, we are so short of Committee members and helpers. As the football is played at Limekilns Park on the same Friday, this means that we wouldn't be able to set them up until after the football matches finished. If we were at Limekilns, the only option would thus be to set up at 20:00 on Friday, or begin our work on Gala Day at 06:30 on Saturday. You can probably imagine how many volunteers would come out and help us at these times!
4.Parking. Limekilns doesn't really have all that much space for car parking, especially along the main road. Charlestown has the whole promenade, Charlestown Brae and even on the way out. The road is wider, there aren't as many houses in some of the areas, so I would suggest it is safer and more convenient place.
5. Safety. If there was a serious problem at Limekilns, there are very few exits to leave the area, or for emergency vehicles to come in. As Charlestown Green is surrounded with a road, and has a wide access to the main road, it seems like the wiser choice.
For our decision, we didn't consult with many of the residents of the three villages. The Park and Green are not that far from each other so travelling is not affected that much. We based it on the above points. The Gala Committee take their role and thus positions very seriously. We are all voluntary and there are only seven of us. We rely on friends, family and volunteers to help us make each Gala Day a success. You are probably aware that we spend the year trying to make around £4,000 to pay for the week itself. If more village members joined our committee we could probably change plans rather than go for the 'easier' option.I hope this answers your question.
Alex Hill
Gala Chairman