Hythe Civic Society Day

It was Hythe Civic Society’s day on Saturday, with a display in the undercroft on Planning & Conservation in Hythe, showing some of the things that Hythe has lost over the last 100 years or so due to bombing, road widening, and the relentless rush of progress. It was also apparent that many of our most important ancient buildings in Hythe may be far less protected than they should be – which is something I’ll now take up with my FHDC hat on.

Then we were treated to a free guided tour of the Mediaeval buildings in our High Street by Paul Mills (pictured). Paul’s focus was mostly on the Hall Houses from the 13th to 15th centuries that are dotted along our High Street which were all horizontally divided in subsequent centuries. Paul also ventured some comments on the likely positioning of our long-lost harbour over the Mediaeval & later periods, as it shifted & eventually disappeared. (On this subject, cf Hythe Civic Society’s publication, “The Last Days of Hythe Harbour.”)

On Sunday – yes, I doggedly represent Hythe every day of the week – it was Folkestone’s Civic Service and the extraordinary ritual of the Blessing of the Fisheries, complete with incense, holy water, processions, a Bishop, and a Brass Band. The people of Folkestone were extremely welcoming – and I must mention that Terry, our excellent Town Sergeant, got me there and back safely and made sure I was appropriately robed and chained for all the pomp and ceremony.

And, finally, this evening, Hythe Town Council held an Extraordinary Meeting at the Town Hall to approve the audited accounts, and amongst other items, to consider our response to the proposed development at Otterpool Park.

There was a very well-informed & lively debate, and the Working Group’s response was eventually adopted by a majority vote, objecting to the development as it is proposed on several grounds, including Water Supply, Waste & Waste Water, Affordable Housing, Ecology and Loss of Agricultural Land, Transport, Energy Sustainability, Pollution, and Health Provision. (Please see the full text of Hythe Town Council’s Response under the News Tab on this website.)

I sincerely hope the District Council will now consider all the matters raised and radically re-think its proposals.