Cootwatcher

Linksty, what is the date of the residential planning permit that you found? And what words did you use in your search of the council site? I have looked at recent applications and not seen one. Thanks. Cootwatcher.

Alan de Enfield. Thank you for the link. Very useful.

I spoke today to the journalist who wrote the Cambridge News article. His name is Jordan Day if anyone else wants talk to him. He seemed genuinely unaware of the fact that only non-residential boats be will accepted when the Marina re-opens. He didn't promise to do anything or to do it soon, but maybe he will set the record straight.

Reply to Black Ibis. The original letter was quite plain, no liveaboards were to be allowed back. If they have had a change of heart recently they have not informed us at the marina. I think it is a convenient omission to slant the story. These people are not fools and they don't want to admit to what they are doing in the local press.

I was trying to point up the fact that boats and caravans are both basically moveable structures. How you slice it up after that is irrelevant. Why should those who live on moveable structures on water have less protection than those on land?

"The whole point of a boat is they move." (sic) What's the point of a caravan then?

I am going to have to be more careful what I type. This is is the first time I have posted anywhere and it's gone to my head. Re the contract, we did sign an agreement but to me it did not seem like a "proper' contract such as you have even hiring out, say, a pressure washer. The cutting threat, I have to admit, is hearsay and unique and uniquely extreme, as far as I know.

Hello Roger. Yes it was my wind generator. I think the battle here is lost, if there was ever any other realistic outcome. There was some appetite for a fight a few days ago but that has gone now, except in the case of one or two individuals who've not much to lose. Everybody seems convinced that Shropshires solicitors will make mincemeat of anyone who tries to resist. None of us have legal training and the fear is a that a legal challenge would be very expensive especially if it failed. Anyone staying at their mooring beyond 19th Jan is threatened with being sued for damages! and costs. For some this could not have come at a worse time and they are going to have to sell their boats, taking a heavy financial hit. A few will go continuous cruising: usually those who have done it before. A few of us are trying to get this the maximum media exposure we can. At one time we thought sufficient public embarrassment might change the outcome but I think they are immune to it. Now we are trying to make sure this doesn't go unnoticed, at least locally, but even the appetite for this seems to be waning a bit Thank you for starting this off, Roger. Anything anyone else can do to get this onto twitter, facebook, utube , other forums, television, what have you, would be much appreciated.

Not a reply to anyone in particular. I have lived at the Fish and Duck for two years ( having moved from Upware. Hello Roger. ) and I find Roger's posts pretty accurate. Here's my view. We were informed that a surcharge was coming but I did not hear of anyone questioning it until after an email from the F&D management informed us it was being withdrawn. It then emerged, over the grapevine, that someone had suggested that it was illegal and that the withdrawal was consequent upon this. This was not the reason for the withdrawal laid out in the email. I have talked, in the last couple of hours, to people who said they were quite prepared to pay the surcharge but didn't get the chance. One even went to the office to pay only to find it was no longer required. I was in favour of the rebuilding of the pub and improvement to the walkways etc that were mooted when the new regime took over and I think some others were too. Subsequently it emerged that the 'improvements' included a policy of mowing and grubbing up trees and bushes that just stopped short of a scorched earth policy. Offers of walkways were made, altered and withdrawn. Additional charges were introduced eg 25p per week to place a postcard on the notice board. Only a small number of specified items were allowed on the banks along the river outside the Marine. So items either had to go on your boat or into a storage container, at a cost. Dinghies etc over 8ft (i think) were not to be kept in the water or on the bank. Owners were offered a secure storage facility, at a cost. Rumours of changes came and went. F&D management's preferred means of communication was by email. Quite a few liveaboarders (is there such a word?) don't have email and those that do don't necessarily look at it more than once a week so quite often people were unaware what was going on. People were expelled from the Marina on the whim of the management - no appeals procedure. There is nothing that I would call a written contract. I have heard recently that Davina endured quite a bit of 'verbal' from some people complaining about things, including an emailed threat to cut her face. Nobody would condone this. My own experience was that if she had time she would listen politely to what you said, explain why you were wrong and then move briskly on to more important things. Dismiss! The only time I 'had words' with her was last Saturday when she and James came to Marina. I asked for more time to allow people who had problems moving their lives at short notice and was given the explanation that they were doing things the way they were (A) because it would cost too much to it any other way and ( their lawyers said they had to (they like talking about their lawyers, just in case you forget they have them.) Among the few people I have talked to most have been thinking about moving for a while because the 'vibes' are so bad. There has been a nasty atmosphere for some time. Wondering what load of shite was going to dropped on us next. Now we know. I really like it on the river and I am going to wait till the 9th January. Partly because I want to hang onto my phone line for a bit, and partly because anything could happen in the next three months. Perhaps I'll get frozen in.