Seventeen Windows

[Miss Marple]

I would personally pay for the pavements to be widened if !!!! it thought for one min it would stop the Mon-Fri school run with all the children being driven to school by parents or the like. This is getting boring now but I live at the top of Dan Bank and I can count on one hand the amount of children walking up the hill to school.  I would need a flaming abacus to work out the amount of cars that speed up the hill dropping off and collecting students all hours of the day and evening. NB  If we put the children that walk to and from school in a taxi there and back for the duration of there schooling it would not come anywhere near the cost of the work undertaken at Seventeen Windows.  LETS KEEP IT REAL !!!!!

[Neil Smith]

Well Marple has about 24,000 residents, and about six of them have been talking about it on this thread!  The remaining 23,994 of us are holding our tongues and waiting until the work is finished before we make our minds up.   However, I must say I have been quite shocked by some of the things which have been written here about the pavement widening.  The idea that safeguarding the lives of kids walking to Marple Hall School is a 'waste of money' appalls me.  

Well said. Could not have put it better my self.

_{Just moved quote into box! - Admin}

[orangewhip]

Best topic ever. 

He obviously does not read the Marple forum to see what the residents of Marple are talking about.

The remaining 23,994 of us are holding our tongues and waiting until the work is finished before we make our minds up.

I couldn't agree more with this man.

[Dave]

He obviously does not read the Marple forum to see what the residents of Marple are talking about.

Well Marple has about 24,000 residents, and about six of them have been talking about it on this thread!  The remaining 23,994 of us are holding our tongues and waiting until the work is finished before we make our minds up.   However, I must say I have been quite shocked by some of the things which have been written here about the pavement widening.  The idea that safeguarding the lives of kids walking to Marple Hall School is a 'waste of money' appalls me.   

[Miss Marple]

I did say on this forum that I would write and ask about the cost.  I was advised to do this by the head of the Highways dept when I phoned to get a verbal breakdown.  I decided to wait until the work had finished before requesting the final costings because new things keep getting added.  I have had a rethink now and i will also email tomorrow for the costing as the whole thing has gone well beyond the cost of a few foot of land.  The whole thing is an utter eyesore and a waste of money, surely it has not passed planning regulations.

[tonyjones]

To get back to the issue of Seventeen Windows. I emailed one of our local councilors with the following;
.....
As you may be aware there is a long running discussion about the work being done at Seventeen Windows.
 
One of the frequent comments is about the cost, but no one has said what the actual cost is.

Are you, as a local councilor and under the freedom of information, able to find out how much the council is paying to have this work done and put an end to a lot of speculation.
.....
   
His reply was;

.....
Thank you for your message.  Other than from yourself, I have received no communications either by letter, e-mail or orally from anyone about the work at Seventeen Windows.  Neither I am aware of any discussions about it - long running or otherwise.  I wonder if you are able to say who it is that is frequently commenting or speculating about the cost?
 
However, I have referred your message with its question in the last sentence to officers of the Council.
.....

He obviously does not read the Marple forum to see what the residents of Marple are talking about.
It will be interesting to see what answers, if any, come back, and when.

[sooty2]

Oh please dont give them anymore ideas Victor! There  may be some unspent cash available. I can just see a mural on the white wall of the house incorporating the words " JUNGLE GYMS "I have accused people on this forum of making stupid comments, now im at it But nothing would surprise me now

[Victor M]

Sooty,
Don't worry about buying any plants I'm sure the council have got a landscaped gardener on standby, probably at our expense. Or it could possibly going to be used as an Adventure playground and that's why the pavement needed to be widened in the first place.

[sooty2]

Hey Miss marple didnt you know that sarcasm is the lowest form of wit!  Oh im sure you do. Im not a stranger to it myself. according to some i am rude,oppioniated and by my own admission sarcastic but hey I didnt ruin the gateway to marple. I will speak to the stockport Express newspaper, see if they want to take some pictures for their historical archives. Before and after would be good. Im sure people from outside the area would be sickened by such a ruinisation of a treasured landmark.Where else would this happen? Its beyond comprehension. I think most people must be wearing a bag on their head like "Gone" an ex member of this forum. Shall some of us club together and buy some nice Impatiens ( Busy lizzies ) to enhance and add to its tackiness?Oops ! too much sarcasm I cant help myself.Oh and if you read this Miss marple I hope you fall off your horse too! Its probably many hands higher than mine.

[Miss Marple]

   I thought i was on a forum with intelligent like minded people but it seems I am not.  We have all ranted and raved about Seventeen Windows but I think its looking great.  Having that many bill boards to display whats happening in the community, is a God send to Marple.  No more pinning notices to trees to advertise car boot sales, carnivals , french markets or the like.   No !!  we have Bill Boards, its like living in LA !  We just need to strike a deal with the garden centre for lights and WOW !!  So Sooty 2 I hope you fall off your horse (I would let everyone know if you did via the huge bill boards) and let my council spend my hard earned money on advertising space   WELL DONE TO OUR FORWARD THINKING PLANNING DEPTMENT    Hey we could even have the first drive in movies in Marple we could use the fences as screens ?  The Regent had better watch its back !   Just a thought ! could this be the eighth wonder !!!! 

[moonforest]

Initially I thought what a mess it was looking but decided to wait and see how things develop.

Sorry peeps, but I'm with sooty2 on this one!

[Lisa Oldham]

actually really hate to say it but...agree with u!! looks naff cant imagine anything helping it "blend in" now...

[sooty2]

Well what can I say apart from the building Seventeen Windows, pales into insignificance in the shadow of that monstrosity of a landscaped garden. I said in an earlier posting that it looked like a fort. In my "opinionated" opinion it looks like a fort with a stockade on top . It is fast becoming an eyesore and tourist attraction. Who is responsible for this? Him or Her should untether their horse, ride off and rebuild it in a wild west theme park. It is not befitting an old farmhouse. the whole vista is ruined I cant believe this has happened I have not had a great amount of support on this forum, especially from people telling me that the owners can spend their money as they wish. Im sure people will be shocked when they see it now or maybe not from past responses. Ill be watching out for them there injuns with their poison arrows, Yee Hah !

[Cyberman]

Looking at the O.S. map, this is where the Etherow - Goyt Valley Way crosses Otterspool Rd. This will be used by quite a few walkers / cyclists going from Marple to Lower Bredbury - even more when the Connect2 Goyt Bridge is built there. So I approve. 

[Rudolph Hucker]

Carrying on the discussion about how our money is being spent, I came back from holiday to find out what the recent roadworks at Otterspool were about. Putting in a pedestrian crossing for 50 yards of pavement that I have never seen anyone use (except on YF Show Days but did anyone tell the council the ground has changed?). Aaaaargh! Not such a major engineering project as seventeen windows by why?

Is the public sector so terrified of offering a below inflation increase in council tax (or heaven forbid a year on year reduction) that it has to dream up ever more elaborate and questionable ways to overspend? No that can't be it - or the roads would be fixed before these 2 "projects". I think there must be a prize, awarded to the group or individual who can come up with the most pointless expenditure to pass public procurement checks and balances....

Roll on 2010 for a formal boundary line to be hand painted on the ground around the area in indelible corporate colours (only for the colours to change in 2011, or the boundary to change post election...)