Tesco / ASDA !!!

[HWL1973]

Dave you disappoint me!  Here's me trying to accommodate your request to be more transparent by introducing you to MIA members who are far more knowledgeable than myself on a range of issues you raise on this thread and you decline that invitation.  what is your reason for  refusing I am seriously interested to know !

Here's that word of mouth culture again

Oh no it isn't because it's your lucky day ! You may have missed it but you had an invite too, along with the other moderator of the YES face book page Tina    So come on HWL accept the invitation and make my day.   I find it strange that you three have to have an invitation because when the stall is in MARPLE we have lots of people coming intelligence gathering .  Why have you 3 never made yourselves known

It's hardly as if Tina and I have refused ever to attend any of your events is it?

I'll tell you what, I'll spend some time on your stall if I get satisfactory answers to my questions on the constitution of MIA and key roles (with names and contact details) within it, questions which are still being ignored. Quid pro quo. How does that sound?

[Miss Marple]

We have come a long way since then   I really and seriously would like you to come and debate the issue with MIA members who will have the information you need ! Who. Knows you may just find out that things are not as they appear!

[Dave]

Dave you disappoint me!  Here's me trying to accommodate your request to be more transparent

When did I ask you to be more transparent?

what is your reason for  refusing I am seriously interested to know !

Because I don't need to hear any more misinformation, such as: 

I couldn't help overhearing what one MIA person wielding a petition was saying about the college's plans - including all that stuff about the plan to use the proceeds of Hibbert Lane to develop Buxton Lane being a 'smokescreen' for the real plan, which was to move out of Marple altogether and build a new college on Jacksons Lane. And of course, people appeared to believe every word of it.........   

[Miss Marple]

Dave you disappoint me!  Here's me trying to accommodate your request to be more transparent by introducing you to MIA members who are far more knowledgeable than myself on a range of issues you raise on this thread and you decline that invitation.  what is your reason for  refusing I am seriously interested to know !

Here's that word of mouth culture again

Oh no it isn't because it's your lucky day ! You may have missed it but you had an invite too, along with the other moderator of the YES face book page Tina    So come on HWL accept the invitation and make my day.   I find it strange that you three have to have an invitation because when the stall is in MARPLE we have lots of people coming intelligence gathering .  Why have you 3 never made yourselves known

[HWL1973]

Dave you disappoint me!  Here's me trying to accommodate your request to be more transparent by introducing you to MIA members who are far more knowledgeable than myself on a range of issues you raise on this thread and you decline that invitation.  what is your reason for  refusing I am seriously interested to know !

Here's that word of mouth culture again

[Miss Marple]

Dave you disappoint me!  Here's me trying to accommodate your request to be more transparent by introducing you to MIA members who are far more knowledgeable than myself on a range of issues you raise on this thread and you decline that invitation.  what is your reason for  refusing I am seriously interested to know !

[sooty2]

Hopefully my grandchildren will follow the same education route as their father.College,then university,Of course I would like the best facilities for them if they were to attend CAMSFC but not at the expense of Marple as we know it.There are as you know other colleges.As for my accusation,I stand by it!They are looking after their own interests with no conscience to a lot of the Marple residents feelings.The governors and a lot of the students leave Marple to go to their homes totally unaffected.

[Harry]

Do people who sign the petition have to be residents of Marple?

No, and we have it on good authority (no less than Miss M herself, as far as I can recall) that many signatories come from  outside the area. 

Thats what I thought.

In this case, could someone explain to me how the 7578 signatories can represent 39.28% of the adult population of Marple, as claimed in MIA's Petition & Survey Interim Results. As there is no breakdown of the figures, this is rather misleading.

It seems the equivalent of ASDA surveying their 143,000 employees and then claiming that the results represent that 621% of the population of Marple want a new supermarket.

[Dave]

They did not have to sell to a supermarket.

As far as I know, if they don't sell to a supermarket, the college can only expect to receive about £4 million for the site, and this will mean that the entire scheme will collapse. I see from another post that you have grandchildren, Mrs O.  Are you interested in ensuring that they have decent facilities for their sixth-form education?  Or don't you care?  

(Social Conscience)?Nah! like I said before selfish!

I'm puzzled by this repeated accusation of selfishness.  There is nothing remotely selfish about serving as a school or college governor.   People who serve as college governors do so out of public-spiritedness.  They give up their time to deal with mountains of tedious bureaucracy, attend long boring meetings, and they don't get paid a penny for it.  Sometimes I wonder why any of them do it.  And then someone comes on this forum and accuses them of being selfish, of all things.  

Section of post removed.

[Miss Marple]

Removed - could have been done by PM.

[Dave]

Do people who sign the petition have to be residents of Marple?

No, and we have it on good authority (no less than Miss M herself, as far as I can recall) that many signatories come from  outside the area. 

[Howard]

That was a public meeting and I suspect was mainly attended by people living in the immediate vicinity of the two sites.People who are about to have their enviroment changed against their wishes are unlikely to show a man who obviosly cares not a jot, any respect.The people at the meeting are only trying to protect what they have worked hard for,their property,it's value and the area they chose to live in.Would you show respect to someone who is happy to encourage what yours to be taken away?honest answer please?

I would show respect for anyone's views, otherwise where would that leave us?

Note: This post has been reinstated 8/1/12. Admin.

[Belly]

Off-topic post removed.

[HWL1973]

Lisa of course MIA have made mistakes we are a group of local residents who feel passionate that a supermarket on Hibbert Lane would be a mistake.  We hopefully learn by our mistakes but what must be remembered is that we have MIA members who are sympathetic to the cause and if details were released it could be detrimental to their employment ie a conflict of interests.  The action line is always there for people to contact, the stall is a regular feature in the centre, and this web site serves as a point of contact.
I am no stranger to court  and have represented people in employment law cases where cases of conflict of interests has been a big issue with at times dire consequences for an individual, so MIA respect peoples right to remain in the 'back office'
I am sure when/ if the plans are submitted  MIA will become more transparent and will be looking to increase our numbers.  I did mention at the start of this topic that MIA was formed around my kitchen table and from there we have gained a band of people from all walks of life who bring skills, knowledge and a greater understanding of planning law.
I have also mentioned that MIA has different groups of individuals who work in teams within their own area of particular practice, there are members that even I have not met.
We are not a secret organisation and I fully understand how this may appear but sadly I am also fully aware of how so people can use this to in someway try to bring MIA into disrepute.  It's going to be a long haul and like I have said before there are really only 2 or 3 members of MIA who post on here.  I have continued to post to keep people informed of developments but I am becoming increasingly disappointed in some peoples contributions striving to give MIA a negative press instead of getting of their backside and starting an opposition group if they feel that there is a need.
Please do not continue to frighten MIA members from posting as this is at this moment the only source of information that you will receive that will help everyone keep up to speed with developments .  Please be respectful of our cause. MM

Miss Marple, I think you are seriously underestimating this transparency issue. It's not intended to bring you into disrepute in any way or to scare your members from coming on here.

Rather, it is absolutely intended as constructive criticism. As an organisation that fundraises, you are flirting with illegality if you don't take this on board. Look here for a good starting place for this http://www.institute-of-fundraising.org.uk/Codes_and_regulation/Codes/codes-directory

Many of your members may well have conflicts of interest, but if all of them do then surely there'd be serious concerns about what you're doing. A more paranoid person than I could suspect that you have senior co-op executives working with you, as an example. Transparency would allay these fears. A donor at very, very  least should expect a written audit trail in communications and evidence of where the money was being spent.

[sooty2]

Was that a yes or a no Dave ?

Do MIA also speak on behalf of those of us who have yet to state a preference - I.e potentially the silent majority. Afterall with no actual plans to consider, I'm finding it hard to be too pro or anti anything.

In fact the only thing I find worth reacting against at the moment is the rhetoric and grandstanding that seems prevalent on here and at meetings.

What meetings have you seen grandstanding?as a matter of interest.

The video of the meeting at the school shows the person from the 'yes' campaign getting strictly limited 'respect' from some of the attendees.

Furthermore, many of the statements made by some of the contributants duirng the meeting add up to little more than scaremongering nonsense, where 'opinion' was presented as 'fact', with no real interest in debate.

I found that meeting amusing in many respects. It went on for ages, when actually there was little or nothing of any substance to discuss, other than for the Council to state their policy position - which they did at the start. After that, it was mainly hot air, with people trying to crystal ball gaze as to what the effects of an unknown scale retail of development might be.

Don't get me wrong, I think local discussion and review of any proposals is a critical element - but the amount of vitriol and ill-informed nonsense that is doing the rounds of the community at present is not helpful or constructive. Personally if presented with 'facts' (not saying that MIA are doing this, but these are regular rumours that I hear) that a supermarket the size of Portwood was to be built at Marple, including the knocking down of the swimming baths and potentially resulting in the loss of the 6th form college in the town - I would be against it too and would gladly sign a petition / make my views clear. But I've a pretty good idea that the final scheme won't be like that at all. That said, I'm not sure what it actually will include and so I'm waiting to see the details ('facts' if you will) before making up my mind as to whether I think there is any merit in the proposals.

That was a public meeting and I suspect was mainly attended by people living in the immediate vicinity of the two sites.People who are about to have their enviroment changed against their wishes are unlikely to show a man who obviosly cares not a jot, any respect.The people at the meeting are only trying to protect what they have worked hard for,their property,it's value and the area they chose to live in.Would you show respect to someone who is happy to encourage what yours to be taken away?honest answer please?