by Rebecca Hannant
The first public meeting has taken place in Withernsea as part of South East Holderness councillor Jon Dimberline’s Town Smart initiative, which aims to see the community come together to help tidy up the area.
At a meeting at the Meridian Centre on Wednesday, August 21, Cllr Dimberline outlined his plans.
Town Smart aims to cover Withernsea, Patrington, Easington, Keyingham, Ottringham, Rimswell, Roos and anywhere in between, targeting gardens, street signs and derelict shops. Meanwhile, a Chamber of Trade could also be set up to help businesses around the area.
Cllr Dimberline said: “I was humbled and delighted that so many people turned up, and I think it was a good turnout. There were quite a few people who messaged me and said they couldn’t make it. So, the numbers were good.
“I think if I can make this work and it gets traction, then we can do a lot of things to make the town cleaner, fresher, tidier, and lift it out of the gutter. I’ve got my mind on what I want Town Smart to be, and my focus is on generating the model and making it work.
“I’m not interested in getting anything from it other than it making a difference. All I’m doing is creating an idea and a mechanism.”
Following the meeting, Jon is now looking at finding volunteers to join a committee that plans to meet up every few months to discover a way forward.
Jon added: “At the same time we’re looking at trying to get some funding for insurance. We had the Humber and Wolds Rural Partnership come from Barton – they said our idea was great and offered us some money towards insurance.
“I will put together some training packages because that’s what I like doing. Once we have all those bits together, we can get the teams and volunteers ready, and then have another meeting about what we want to do in the town.”
Jon has also been out on Withernsea’s streets promoting his initiative with the help of local people. His initial work saw him clean up the former Betfred shop in Queen Street, and he says he plans to closely monitor the premises.
Jon has also had help from a group of young Lifestylers and trustees of the Jack Gledhill Centre to tidy its garden and clear up mess.
To make his initiative a success, Jon says he is looking for interested volunteers such as retired or semi-retired tradesmen, as well as young people who will be able to learn new skills.
For more information, visit the Town Smart Facebook page.
