Mark Reckless Welcomes Eastgate House Funding

Mark Reckless has welcomed the news that Eastgate House in the heart of Rochester has been awarded a first round pass with development funding of £80,000 from the Heritage Lottery Fund.

The HLF grant will go towards a three year scheme which will see the Grade I listed Eastgate House repaired, conserved and transformed into a mixed use exhibition and community facility that is accessible for all including the mobility impaired.

The Eastgate House project is now in the running for a further second-round grant of £919,000 and Mark Reckless is fully supporting the bid to see the historic Elizabethan town house, built in the 1590s, restored to its former glory.

Speaking about the award, Mark Reckless said:

"I am delighted that the bid for Heritage Lottery Fund (hlf) funding has passed the first stage. The award of £80,000 will go a long way to ensuring that Eastgate House will remain a focal point at the heart of our community here in Rochester.

I welcome the HLF's recognition of the proposals put forward for Eastgate House, particularly in light of the tough competition it faced from other schemes nationally. The first round pass for funding shows that the HLF consider this project has real potential to deliver high-quality benefits and value for money.

Medway Council now has an excellent opportunity to develop the Eastgate House project to a second round application of £919,000. I hope everyone in our community will join me in backing the bid so that future generations can continue to enjoy this wonderful example of Elizabethan design made famous by Charles Dickens."

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For more information on Eastgate House, please visit the Visit Medway website - Click Here

Mark Reckless Welcomes Eastgate House Funding

Addressing Residents' Concerns Over Watts Meadow

Cllr Mark Reckless MP spent an hour on Monday visiting Watts Meadow with local campaigner Adrian Osborne of Rochester Avenue to inspect its current state.

Visiting the site with Rochester West ward colleague Cllr Ted Baker, Mark was given a demonstration of just how difficult it is to navigate the site if you are blind or disabled given the current condition of the walkways through the meadow. Wearing a blackout mask provided by Adrian to bring home the difficulties which the blind faces, Mark found the going really hard.

Mark said:

"The paths and walkways around Watts Meadow can be difficult to navigate for those of us who have full vision and no disabilities. Now, thanks to Adrian's intervention, I am only too well aware of just how hard it must be to enjoy this beautiful green space if you have problems with your vision or a disability of any kind.

It is clear that some work needs to be done to ensure that everyone can enjoy Watts Meadow, including getting particular pathways levelled. In some areas foliage, nettles and brambles also need cutting back, although I understand the case for leaving some of other areas entirely to nature.

Residents are currently being denied access to the meadow from Priestfields due to house-building work in that area. I have emphasised to Robin Cooper, the responsible Director at Medway Council, how upset residents are that this closure was not pre-notified. I believe that, subject to financial constraints, there is also a need for Watts Meadow to be brought up to a suitable condition more generally so that local people can fully enjoy this vital green lung in the heart of Rochester.

I will be working with Medway Council and residents such as Adrian Osborne to make sure Watts Meadow gets the care and attention it so rightly deserves. I will also be trying to understand why the Friends of Watts Meadow group have not had the success working with the Council which we have achieved with the Borstal Open Spaces Society."

Mark is also interested to hear from anyone who can shed some light on when the concrete road that leads up the allotments on Watts Meadow was built and why it remains, to this day, unfinished. One theory put forward by Adrian Osborne is that it was dug up by builders when the houses in Ethelbert Road were constructed. If anyone can help with this mystery, they can email contact@markreckless.com

Addressing Residents' Concerns Over Watts Meadow