Tuesday 29 January 2013

Granville House Ramsgate, New Planning Application.



I guess if I was responsible for this one I would want to build in the rest of the Granville in the same style as the existing parts, using similar materials.

I also guess the choice is pretty stark, either the thing I don’t like very much or a carry on with the mess and the hole in ground.

Anyway below are some pictures from the planning application, the documents on the uk planning site seem particularly reluctant to open, big pdf files, if your computer is up to here are the references and instructions.  

28 Jan 2013     L/TH/12/1019  LAND ADJACENT GRANVILLE HOUSE, VICTORIA PARADE, RAMSGATE, CT11 8DF       current
28 Jan 2013     F/TH/12/1018  LAND ADJACENT GRANVILLE HOUSE, VICTORIA PARADE, RAMSGATE, CT11 8DF       current

The TDC planning website is one of the most bizarre websites I have ever come across in as much as the web addresses of the pages on it change after a few hours so you can’t publish links to them. If you want to look at any of the applications you need to go to the site and enter the application reference in the search box, this link takes you to the site http://www.ukplanning.com/thanet










 Next some related pictures, what was there before and so on.




 credit David Carr photography





Here is the link to the book I publish about The Granville http://michaelsbookshop.com/catalogue/the_granville_hotel___the_story_of_the_granville_hotel_ramsgate_1869_2012.htm

I am fairly certain that Planning permission was granted for the demolition of the former theatre and circus hall on 7/4/1982 and it has remained derelict ever since.   This plot of land was sold in 2006 by Oakleigh Developments to Granville Court Limited for £1,700,000  

I will endeavour to write some more about this, perhaps a cup of tea first.
 

Monday 28 January 2013

1822 Map of Ramsgate, Map Monday



I have just printed a few of my next large format map, by large format I mean it is about three feet by about two foot six inches.

As it is a black and white one it doesn’t use as much ink as the 1849 one so I am pricing it at £6.99.



The only map of Ramsgate I know of that predates this one is the one found in Lewis’s history and dates from about 1723.

So while the 1723 one is really Ramsgate’s Mappa Mundi the 1822 one is really the first map of Ramsgate produced from a proper survey.

Here in my bookshop people often ask me for much earlier maps, the latest being have I got a Saxon map of Thanet i.e one dating from the fourth or fifth century.  



The first maps date from about 1300 this is one of the world  


This detail shows the UK bit, I don’t have much trouble with the Latin Londinium for London and Durovernum Cantiacorum or Cantuaria for Canterbury I have marked this one up as things could be although you can make your own minds up.

As you see it is the problem often associated with the early confused period of history, you can see roughly where the people who were alive at the time were coming from, but obviously the past is a foreign country.   



All of the maps should expand when clicked on and possibly the expanded version will expand if you click on it again.   

Sunday 27 January 2013

Sunday ramble, pen and ink sketch, some photos of today’s walk in Ramsgate, nothing much really.


Once again the local blogs are being showered with spam, and a lot of it is getting through the spam filter, Don has gone for comment moderation, see http://promotethanet.blogspot.co.uk/2013/01/comment-moderation-again.html Simon has already got it set but the problem has not passed unnoticed by him see http://birchington.blogspot.co.uk/2013/01/shark-attack.html

With this blog and the press release blog http://thanetpress.blogspot.co.uk/ I have had to delete over 100 spam comments in the last 24 hours. Apologies if I have deleted any legitimate comments, also please note if you reply to a spam comment your reply will also go when the spam is deleted.

I had a bit of a fight with a bath tap last week and pulled something in my knee, meaning that I have had some difficulty walking, today was the first day that I felt I could mange a reasonable walk, albeit slowly.

I would guess that today has been about the warmest and sunniest this year and I think there was a bit in the middle of the day when it would have been just about warm enough to sketch out of doors. I can’t sketch with gloves on or with very cold hands.

Anyway I decided we would stop somewhere with for a drink with a view where I could guarantee it would be warm enough, this is much more difficult than you would think, in the end we finished up at the café on the end of the pier http://royalharbourbrasserie.co.uk so here is the sketch.
As you see I am trying to abide by my new year resolution by putting the date and location on sketches.


Finding somewhere with a view to sketch Ramsgate from is much more difficult than you would think and with my wife and children in tow which means buying four drinks can be expensive.  

Any thoughts on this problem would be appreciated.  

The photos next, these are automatically uploaded to the internet by my mobile phone so I don’t know what order they will come up in, I will add some more text when I see how they appear.


The photos seem to have come up in reverse order, as you see Blockbuster in Ramsgate is closing, I wonder what if anything will take this very large shop premises, particularly concerning for me as it is between my shop and the centre of the town.

Retail is becoming very difficult and demanding at the moment, where I am trading most of the shop properties have either been converted to undesirable residential accommodation or are just empty.   



The restaurant at the end of Ramsgate pier was very busy, about an hours wait for a table when we got there, fortunately they also have sofas with coffee tables if you only want a drink or a snack, so we didn’t have to wait. Pot of tea for three and a hot chocolate just over £7, the quality and service was excellent, the seat comfortable, the view about as good as you are going to get in Thanet.     



On to the new shelters, it is now possible to sit in a shelter that feels and smells clean, I guess the key to this will be keeping them that way.

On to The Sailor’s Church, a free visitor attraction and well worth a 






Apologies here, still learning to use the camera in phone, boys with toys and all that. 

The roadworks to provide services to the harbour arches looks to be nearly finished, I gather there is a waiting list to rent a Harbour arch, even though the rent has gone up to about £200 per week and the activity there has to be maritime related.