The Isle of Wight Council’s Director of Regeneration, Chris Ashman, will be in the hot seat at a public meeting of the Ryde Society next Monday.
With the town being named the UK’s ‘property hotspot’, members will argue that it is all the more important to preserve its facilities and historic heritage, which the Society believes are under threat from property speculators.
The meeting, expected to be attended by local councilors, will be held at the Royal Esplanade Hotel on Monday 14th January at 19:00.
The society’s chairwoman Stella Davis has said that it is good news that more people are coming to live or buying property in Ryde:
“But we have to protect our Victorian and Georgian architectural heritage. Speculators are being allowed to buy property on the cheap and let them rot. Look what happened to the Ryde Town Hall which is lying empty and decaying.”
Ms Davis also hoped that the Ryde ice rink, closed for more than 2 years now, would soon re-open following planned legal action by the Isle of Wight Council.
Jonathan Dent, a leading figure with the Society, has argued that Ryde has been neglected by the IWC for too long:
“It’s no surprise that Ryde has become a property hot-spot according to the latest survey. People care about the town but the IWC does not appear to do so.”
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Plans to sell off Ryde Harbour, Mr Dent believes, are fraught with difficulties.
“If we don’t watch out the harbour will also end up closed and derelict.
“The Isle of Wight Council has offered to sell the harbour to Ryde Town Council for £1. I understand the harbour is already making a profit and Ryde should take it over.”
