llanblogger takes a short spring break

llanblogger is taking a short break.

We'll be back on Friday, April 11, with all the latest news and views from our town and the surrounding area.

See you soon!

Lottery cash "could help save Plas Madoc"

The campaign to re-open the Plas Madoc Leisure Centre could benefit from a People's Millions grant from the National Lottery.

The People's Millions 2014, a partnership between Big Lottery Fund and ITV, is now open. Up to £50,000 is available for local community-based projects.

Plaid Cymru Clwyd South spokesperson Mabon ap Gwynfor said the new Plas Madoc Community Trust should make an early bid to secure the maximum possible amount.

 

"The People's Millions will make £50,000 available for voluntary or community organisations. The volunteers that are part of the new Trust set-up to re-open Plas Madoc are working extremely hard to make a robust business case.

 

"Everybody who's ever been in business knows that the first three years are very difficult. Therefore a cash injection of £50,000 would be of great assistance to get the new community enterprise on its feet," said Mabon ap Gwynfor.

 

Mr ap Gwynfor, who has previously successfully applied for grants worth hundreds of thousands of pounds for other community enterprises, added: "The deadline for applications is noon on 16 May, which is only six weeks away. That's not much time when you consider that the new trust has to get a legal structure up and running first.

 

“They would also need a lease agreement or written permission from the landowners for five years. that's the very least the community should get from Wrexham Council. I would hope that the council will give priority to help the Trust complete the application form and give 100% support to the application."

 

Should the application be accepted, the shortlisted entries would go head to head on ITV Wales news at the end of November.

A counterblast on possible e-cigs ban

Llangollen resident Martin Crumpton has sent the following message to Assembly Members in the wake of the announcement that Wales may be the first area of Britain to ban the use of e-cigarettes in enclosed public places:

Day rooms in hospital used to be where patients who smoked would congregate. They were closed because, for among other reason, they needed regular redecoration because they became heavily stained and smelly. As a consequence, they were closed and patients had to go outside to smoke, regardless of the weather. Anyone who’s had to cease immediately and for prolonged periods (Cold Turkey) knows how hard this is, and smoke cessation programmes don’t recommend this. It’s even harder on those with poor or little mobility. Prisoners and train drivers are exempted from the tobacco ban, for obvious reasons.

 

Please be assured the e-cigarette is by far the easiest, most effective way of delivering nicotine. Patches, gum and sprays are nowhere near it in helping smokers avoid the gasses produced by tobacco.

 

I’d ask you to evaluate e-cigarettes’ capacity for staining and leaving bad smells in enclosed spaces such as day rooms. Most of all, consider the needs of patients addicted to nicotine.

 

Whichever way the proposed Bill goes, please don’t lose sight of the human side of its consequences. You can nudge, encourage, educate as much as you like, but remember this: You’re not in loco parentis. Without responsibility for our own actions, our communities will regress.

 

Martin Crumpton 

Cittaslow still looking for committee members

Cittaslow Llangollen held its first AGM following the Town Meeting on March 27th.

Everyone living or working in Llangollen is automatically a member of Cittaslow Llangollen and entitled to take part in the AGM and election of board members.

Only five volunteers came forweard for the 10 places available, so they were all elected by default.

This means that if you are interested but were unable to get to the meeting in March, it's not too late to join the committee.

For more details, contact the town clerk Gareth Thomas via llangollentc@btconnect.com, or by calling 01978 861345, or calling in to see Gareth at the town hall.

Traffic disruption set to last for another week

Power cable is being laid for new Sainsbury's store ...  

* The roadworks along Regent Street.

THE major disruption that drivers have been facing for the past week or so on the main A5 through Llangollen is partly to provide a power supply for the town’s new Sainsbury’s supermarket, according to contractors.

And apologising for the disruption so far, they warn it’s going to last for another week.

A long stretch of Queen Street, Regent Street and Berwyn Street has been affected by the roadworks since late last week.

As the carriageway of the trunk route has been reduced to a single carriageway controlled by lights at either end of the works, this has led to long traffic tailbacks, especially at peak times and over the weekend.   

Last weekend it was particularly bad, with traffic heading into town from the direction of Wrexham left queuing back towards the golf club.  

In a statement, Manchester-based contractors O'Connor Utilities (OCU) says: “The works that OCU have undertaken on behalf of ScottishPower are to supply a HV (high voltage) connection to the site for the new proposed Sainsbury’s store just of Berwyn Street.

“This will however bolster the electrical networks for all businesses and residents in the Llangollen area.

“The works are to span from the existing sub-station on Brook Street to the site.

“SPEN (ScottishPower Energy Networks) have selected a cable route to travel down Brook Street then to turn left on to Queens Street (pictured right), Regent Street, it will then proceed up the A5 and fork into Hall Street. This will then go the full length of Hall Street and then come out on to Berwyn Street and at this moment travel approximately 190 meters along the A5.

“This has been the route SPEN have selected to try and cause the minimum disruption to local residents and visitors.

“Unfortunately it has been necessary to close roads on sections of this route to maintain safety for members of the public and our workforce.

“On our current working program we estimate all works on this phase to be completed by Friday, April 11.

“OCU would like to apologise on behalf of ourselves and ScottishPower for any disruption these works have caused to the residents of Llangollen and we would ask for your patience and understanding to help us complete these works as safely and as quickly as possible.”
 

Stalwart Keith helps weave annual Eisteddfod magic

 

* Keith Potts at his desk in the Eisteddfod office.

 

THE man who has been helping out at Llangollen International Musical Eisteddfod since he was a boy of four and now fills one of its most important voluntary roles says he’s planning to go on helping to weave the annual “magic” of the festival for as long as he can.

 

Keith Potts, now 46, started out as a messenger on the eisteddfod field in the early 1970s when he was a little lad and, with just a few years out while he recovered from a horrendous motorcycle accident which left him paralysed from the waist down, he has been faithfully doing his bit ever since.

 

The helpful guy in the wheelchair, as he is known by many eisteddfod visitors and performers, is part of a Potts family tradition of working behind the scenes at the festival, which this year takes place from July 8-13.

 

Keith, who has lived in Llangollen all his life, said: “My late grandfather, Robert Potts, was a volunteer with the eisteddfod right from the start in 1947 and my father, Leslie Potts, who is now 82, has carried things on by also volunteering for many years and still does so now.

 

“I suppose we began our long association with the festival because we lived just across the road from the field.

 

“I’ve been volunteering since I was four years old, when I became a messenger. That was in the days before the pavilion was built to house the eisteddfod and everything was in tents, including the offices, and the performances took place in a big marquee.

 

“There was no phone connection between the ticket offices at either end of the field and you had to have someone to carry messages back and forth. That was what I did. I was a sort of runner or gofer, I suppose, and I enjoyed it very much.

 

“I was a messenger for a few years and then, when I was in my teens, I started working on the ticket booths and the turnstiles.

 

“I did that until I had my accident when I was 20 in 1988. I was on my motorbike on my way to work at a creamery just outside Corwen when it happened on the main road near the Rhug Estate.

 

“It left me paralysed from the waist down and I’ve been in a wheelchair ever since. Because of it I didn’t do the Eisteddfod for a few years but then my Dad talked me into going back.

“During the time I was away they replaced the old turnstiles, which was a good thing for me as you used to have to operate them with your foot and I couldn’t do that anymore.”

 

Keith added: “Over the years I’ve been associated with it, the organisation of the festival has changed out of all recognition.

 

“At the start it was all volunteers but now we have a small number of permanent staff, which we need because whereas in the old days most people would take time off work to volunteer, now that’s not really possible and people just come in when they can.

 

“The eisteddfod is run by a series of seven committees – marketing, grounds, tickets, floral, music, hospitality and finance – whose work is overseen by the Standing Board.

 

“Tickets have always been my area and I have been chairman of the Tickets Committee for the past eight years. I’m also a member of the Finance Committee and have been a director on the board for nine years.

 

“Apart from the week of the actual festival, I come into the eisteddfod office at the pavilion every Monday to make sure everything is running OK as far as tickets are concerned and there are no problems with things like double bookings or seating arrangements.

 

“I also attend the various committee meetings held regularly throughout the year and also come in if I’m needed for admin purposes.

 

“I suppose it’s all quite a big responsibility but it doesn’t fall too heavily on one man because I have 40 people on my tickets team and they share the load.

 

“They’re all volunteers and without all of them the eisteddfod simply wouldn’t happen.

 

“In the old days our volunteers used to mainly come from the local area. About 90 per cent of them still do but we also now have people travelling quite a way to help out from places like Manchester and even Cornwall.”

 

Over the many years he has been part of the eisteddfod set-up Keith recalls seeing a procession of big stars coming coming to Llangollen to perform – from Luciano Pavarotti and Placido Domingo to Dame Shirley Bassey and Elaine Page.

 

He said: “Because my role is behind the scenes I don’t really get to meet the guest stars but I certainly get a big buzz from seeing them coming along to the festival.

 

“I also get a buzz out of knowing that when they’re up on that big stage being watched by thousands of people I’ve played a part in filling all 4,000-odd seats in the main performance area.

 

“Another thing it’s good to see is ticket sales going well. Having Status Quo here this year is something different for us and sales have gone very well. In fact, they’re already sold out.

 

“Tickets for Bryn Terfel are also going very well and all this gives you a feel for what the eisteddfod will eventually be like.

 

“Last year we must have sold something like £400,000-worth of tickets, so knowing I’ve played a part in that is very rewarding.”

 

Keith revealed that members of his tickets team works closely with their counterparts from the Grounds Committee to lay out all the seating from scratch in the performance area – and love to record the scenes as the whole thing takes shape.

 

“We like to take pictures at various stages of the process - when it’s empty, half full and then completely full,” he explained.

 

“Although those of us involved in it know it’s down to a lot of hard work, it seems sometimes that there’s a little bit of magic about how the whole festival is put together.

 

“I think that magic is shared by the people from all over the world who come to the eisteddfod to perform and as spectators.

 

“I love meeting them and I help them as much as I can as I go around the field during festival week.

 

“Being part of the organisation of the eisteddfod is something I feel I can do given my disability, and doing it is just great because we’re all just one big family.

 

“I certainly intend to be part of it for as long as I’m able to do it.” 

New D&C factory rapidly taking shape

* The steel frame of the new factory seen from the A5.

* A view of the new factory looking from the Wild Pheasant.

The steel frame of the new Dobson & Crowther printworks being built at the Cilmedw site on the outskirts of Llangollen is now rapidly taking shape.

Once work on it is complete, the plan is for the company to move there allowing its current site to be used to develop a new Sainsbury’s supermarket.

Builders JR Pickstock say the factory project will take seven months to complete, with construction on the new food store due to start in the second half of this year once D&C has moved to its new premises.

The new factory covers 45,000 square feet and the new Sainsbury’s store will be 34,500 square feet.

 

* An artist's impression of how the new factory will look when finished.