Post by Dave on Mar 9, 2018 11:03:22 GMT
The Torquay Hi-Flyer Balloon Disgrace.
When has Torbay Council ever listened to its residents and acted upon it? If they had of done we would not be fighting to save the Pavilion and Cary green. Oldway Mansions would not be left to fall down and we still might have Rock Walk and not Wreck Walk as I like to call it.
I am not a political person in anyway but do feel a lot of ours problems came about when we voted to have an elected mayor. We gave too much power to one man and that was clear from the very start when Nick Bye became our first elected mayor.
It was Nick Bye who destroyed our Rock Walk and it was Nick Bye who gave us the ugly seafront balloon. The Italian Garden where the balloon was sited on the sea front had a covenant on it but the Council knew that the Carey Estate did not have the financial resources to fight a legal battle over it so went ahead and obliterated it. When the balloon was destroyed in a storm it turned out that the operators were £50k behind with the rent (but I'm not sure if this was ever recovered or not).
We so nearly had a fish restaurant build on Babbacombe Downs, another of Mr Byes bright ideas, but thankfully enough people stood up to stop that happening.
Even before the balloon made its first flight it was attacked and damaged, clearly someone else was not happy with this monstrosity being placed on our beautiful seafront.
May 2008
Operators of the 80ft HiFlyer balloon on the seafront in Torquay, Devon, had to repair 47 punctures after it was attacked with a knife hours after being inflated for the first time with £32,000 worth of helium gas.
Holes were found in the lower part of the £450,000 balloon where only air, not the helium which gives it lift, is contained.The punctures have been repaired and security has been stepped up.
The council hopes the balloon will help its efforts to regenerate the seafront area, but opponents have complained that it is in the wrong place in the town.
Lindstrand, the operator, said the balloon, which will fly 400ft above the ground and offer 15-minute rides for £14, was safe despite the attack.Tom Spalding, the firm's operations manager, said: "It was a determined attempt to sabotage the balloon. It wasn't an accident. It was deliberate."Someone must have jumped to reach the balloon. I spotted the holes when we were doing checks the following day.
"It took us a couple of hours to do the repairs and it has been useful training for staff. It doesn't affect safety or the structural integrity of the balloon."
The Civil Aviation Authority has to license the balloon before it can operate the rides. This is expected to happen later this month after training of staff and work on the site is completed.
On the 3rd January 2012 the balloon was badly damaged in a storm despite being heavily strapped down, that was the last we were to see of the Torquay Hi-Flyer Balloon.
The matter of the balloon was raised at a council meeting held on the 24th April 2012, it is interesting to note that note 2 below states During consideration of the item in Minute 649 the press and public were formally excluded from the meeting.
Why was that? And did the council ever get the money back that was owed?
Council Meeting notes 24th April 2012
649. Hi-Flyer Balloon The Executive Head – Residents and Visitors Services attended the meeting to answer the Board’s questions in relation to the Hi-Flyer Balloon at Torre Abbey Meadows in Torquay. It was reported that the operator of the Balloon had not paid any rent since 1 April 2009 when the operator’s dispute with the Council arose.
A copy of all payments made by the operator (excluding in relation to National Non Domestic Rates) since 15 February 2008 was made available to the Board. It was noted that there were two break clauses in the lease: the Council could give six months notice to the tenant; and the tenant could give three months notice. It was reported that the lease was a ten year lease however, it was noted that planning permission had been granted for five years up until July 2012.
Overview and Scrutiny Board Tuesday, 24 April 2012 The Vice-Chairman brought to the Board’s attention that two previous questions had been asked at meetings of the Council on the amount of rent received from the operator of the Balloon; the second question being asked in May 2009. Questions were raised by the Board about whether the then-Mayor was aware that rent had not been received and whether, given the ongoing pressures on Council budgets, councillors should have subsequently been made aware of that projected income had not yet been realised.
(Note 1: Prior to consideration of the item in Minute 649 Councillor McPhail declared a personal prejudicial interest in the matter and withdrew from the meeting.)
(Note 2: During consideration of the item in Minute 649 the press and public were formally excluded from the meeting on the grounds that further detailed discussion of the item involved the likely disclosure of exempt information as defined in paragraphs 3 and 5 of Part 1 of Schedule 12A of the Local Government Act 1972 (as amended).)
The pictures below are my own pictures taken on a number of different occasions, they show the balloon how it was when it first arrived and later in colours to try and make it look a bit better.
