Your letters - August 27, 2010

Fight to save Rye's Victorian Villas

I WAS dismayed to read your lead story in this week's Observer (August 20) regarding the possible demolition of Stanley Villas terrace of Victorian Houses in Ferry Road as part of the new Sainsburys development in Rye.

Of course it has been widely recognised that the Queen Adelaide public house and the adjoining row of small cottages would need to be demolished to provide sufficient access to the site but I fail to understand how the demolition of the complete row of houses next to them can be justified for this purpose.

Presumably they will all suffer unwelcome "planning blight" until this matter is resolved.

19th Century housing of this type is relatively uncommon in Rye and is as much an important part of the architectural heritage of the town as many of our protected buildings in the Citadel.

This terrace, as many will know, boasts a most elegant, and unique, terracotta plaque celebrating Queen Victoria's Golden Jubilee in 1887 and for this reason alone its loss would be most unfortunate.

Too many buildings have been lost to Rye over recent years - the Rye Pottery building (also in Ferry Road), the only detached Victorian villa in The Grove(demolished to provide access to the Swimming Pool) and longer ago, the Regent Cinema in Cinque Port Street; just imagine how wonderful it would be to have had that building survive in the town for use as a theatre.

I trust that commonsense may prevail, and that our Town Council and the Conservation society will fight vigorously plans to demolish this terrace. If our forefathers had not acted much of the Rye we enjoy today could have been lost.

It's up to us to fight for, and preserve what we have and not accept defeat in the name of "progress".

We can surely enjoy the undoubted benefits of the new supermarket without having to sacrifice this important corner of Rye.

Bill Taylor

The Old Coach House

High Street, Rye

Don't rely on tourism for local economy

TOURISM is "fundamental to rebuilding and re-balancing of our economy" (Rye View - 20/8/10). What tosh!

Tourism is a seasonal, service-based industry which only benefits tourist spots - and then only on good days, when the exchange rates are right!

True, it supports the hotels, restaurants, the affordable pocket-money gee-gaw trade (much of which is imported!).

But it does not support the year round manufacturing and agricultural industries which require manual and mental skills; which create new jobs and new supporting industries.

That is where this country's real wealth and skills' base lies, for tourism will never bring back the Rye Foundry, the boat yards, Weslakes, Farnborough Engineering, Atlas Stone with their meaningful jobs, and the specialist High Street shops which fully supply local needs.