STANFORD councillor and local resident, Shane Hebb, will be escalating the deplorable state of the Sand Pits car park to Thurrock Council, Essex Police, and the new developer/owner, after further bouts of activity which is leaving the car park in a "dreadful and unclean state, and causing slip hazards and risks to users". The local councillor has asked to meet with delegates from the council, the police and the new owner.
“There are a number of things which need addressing – we need to stop people discarding them in a way which they seem to think is acceptable; and we need to get the car park cleaned up once and for all”, said Cllr Shane Hebb. “How I wish Thurrock Council had only listened to reason when this car park was sold, as the council now have no obligation to keep our car park tidy now that they have sold it on!”
The Conservative councillor and candidate in this year’s local election, has a record on the Sand Pits car park, fighting a bitter battle against the sale of the site for the cost as a four-bedroom house back in 2013; and most recently he helped secured three hours free parking last Christmas when the new owner left shoppers with just a 30 minute limit.
“I couldn’t have been clearer back in 2013 – selling the Sand Pits car park was the wrong thing to do”, recalls Cllr Hebb. “We had Stanford-le-Hopers who wanted to put proposals forward in the form of a neighbourhood plan, which was trod on all over by the Labour administration, and now we are in a world where we have to rely on a private owner to fight poor behaviour and clear the mess up. This is Labour’s legacy to Stanford-le-Hope”.
In 2012, Shane opposed his Labour colleague’s decision that selling the land was necessary because the “area is [was] dying and on its knees and we must act”, and can recall two Stanford Labour councilors voting to sell the land. Shane argues the area has only got much worse since the land sale.
“I have asked for a Round Table Summit meeting between the new owner, the council and the local police to form a plan and fix the matter. We need action now!”
