It would appear that when Rye Town Council was asked a couple of months ago by Rother District Council to vote ‘in principle’ for Civil Parking Enforcement (CPE) in Rye, Rother Councillors had little or no clue about what CPE entails judging by a series of Q&As that it has recently sent to East Sussex County Council in preparation for a Rother meeting this week.
At the Town Council meeting our RDC reps did not tell RTC that the implementation and total running of CPE rests solely with East Sussex County Council (who use the profits as they see fit) and nothing whatsoever to do with RDC – quite probably because they didn’t know that this would be the case! Rother’s involvement is simply to say they agree to CPE (and whatever that might entail) and then its over to ESCC to impose on street parking wherever and for how ever much they see fit.
Does this matter? For me, yes! I would like our RDC and ESCC representatives to come and explain all of this and what they plan for Rye. Then I might vote ‘in principle’ for CPE.
Interestingly, RDC has supplied figures about Parking Permits. Rother managed to trouser just £4,965 in 2015/16 for Parking Permits in Bexhill. However, from 9 bays in Gun Garden RDC took £9,639 and from the 10 bays in the Strand (and only 10 permits sold?) a total of £6,425. Grand total ? At least £16k a year from Rye which Rye’s own RDC Councillors insist on reminding us is 10% of the population of Bexhill.
Rother will continue to clean up on this tax in Rye as the Parking is on their land and not the streets which are covered by CPE.
Andy,
Some most interesting pieces of information of which I was not aware. It is vital to get confirmation from ESCC and RDC that your interpretation is the correct one. Keith please respond.
Your point re the RDC permits is telling as is the fact that the charging rates for the car parks are higher in Rye(and Camber) than Bexhill and that the large car park in the centre of Bexhill is free.. I guess that this is the price we must pay for the black hole of the De Lsa Warre and the terrible deal that Rother(and the Arts Council) seem to have struck with the Charity.