Regatta fireworks have been cancelled
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by Nigel Wigmore
The fireworks display at Henley Royal Regatta has been cancelled because a council has refused to close two footpaths while it takes place.
Organisers said today they were "gutted" and "bitterly disappointed" that a council pulled the plug on the event at the last minute.
Wokingham Borough Council refused to grant emergency measures to close public footpaths near the display site at Sham Hill on Saturday night from 5pm.
The fireworks display, which was due to take place at 10.15pm, was expected to attract thousands of people to Henley during the regatta’s climax this weekend.
Organisers had asked the council to close the footpaths temporarily for safety reasons while the display took place.
James Brennan, of Hoffman’s vintage cars in Henley and Dave Coles of A40 Fireworks, who would have set off the fireworks on Saturday night, both said they were given "verbal assurances" on Monday by Wokingham Borough Council that footpaths near the site at Sham Hill would be closed from 5pm.
Mark Moon, general manager place and neighbourhoods, said: "We understand that the organisers of the Henley Regatta firework display decided to change their venue a short time ago.
"Two public footpaths cross the new venue and, unfortunately, the timespan given does not allow the council to carry out public consultation on the request for the temporary closure of these public rights of way to facilitate the event."
See full details of this story in next week’s Henley Standard
Published on 03 July 2009
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How ridiculous!! Another example of an obstructive Council. The fireworks are a great tradition in Henley and would have brought people and money to the town. Yet again, council jobsworths have ignored any modicum of common sense and followed the rule book. Why is it necessary to have a public consultation to close a footpath for a few hours??
In the current economic climate, surely we need people to have a can do attitude. No matter what people try to do it seems that the Council are determined to say no you cannot. -, report this post |
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