TEN jobs have been saved after Spalding’s Peacocks store was one of 388 bought by Edinburgh Woollen Mill.

More than 220 stores will close.

OWNERS of a former gas works have apologised to neighbours as work continues to bring the land back into use.

National Grid is in the middle of a remedial project on the site in Albion Street and is currently working to break up the concrete foundations of former buildings.

Scott Lewis, commercial property manager, said: “We want to bring this site back into beneficial use and improve the environment but we appreciate that this work can be noisy at times and we are working to keep disruption to a minimum.

“The concrete breaking will continue in earnest for a further two weeks and after that we will need to carry out this type of work on a more infrequent basis until the middle of June when the project is scheduled to finish.”

The Albion Street site was developed as a gasworks in 1832 and expanded in the 1900s, but production ceased at the site in 1968. A small depot still operates from the site.

A BOURNE pub is to close for a five-week revamp to give it a quirky new theme.

The Jubilee in North Street closes on Sunday, February 26 and will change its name to Jubilee Garage when it reopens on Friday, April 6.

The new look will include a 1970s Volkswagen camper van as the bar, garage signs, petrol pumps and vehicle seating.

The pub will also be showing Sky Sports on six new screens.

The theme was chosen because the building was a garage between the 1920s and 1950s.

Operations manager Ross Dykes said: “It’s a quirky idea and I hope people will like what we are trying to do. It will be very different to what it is now.

“We want to turn it into more of a venue for families. We need to make it into a sustainable value-for-money pub.

“We are conscious that people are spending less and that will be reflected in the refit.”

Mr Dykes said the revamp was in line with the group’s aim to refit its pubs regularly.

Pub owner Mick Thurlby also owns Smiths in Bourne, as well as pubs in Stamford, Oakham, Ufford and Easton-on-the-Hill.

Mr Dykes added: “We decided to make it more of a pub so it has a bit of identity. At the moment it’s a restaurant during the day, a pub in the evening and a nightclub at night.”

SOUTH Holland District Council leader Gary Porter has fired a warning shot across the bows of both developers hoping to launch schemes in Spalding.

He said: “I wouldn’t bet on either of them getting approval because I haven’t seen anything that would convince me that we would want to do what either of them are proposing.

“From what I have seen, I would not recommend either of the two proposals, but if either of the two are likely to be developed in a way that does become attractive at the moment my money would be on Mr Moran getting there first.”

And Coun Porter reissued a challenge he previously made last year for Mr Garvie to show him the results of the consultation Mr Garvie claims he carried out with 3,300 Spalding residents.

A RENEWABLE energy pioneer has become the first in Lincolnshire to have the newly MCS accredited Bergey Excel-S 10kW wind turbine installed on his property.

Roger Marshall, who owns a cold-store business near Quadring, trading in vegetables, opted for a Bergey system maintained by a 25 metre self-supporting lattice tower, ensuring the turbine will not be affected by wind shear and turbulence.

SIAC Wind Energy, which installed the turbine, has taken a unique approach within the UK and bucked micro wind energy trends by advocating taller towers, ensuring output is maximised at each installation.

The turbine was put up by a team from SIAC’s installation and re-sale partner for Lincolnshire and Norfolk, Greenleaf Microgen, of Spalding.

It is expected that the 10kW turbine will pay for itself in less than five years.

Jon Naylor, Regional Manager at SIAC Wind Energy, said: “It has been a pleasure working with Roger to bring his Bergey installation to fruition.

“He already embraces environmentally friendly technology, using heat from his cold stores to heat his home and a Photovoltaic system installed on the roof of the building.

“His enthusiasm for all things renewable really knows no bounds.

“Roger will now enjoy many years of free energy and income from the Government’s Feed-In Tariff scheme.”

For more information visit www.siacwindenergy.com

TWO developers at the centre of ambitious plans to bring big name stores to Spalding have locked horns over the benefits their schemes will bring to the town.

After claims in the Spalding Guardian on Thursday that the Holland Market development would not bring any benefits for the people of South Holland, a furious Michael Moran, who represents Holland Market owner Corbo’s interests in the UK, is believed to have contacted Richard Garvie to express his anger.

Mr Garvie, the man behind plans for a Sustainable Spalding regeneration company, revealed plans to bring a supermarket and cinema to a 12-acre site off the A151 opposite Spalding’s McDonalds.

He claims it would generate millions of pounds of investment and pay for the running costs of a regeneration company for five years, while Holland Market plans would “not lead to any new investment in new facilities for Spalding”.

Corbo has threatened to take legal action against Mr Garvie unless he publicly retracts his statement.

Mr Moran told the Lincolnshire Free Press: “I had a rather blunt conversation with him and I told him we take it very seriously when someone makes false claims about our scheme.

“He hasn’t got a clue what we are doing.”

Town leaders have dismissed Mr Garvie’s plan as “pie in the sky”, saying he has not come forward with any concrete evidence to back up claims the site was the option preferred by the majority of people he talked to during a consultation exercise last year.

Jason Rooke, chairman of Spalding and District Area Chamber of Commerce, said: “It strikes me that Mr Garvie’s plan hasn’t got any legs, but even if it did, what would we prefer – a development within the town, albeit to the side of the town centre, or one on the outskirts of town?

“To me the town needs development, not the bypass, so my feeling would be that if Holland Market is done carefully it would be a positive thing.

“To say that Holland Market development would not lead to investment in the town is ridiculous, because there are plans for additional community facilities such as the football stadium.”

MORE than 1,700 South Holland people could soon make history by switching to the first ever cheap gas and electricity deal negotiated by a district council.

Bills are set to be slashed by at least 15 per cent – and more savings are likely to come with the so far unnamed consortium offering to put all customers on Smart Meters.

More than 1,700 people have so far registered an interest and council leader Coun Gary Porter says there are at least another 400 people in the pipeline.

Coun Porter said the consortium is happy to start with “a relatively small number” of interested people to make the deal happen and they about to submit a formal proposal to the council.

He said: “We will then get our people to do ‘due diligence’ on it to make sure it all stacks.

“I am fairly confident that it will stack, but I still wouldn’t want to put our name on it until we have thoroughly checked it out.”

No one who has registered an interest is committed to going with the new deal. The final deal will be offered formally once the council is completely satisfied.

Coun Porter said the council is working out its communications strategy for residents switching to cheaper fuel and it may include village roadshows where people can sign up with the consortium.

He said: “We have told them we don’t want any cold calling so there will be no door knocking.”

Coun Porter personally negotiated the cheaper fuel deal after publicly criticising energy companies for charging inflated prices.

He is delighted the deal is about to be sealed and says he will be even more pleased when he too is benefiting from cheaper energy.

Coun Porter said: “If the deal is the right deal, it would be stupid for me not to sign up. People will think I am either a liar or a fool if I don’t sign and I don’t want people to think either of those things.”

You can register an interest by:

l Visiting www.sholland.gov.uk and clicking on ‘Deal Offered for Cut-Price Fuel’

l Visiting the council offices in Priory Road, Spalding, or seeing your ward councillor

SPALDING landlords and police have welcomed calls by Prime Minister David Cameron for measures to help ensure responsible drinking.

Mr Cameron has vowed to launch a new strategy to tackle the “scandal” of drunkenness and alcohol abuse which blight many town centres on Friday and Saturday nights.

One of the measures that could be included come the autumn is a minimum price on alcohol, which could see the cost of supermarket own brand bottle of vodka rise from £8.35 to £11.85 and a cheap bottle of wine from £3.75 to £4.20.

It is hoped that it will discourage people from binge drinking and getting “pre-loaded” before they go out for a night in town.

Insp Rod Rose, of Lincolnshire Police, said: “Many people choose to buy cheaper alcohol from supermarkets to drink before they go out because at the moment some alcohol is very cheap.

“If a minimum price was introduced it might result in a reversal of that trend.

“People would still only have the same amount of money but if they spent it in pubs and clubs they would not have so much alcohol and therefore not get so intoxicated and would not be so incapable of behaving themselves.

“A lot of problems we face at the moment are because people are coming into town after having so much to drink at home first.

“It is the police and health services who have to pick up the pieces when people get out of control”

Matt Clark, owner of Spalding’s Loaded nightclub, said there is a definite trend of people drinking at home before a night out.

“He said: “Our venues are predominantly entertainment so we don’t rely so much on the sale of alcohol but pubs and bars need those sales to stay alive.

“I think people definitely do pre-load because we have definitely seen an increase in the number of people coming to Loaded straight from home who are already inebriated.”

And Pete Williams, landlord of the Punchbowl in New Road, said: “A lot of people don’t come into town now until 10pm or 11pm and they are already well oiled, then they may only buy two drinks in the pub until closing time.

“They come in to enjoy the ambience but they are already at the alcohol level they want to be at to enjoy the evening and I don’t get the benefit of taking their money.

“So I would welcome a minimum charge, it would be a miniscule amount of help but it’s a step in the right direction.”