The Mayor

[The Bard]

and the fact that the European GAY rugby cup is being held in Bristol too-those in city hall must proud of our city

It was held at the old Filton High School which is in South Gloucestershire.

Never let facts get in the way of a bit of thinly veiled homophobia.

[weeble]

Anything 6-9 storeys is considered "tall" in Bristol and developers that propose any development of that height have to go through additional rigorous planning requirements. Anything 9+, essentially anything "higher than the spire of St. Mary redcliffe", is likely to get thrown out unless exceptional circumstances.....its a bit of a joke for a core uk city that sells itself as a financial and business centre

I don't think that's actually a bad thing. Buildings over 9 stories will be visible from considerable distances, a poor low rise building can only be seen from the street it's in. If the building is of high quality then that's fine, the problem arises when they are poor like Castlemead or Froomsgate House etc in Lewins Mead and we're stuck with them bringing the townscape down for decades.

Edinburgh sells itself as a financial centre quite successfully, without high rise offices to do it.

[And Its Smith]

A harmless joke tweet causes tears on this forum. So much sensitivity nowadays. Sorry, got to go, need to get offended about something.

[TinnionForEngland]

Or perhaps people already think the blokes a twit and this further adds to their already negative feeling.

[NATCHER]

Yes to cyclists, but no to proper cycle lanes that suddenly tops when the road narrows.

http://www.bristolpost.co.uk/Bid-pound-109m-Dutch-style-cycle-network-Bristol/story-19120380-detail/story.html

£109m= It ain't gonna happen.

[TRL]

http://www.bristolpost.co.uk/Bid-pound-109m-Dutch-style-cycle-network-Bristol/story-19120380-detail/story.html

£109m= It ain't gonna happen.

Exactly, and the Netherlands is mainly flat, most of theri cities are pretty flat as well. Not built on 7 get big hills. i doubt very much you will get many more people onto bikes than are already on them.

i chose when I worked in Bristol, to cycle for health reason, not because I didn't want to sit in congestion. I doubt very much you are going to get very unfit people trying to cycle up gloucester road for example, ther would be a big increase in heart attacks!

[beaverface]

I just wish someone (the mayor) and political groups would sit down and thrash out a long term plan for the entire City and surrounding counties.

We specifically need a massive improvement in transport, sporting facilities and Concert arena.

Even if it doesn't happen overnight, we need to see the long term plan set out so that when permission is given for building works we can see how that's going to impact the "long term plan". If we knock something down i.e. the ice rink, then the "long term plan" highlights where it's going to be located. Let's have a transport hub right next to the train station, let's develop shops right next to that. Let's build other things apart from office space and crappy box apartments by the harbourside.

Let's get everything together in one place rather than spread it throughout the (greater)City. For flips sake, we've had the ice rink at the bottom of park street, a Olympic sized swimming pool in Hengrove, a new stadium coming in Frenchay, a cinema complex in Cribbs and St Phillips, a cricket ground in Ashley Down, and nothing is remotely joining these dots up!!!

Basically,let's have a vision and stick with it.

[Opeth67]

I live in N Somerset so this Fergie is not "my" mayor (thank God) - but the trouble is he casts a big shadow over all the abutting counties because the centre is Bristol. I was shocked when he got elected, yet at the same time I was not. I wonder how many of the small amount of the population of Bristol who voted for him are now regretting it?

[Barrs Court Red]

http://m.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-bristol-22699409

Who are the Bristol Civic society?

[BCAGFC]

http://m.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-bristol-22699409

Who are the Bristol Civic society?

Civic Society = NIMBYs

We have a terrible ratio of NIMBYs to normal people within the Bristol area and this why we are stuck in the 19th century regarding sports & recreational facilities.

[Barrs Court Red]

But where do they get their mandate from?

[BCAGFC]

But where do they get their mandate from?

Probably Merchant Venturers.

[weeble]

http://m.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-bristol-22699409

Who are the Bristol Civic society?

http://www.bristolcivicsociety.org.uk/about-us/about-the-society

[Barrs Court Red]

So an unelected, unregulated pressure group.

[Barrs Court Red]

Meanwhile, in la la land the Green party continue to try and stifle South Bristol

http://www.bristol247.com/2013/05/30/gus-hoyt-lay-down-in-front-of-south-bristol-link-road-bulldozers-23982/

[redcityman]

Meanwhile, in la la land the Green party continue to try and stifle South Bristol

http://www.bristol247.com/2013/05/30/gus-hoyt-lay-down-in-front-of-south-bristol-link-road-bulldozers-23982/

Thing is though he's probably right.

At the moment we have Highridge common, land that has been common land for hundreds of years to be churned up and divided by a dual carriage, within a few years you can bet there will be thousands of houses springing ala Bradley Stoke, don't see why they just couldn't route the ring road via Hartcliffe Way.

[Barrs Court Red]

That didnt happen with Siston common.

[havanatopia]

I live in N Somerset so this Fergie is not "my" mayor (thank God) - but the trouble is he casts a big shadow over all the abutting counties because the centre is Bristol. I was shocked when he got elected, yet at the same time I was not. I wonder how many of the small amount of the population of Bristol who voted for him are now regretting it?

So you were shocked but really not shocked and you think that after 5 minutes in the job there is a fair few who want him out?

I personally think we should cut the guy some slack and not judge quite yet.

Although he is a bit of a 'hate' figure amongst some City fans, rightly or wrongly, he is a non-partisan candidate and may actually be able to get more done in what has been a notoriously hung BCC which, lets face it, is the main historical reason you lot are cheesed off with nothing getting done.

[Alex_BCFC]

Fair enough supporting the ladies team but no need for the comment about the men etc.

I don't like GF at all. His plan to role out parking zones across Bristol is a joke.

[weeble]

That didnt happen with Siston common.

Probably not on the common itself, but it will eventually allow for the resurrection of the abandoned 'urban extension' that will effectively connect Bristol to Long Ashton.

[WhistleHappy]

His latest 'scoop', is that he wants to ban juggernauts from Bristol. I tw @ ttered him and asked for his alternative.

The silence is deafening...............

The bloke is only interested in anything that will enlarge his personal bank balance/ego, if the BCFC numpties didn't frequent his establishment, he would probably try and get us shut down for producing too much hot air/pollution.

Vote 'No Confidence In George Ferguson as Bristol Mayor'.

...bloody hell how are Sainsbury's gonna get their deliveries through to their largest stores then?... beep, beep, beep!!!

[Timbo7]

Civic Society = NIMBYs

We have a terrible ratio of NIMBYs to normal people within the Bristol area and this why we are stuck in the 19th century regarding sports & recreational facilities.

I hate to shatter your illusion but "NIMBY" is an appropriate acronym for "normal people". There is nothing remotely abnormal about a preference for gypsy camps, power stations, motorways, traffic jams, sewage works, tall buildings and even football stadia to be provided in someone else's backyard rather than your own . It is fundamental to human nature that we seek to protect our own at the expense of others - to do otherwise would be entirely "abnormal".

Regarding your irrational grievance with the Mayor:

• Is it really such a crime to have a little joke at the expense of two underachieving professional football clubs?
• Is there any reason to believe the comment was aimed (if it was aimed at all) more at our club than the other lot?
• Is it realistic to expect any candidate for elected Mayor (let alone one without affiliation to an established political party) to be anything other than an eccentric ego-driven self-publicist?
• Was he not elected on the basis he would attempt to address some of the more difficult issues (air pollution, traffic, public transport etc.) after decades of limp procrastination and vested interests?
• Can laissez-faire really address any of Bristol's problems?

It is an inconvenient truth that our so-called democracy requires politicians to attempt to please the majority in the short-term at the expense of what's necessary for the long-term and it is for this that we are beginning to pay the price. If the Mayor is intent on bucking this trend for his short period in office then I say good luck to him (for all of his many faults) - the alternative approaches have been tried to death and have consistently failed to deliver very much at all..

[Rich]

Probably not on the common itself, but it will eventually allow for the resurrection of the abandoned 'urban extension' that will effectively connect Bristol to Long Ashton.

Good.

Whether you are for or against the expansion, we need new housing. Those that live in semi rural idylic locations will fight tooth and nail to make sure that our already overcrowded urban areas will become ever more crowded, as long as they're not personally affected. They will use the argument of loss of green spaces and many other made up reasons, though aren't in the least bit worried that their own properties were built in those same green spaces.

I don't advocate building endless estates over thoiusands of acres of countryside but, we have very restricted boundaries in Bristol with very little available land for housing, so the infill between the A370 and A38 makes absolute sense. Wth the soon to be built on former LA research center the area will be all but surrounded by housing anyway, and you can redefine the greenbelt at the end of the housing line. Then it wouldn't be staggered with two seperate authorities with different pressures/requirements guarding over it.

[Bristolface]

I tweeted him said he is just like Steve Wright only reading out messages that say how bloody wonderful he is, the **** retweeted it haha i got alot more followers mind hahah Love the show Mayor

[Esmond Million's Bung]

I hate to shatter your illusion but "NIMBY" is an appropriate acronym for "normal people". There is nothing remotely abnormal about a preference for gypsy camps, power stations, motorways, traffic jams, sewage works, tall buildings and even football stadia to be provided in someone else's backyard rather than your own . It is fundamental to human nature that we seek to protect our own at the expense of others - to do otherwise would be entirely "abnormal".

Regarding your irrational grievance with the Mayor:

• Is it really such a crime to have a little joke at the expense of two underachieving professional football clubs?
• Is there any reason to believe the comment was aimed (if it was aimed at all) more at our club than the other lot?
• Is it realistic to expect any candidate for elected Mayor (let alone one without affiliation to an established political party) to be anything other than an eccentric ego-driven self-publicist?
• Was he not elected on the basis he would attempt to address some of the more difficult issues (air pollution, traffic, public transport etc.) after decades of limp procrastination and vested interests?
• Can laissez-faire really address any of Bristol's problems?

It is an inconvenient truth that our so-called democracy requires politicians to attempt to please the majority in the short-term at the expense of what's necessary for the long-term and it is for this that we are beginning to pay the price. If the Mayor is intent on bucking this trend for his short period in office then I say good luck to him (for all of his many faults) - the alternative approaches have been tried to death and have consistently failed to deliver very much at all..

I think that the NIMBY description as far as AV is concerned is very apt. They have used a law designed to preserve 'proper' village greens and not imaginary village greens and have built their case on total and utter lies and even with the king NIMBY admitting that they didn't want the village green but just to use the legislation to stop the stadium and now of course because of bogus use of this legislation it will be amended or even removed from the statute books.

[Rich]

I think that the NIMBY description as far as AV is concerned is very apt. They have used a law designed to preserve 'proper' village greens and not imaginary village greens and have built their case on total and utter lies and even with the king NIMBY admitting that they didn't want the village green but just to use the legislation to stop the stadium and now of course because of bogus use of this legislation it will be amended or even removed from the statute books.

Bravo.

I can't stand the little proactive groups that shout the loudest, have more time on their hands and appear representative of the majority because of their stance. For too long the tail has wagged the dog when it comes to having your say and influencing decision making in Bristol. Politicians have bent over backwards for the minority groups vote, which has resulted in the minority ruling the roost at the expense of the too busy or apathetic majority. It would appear that this is still the case today.

George seems to be implementing policies that are representative of his day to day contact with the people he meets. If those people are within his social and political groups then we are getting the policies of those contacts (Southvilleites).

George as far as I know, does not attend social gatherings where he will come face to face and have direct contact with the average person in the street. By that I don't mean people working in care homes or other prearranged public meetings. I mean, nipping down to Tesco, or the local in Southmead unannounced, or popping into the builders merchants for peoples views. He will get and form his opinions from those he does meet or those that seek him out, that will generally be the interested parties or activists. I note there are no pro car campaigners in his cabinet.