What does Salcombe mean to you?

I was sitting in the sun a few days ago thinking about times past in Salcombe and how many people, like us, think Salcombe is the best place in the world. I ended up trying to put together my "Top 5" list of things that Salcombe will always mean to me:

Here goes...

1. Rocking nights, courtesy of "Bob" at the Ferry, during the early 90's, when everyone knew everyone and you'd never here a cross word as copious pints of snakebite and black were seen off; Don Mclean belted out "American Pie" from the juke box and the night ended with pizza and pasties when the bakery opened as the pubs shut.
2. Sailing Optimists on Tuesday nights at cadets, and being stupidly excited when the wind blew hard. Followed by coke and crisps at the Yacht Club whilst your parents sank a few beers.
3. Still having as my best mates the friends I made at Salcombe Primary School and all still meeting up every summer in Salcombe, even though many no longer live in Salcombe.
4. Playing volley ball all summer during the holidays on Smalls Cove, there was never a day when the volley ball net wasn't up! There seemed to be a lot more sun back then!
5. The unbeatable beauty & tranquility of sitting on Small's on a summers evening with the tide full in and the beach gradually emptying as the wind dies and the estuary becomes a mill pond.

Roll on summer!!!!

What does Salcombe mean to you...

More Social Housing?

I have just found out that not only is The Crofts still a very possible site for the new social housing being pushed on us (but not needed), but Malborough is also about to have a new batch of houses built which will only be sold to residents of Salcombe and Malborough!!

Am I missing something or are there hoards of people roaming around Salcombe with nowhere to live? Are there caravans lining Batson creek and filing up the park and ride? Are the camp sites full all year round? Are they being built to help house the all people needed to fill the thousands of job vacancies sitting empty and paying £30k a year?

This is all madness, where is it going to end, will it take the destruction of the Salcombe that we know and love before these ridiculous decisions are seen for what they really are??

Salcombe's Old Vinery for Sale

Is this perhaps going to be the finest house in Salcombe? That's a big call with some of the magnificent properties recently built or some of the fantastic original buildings that have been rennovated...

With planning for a boat house and your own (already existing) private battlement water side garden it doesn't get much better than this!!

At £4.5 million before you even begin to consider what you will do with your new purchase it's going to take some serious money to buy this plot and build your dream home! However, knowing Salcombe's amazing pull it will be snapped up by someone.

Apparently it hasn't been on the market for 100 years!

Have look for yourself...

You could, if money is tight, just buy the boathouse and battlement garden for a mere £1.1m and leave the £3.5m house to someone else. Dilema's dilema's...

Council Tax Rise for Salcombe Second Home Owners

There are proposals afoot to increase the "second home owner" council tax rate from 90% to 200%!

For the life of me I can't see why this makes any sense at all? We have established time and time again on this blog that second home owners are now an integral part of the Salcombe economy, given this why would the council decide that it is a good idea to make them pay more. Surely paying 90% makes far more sense as less resources are used due to the very nature of the property being a "second home".

All I can see happening is the more astute second home owners reclassifying their second homes as "businesses", renting them out for 3 or 4 weeks a year and paying even less tax.

It's not far short of being as ridiculous as a recent proposal (nationwide) to charge more council tax for houses with sea views!!!