Meanwhile back home

For nearly 15 years we have been waiting for something to fill the spot where once hotels and business's stood along the sea marina front of Bangor. There have been too many plans for some sort of civic centre, shops, flats combination of various of the above. But all the while there has just been a gaping hole from the Vennel along towards the six remaining premises before you reached Southwell Road.

It wasn't that from from this large absence of anything of note that I caught my first glimpse of the Olympic Torch last Summer. But that absence has been filled for 24 months at least with Project 24. Pods containing 24 mini studios in which local artists can take up residency or display their work.

At the end of that period pods and the artists will be rehoused in another site to sustain the project and hopefully then 17 years after it began the final project for the site will begin.

Here is one of the local artists talking about what this means to Bangor.


 

I guess next time I am over I shall be busy on Instagram taking some pics of this new temporary development.

Twas on a Sunday morning, just as the day was dawning

Between 6:49 and 7:37 on a Sunday morning!

That will be when the people of Bangor will get their change to see the Olympic torch coming through our town, on 3 June.

I shall be getting up with my camera to try and capture some images of this historic day, but I wonder how many of my fellow Bangorians will be.

Maybe this is what we get for not getting our Olympic sized pool ready in time to host a nation for training.

Central Integrated Primary take campaign to the hill

At the front Cllr. John Barry, Stephen Farry MLA, Steven Agnew MLA
and Peter Campbell  (Principal)
Picture by Joanna Braniff

Earlier today a petition from supporters of Bangor Central Integrated Primary School was taken to Stormont to be handed into the speaker of the Assembly. The petition is the urge the Minister of Education and North Down Borough Council to reconsider selling the adjacent Leisure Centre site to a private company, while the school built for 300 pupils houses 600 next door on a somewhat suffocating parcel of land.

When you consider that the 600 pupils currently have to take their lunch at Bangor Academy next door. Have their sports' day on the Academy playing fields. And all around their playground are a series of huts. This is hardly an ideal situation for the only Integrated Primary School in town.

Earlier this morning the Principal Peter Campbell was on the radio pointing out that the reasons the school needed improved premises on its current location were firstly the capacity issue, also that is was currently part of an education village with Central Nursery and Bangor Academy on the same pocket of land and Glenlola Collegiate and the South East Regional College sites a few minutes walk away. It therefore allows for ease of parents dropping off and collecting children of differing ages. Plus with its unique integrated status for key stage 1 and 2 pupils it needs to be accessible to all of the town's population.

Friends in the Scottish party may remember me talking from an intervention mic during a policies for the future session about how the fact that there was a move to integrated education slightly further to the West of the West of Scotland was a reason why it made most sense to move towards it in Scotland. This school is a prime example. But while others with more land have been updated to do away with the need for temporary classrooms this one has been overlooked by successive Education ministers. This is despite promises to consider working to acquire the Leisure Centre site by the previous minister to enable that improvement.

The petition which has over 3000 signatures is calling for the DUP led North Down Borough Council to reconsider its decision to sell the site to private developers but keep it for public use for the development of the school. If the ministers for education in Northern Ireland are serious about a future where pupils from all historic communities work and learn together schools like BCIPS need to be allowed to develop. My primary school elsewhere in town has less pupils, but more space and an extension adding five new classrooms. My secondary school over in Newtownards in recent years also has had an extensive modernising extension project again doing away with the multitude of temporary classrooms. In both cases many of the temporary classrooms where present for over 20 or 30 years.

We need to do better for our children and their education, a school whose enrollment is twice what its buildings were designed for, that is continuously oversubscribed every year needs to be allow breathing space. Not just for its current pupils but so that it can provide all the service that it needs to, including its own room for sports.

Trip down my own memory lane

Was with mum in Easons in Bangor earlier when this display caught my eye. It was the second of Terrance Bowman's books, this time moving on a decade it is Bangor in the Seventies.

With over 500 pictures from The Spectator archives and reminiscences from people such as another Lib Dem from the town and the 1977 DUP Candidate for Ballyholme and Groomsport in the council elections. You may know them better as Lembit Öpik and Sammy Wilson.

But as I carried on flicking through the pictures I kept seeing the odd person I knew here and there. Some I knew at the time some I've met since. But then I turned to page 154 and saw myself staring out at me.

Here is the pic:

See if you can spot me.

The caption reads:

Grange Park Primary School entered a choir in the Belfast Music Festival for the first time in March 1978. The juniors enjoyed success, winning two trophies. The choir was conducted by John Ekin and accompanied by Ann Murphy. They are included with principal Frank R. Martin.

It's Wednesday...it is Day Two of Tennents Vital 2011

Well yestereday saw 20,000 turn up for the Tennents Vital Festival today they are expecting 40,000 for day two.

Today's acts include Jimmy East World.



Then I hope there isn't the predicted riot as The Kaiser Chiefs. But you know what every day I love them more and more.



But the headliner is a coup indeed. As Marshall Mathers III takes to the stage. "Who?" says you, the reall Slim Shady, none other than Eminem.

It's Tuesday...it is Day One of Tennents Vital 2011

I know I normally do these things on a Friday, but hey when you have the biggest outdoor gig in Northern Ireland happening on your doorstep and disrupting your bowling activities. I thought I'd better hightlight today's performers (there are more tomorrow). So here are some of the artists that will be performing in Ward Park this evening for part of Tennents Vital 2011.

There will be The Wombats, I choose this video as an 80s music geek because of the Moog synthesiser, especially as the 6th Anniversary of Robert Moog's death was on Sunday..



There is also local band Two Door Cinema Club (who says we're all Snow Patrol)



Tonight's headliners are The Script and this is my favourite song of theirs.

Bangor, Bowls and Bells

Yesterday my good friend Michael came out to Bangor for some sea air. The two of us being us of course a trip for him to Bangor did not just involve the normal activities of Bangor. There was a stop of at the Frederick Schomberg, the 1st Duke of Schomberg's camp before he set off to the Boyne where he died in battle in 1690. There was a visit to the old Walled Garden of Bangor Castle, now shortlisted for Britain in Bloom 2011 and open to the public and a walk around town, checking out some architectural history in my Gazeeter of the town, as well as spotting a graphic design error that got both our attention.

The evening rounded off with us actually sharing a little with the other a little of our favourite passtimes. First I took Michael along to see Sylvia Lady Hermon MP delivering the ceremonial first bowl of the Bangor Tournament. After a 10 year absence, while I was over in Scotland, I'll be making my return to the competition on Monday at 9:30am in the Singles. But here is a video I took of Lady Hermon, speaking (sorry very poor sound) and then delivering the ceremonial bowl.



After a few brief pointers about what was going on to Michael as we left the Greens we heard the bells at Bangor Parish start up. So Michael introduced me to his campanology passion and led us up the bell tower. I eventually did get to pull a few strokes on the bell and I can say it is a lot harder than it looks.