Island Hall development continues

WORK on the next phase of the development of the Island Hall is to begin in the autumn.

The original plans for the hall, which has been open for about five years, made provision for a number of units of accommodation and it is this that is now going to be completed.

In a notice outside the hall, the property's trustees say that they hope to provide 'hostel-type' accommodation by the start of next year's tourist season.

The announcement that work is to start relatively soon will come as a surprise to many Sark residents, because although the notice has been on public display for a couple of weeks at least, its content focuses principally on explaining why the public bar on the premises will soon be a no-smoking zone.

News on the provision of accommodation is all but buried at the end of a lengthy explanation about why the premises were originally exempt from the smoking ban in all publicly-owned buildings introduced some time ago and the reasons for the ban now being introduced.

While many will welcome the work on what will be the final phase within the original building, tagging the announcement of it on to the fag end (pun very much intended) of a notice about a totally different subject is perhaps not the best way of ensuring that it actually reaches the widest of audiences.

But, as I am frequently reminded, Sark is different - a phrase which can be interpreted in many ways, sometimes as an excuse for not doing things in the best way.

While on the subject of notices, news of planning applications to the Development Control Committee - and indeed the DCC's decisions - is published monthly, along with the advice that plans can be inspected in the committee room.

However, pinned to the Chief Pleas Assembly Room (and Seneschal's Court) door this week is a notice announcing that while all other plans will be displayed in the usual place, those relating to the development of the Beauregard Hotel and the Dixcart Hotel are displayed separately in the Assembly Room. The notice also contains helpful information regarding the closing date for objections to the plans.

Quite why these two applications merit different treatment to the others before the committee is puzzling. Surely it can't be anything to do with the fact that they are ultimately owned by the knights of Brecqhou?

As an aside, the application list contains one for a 4ft breach of an earth bank for pedestrian access - in other words, a path. It has been deferred by the committee because it wants the area marked out with higher poles. As one Sarkee suggested to me this week, if there are conseillers on the planning committee who can't envisage what a 4ft-wide path looks like, then perhaps they should make way for some who can.

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I missed the traditional Good Friday excuse for getting soaking wet - otherwise known as sailing model boats on the duck pond - because I had to be in Guernsey, but am told that it was the customary enjoyable event.

Likewise, I am sure, was the Easter Egg Hunt at Stocks last Sunday. I saw my young neighbour Ollie de Carteret come home from that event laden with bounty, so I presume he'd had a successful morning.

Having criticised the DCC this week, I will redress the balance by again praising chairman Tony Dunks and his colleagues for holding another public meeting about a new housing occupancy law.

I thought it was another useful exercise and it was pleasing to note a good measure of unanimity among the people who attended. Jaw jaw is always better than war war.

* The email address for comment is fallesark@sark.net.