Surprise!

This is the week that Brassington Avenue finally imploded.

City Lofts was the owner and expected developer of very large block of flats which looked stunning on the mock up but stubbornly remained a fairly unattractive and real hole in the ground.

They have thrown in the towel and placed site in hands of Receiver.

The reaction in Sutton is a profound sigh of relief.

But then a feeling of irritation takes over to be followed in its turn by intense frustration. Heading towards Mr Angry.

My town has been mucked around for years while this bunch of City Guys from far away throw the dice and make their projections all the time stifling the work that needs to be done to take the Town forward.

The Tory response was really vigorous.

Councillor Howard went out on a limb “I hope a sympathetic developer will acquire it.”

Whereas the Poster Boy climbed on the high wire and threw caution to the winds…”Future developments should…….not stick out like a sore thumb.”

It’s contributions such as these from the deep intellectual well of modern free thinking which keep the Conservative Flag flying in the Town.

And I thought we were going to sit around and let it rot. Like we have for the last four years.

Dr Rob, I know has been fretting about identifying the line, the political difference between the parties.

Here it is. Its in Black and White and Pictures.

The Tory approach to the shambles is to trust the market. And if a sympathetic developer does not appear, we’ll do the best with what we get.

Dr Rob entertains no illusions that this is solvable overnight. But his starting point is the power and the preference of the community. And if the community vest their trust and confidence in elected Councillors, he expects them to employ any and all levers available to bring about an acceptable result.

So his instinct would not lead him to issue anodyne statements prior to serious hand wringing from the Directors Box a tidy distance from the field of play.

His instinct is to rub on the liniment, grab hold of the mascot and get on the pitch.

We need to fill that hole and we need to coordinate our ambitions for Sutton Coldfield.

That said, we need to take charge. And if deals and trades and understandings and regional cooperation are what it takes to rescue the Town Centre, Dr Rob’s water tells him that the elected guy needs to get used to it, to get started and to get real.

I hope its a game of two halves.

We are six nil down. We are not going to get to extra time by hoping.

Or by playing safe. Or sucking a sore thumb.

The kop is about to give tongue.

“You don’t know what you’re doing”


Nightwatchman