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Resort sees crime increase
Crime in the resort is rising.
Addressing Morecambe Town Council last Thursday night, Sgt Lindsay Brown told councillors crime was up 1.9 per cent year-on-year.
He put the rise down to burglaries of sheds and garages and said residents should not be surprised if police were more visible in the town.
He said: “We have to alter what we are doing in order to halt the rise. People will see a lot more police on the streets of Morecambe over the next couple of months.
“We have had slight reductions in crime all the time I have been here, around four years, and this rise in nowhere near putting us back where we were.
“It had got to the stage where it couldn’t go any lower, we were really down to the bottom and because of a number of factors, spending cuts and the like, it has risen.”
He added that despite the rise, equivalent to 43 more crimes, anti-social behaviour was down 17.8 per cent on last year. Councillors also received a presentation regarding a proposed new series of music events, Morecambe Rocks.
Proposer James Halliday said events ranging from one-day concerts to three-day festivals could be held on either the former Bubbles site or former Frontierland site, capitalising on the current boom in “music tourism” and raising the profile of the local music scene.
He said the first event could be held as early as May Bank Holiday weekend 2013 and attract thousands of visitors to the resort.
The plans are in the early stages and councillors are to look at a business plan before moving ahead with any decision on backing the scheme.
Councillors also discussed plans to turn a playground on Parliament Street into a 29-space car park, and roundly supported the move due to the benefits for Yorkshire Street traders.
They also considered plans to turn Queen Street into a taxi rank and said they would voice their objections to Lancaster City Council on the grounds it would take away parking from shoppers.
After discussion from councillors, town clerk David Croxall will advise a local resident who had contacted the council with regards to bringing back Morecambe Carnival after members decided is was far too big a job to add to their current workload.
Councillor John Bates, at his first meeting since being re-elected, said: “It would be wonderful but it won’t happen unless a large group of people in the community want it to happen.”
The council will also write to Lancashire County Council regarding plans for 20mph speed limits in the resort.
Councillors almost unanimously rejected the blanket nature of the proposals saying it would be better if they were introduced to target areas around schools and other such areas.
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Weather for Morecambe
Monday 20 May 2013
Today
Heavy rain
Temperature: 10 C to 14 C
Wind Speed: 21 mph
Wind direction: West
Tomorrow
Sunny spells
Temperature: 8 C to 14 C
Wind Speed: 22 mph
Wind direction: North west
