St Helen’s Wharf closure and Lane Rental Charges

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Work started this morning (9 June) beside St Helen’s Church. As a result, there was no through traffic along St Helen’s Wharf, and manned traffic lights were operating at the Iron Bridge to allow residents access in and out of the area.

The work was being carried out on behalf of Openreach and is likely to have been connected with improvements to the broadband network.

Residents living nearby, who experienced disruption from the gas mains works earlier this year, questioned why the two projects could not have been coordinated. However, the work was completed more quickly than expected. By this evening, the channel linking two BT access covers had been tarmacked over and the road had reopened. Road signs had warned of a 5 day closure and it appears to have been 1 day.
Oxfordshire County Council has introduced a Lane Rental Scheme to help reduce disruption from roadworks. More details can be found at: https://www.oxfordshire.gov.uk/business/licences-and-permits/lane-rental-scheme.

Under the scheme, charges of up to £2,500 per day can be applied for works on designated Lane Rental Streets during traffic-sensitive periods. From the published map, St Helen’s Wharf is covered by the scheme, giving contractors a financial incentive to complete the work as quickly as possible.

The scheme was not in operation during the much longer gas mains project. Had it been, Oxfordshire County Council might have collected a decent amount in lane rental charges.

Acacia – cheers to 25 years

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Acacia, the charity shop in Bath Street, recently celebrated its 25th anniversary, and banners marking the occasion are displayed in the window.

In 2017, donations left overnight outside the shop were set alight, causing extensive damage. After a rebuild, the shop was ready to reopen in 2020 when the Covid pandemic caused further delays. Acacia at 8-10 Bath Street, was incorporated on 18 February 1997. So it is older than those 25 years but has been effectively open for 25 years .

The shop offers a wide range of items, starting with greeting cards priced at 25p.

There is a basket of miniature china jugs and vases, once-popular souvenir collectables. The Horsham jug, with its decorative lattice neck, looks worth more than the ones for Bishop Auckland, Crowborough, Dorking and Durham.

Near the window in the vintage section is a copy of The Victor Book for Boys – 1967. In it the aristocratic footballer called ‘Gorgeous Gus’, arrives pitch-side in a Rolls to find his team, with ten men, are 1-0 down. The butler tells him that his help is needed, and so he gets out and helps win the game using intelligence – not dashing about.

Gus might have appreciated another book on sale at Acacia, In Praise of Slowness. I wonder what it would have to say about charity shops. Perhaps: ‘Those who take their time find unexpected treasures.’

Tulip Tree

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The tulip tree, just to the left of the main entrance to Albert Park in Abingdon, is currently in flower. It can be identified by its four-lobed leaves and greenish-yellow flowers, marked with orange at the base.

The flowers are not immediately obvious high among the branches, I found one on the ground. Close up, I could see the tulip-shaped petals and long stamens at the centre.

Native to eastern North America, the Tulip Tree (Liriodendron tulipifera) flowers for a few weeks each year in late spring. Last year I visited Albert Park every month to record how the park changed through the seasons, but missed the tree in bloom. Looking at the number of fallen petals beneath it, it has been flowering for some time already, but more blooms are still appearing.

Edible Abingdon Revisited

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The raised beds and plots planted as part of Edible Abingdon, a project of the Abingdon Carbon Cutters, are looking good again this year, especially after all the rain of the last week. Alongside fruit, vegetables and herbs grown for people to enjoy and eat, the garden outside Old Station House has animals and gnomes to be discovered.

The garden near Abbey House has been recently dug over and has herbs, strawberries and rhubarb.

Down by the Open Air Pool, is the first Edible Abingdon garden I featured on this blog back in 2015. It has been left to grow and among the herbs and other edible plants are gooseberries.

Gooseberries seem to be one of those fruits more often found in gardens than shop shelves – quite tart like rhubarb and best cooked and sweetened.

There are also three large raised beds alongside Caldecott Recreation Ground that had not been tended when I last visited (a few days ago). I am not sure who looks after them, or whether they are intended for community gardeners to take in hand.