Hello everybody. My name is Mark Cargill and I’ve just had the privilege and honour of being appointed Mayor of Alcester for the coming year 2013-2014. Being a born and bred Alcestrian I am committed to ensuring the town remains the unique and vibrant place we all love to live in.
There are many challenges ahead, not in small part due to the recession, with cut backs on spending. Also, we are faced with significant proposed housing development which if not managed correctly could have a negative effect on the character of our town. I will be striving to ensure that any changes are in the best interests of Alcester. There are also many exciting events happening this year to look forward to including our traditional street market the CLA game fair. The fair will be the major event of the year in this region.
Although I’ve only been Mayor for 2 weeks as of today, there have already been a number of events I’ve already been involved in. On May 7th I was inaugurated as Mayor. I was delighted that many of my family and friends were able to attend. An enjoyable part of this position is the opportunity to meet the other Mayors and Chairmen from neighbouring towns and parishes. This is the period when most are elected and I have attended several other ‘Mayor Makings’. This is an excellent opportunity to build relationships that will continue throughout the year.
May 12th and the Tug of War Event Jubilee Fields – this was a fantastic event with 60+ teams of all ages. The weather wasn’t brilliant but this didn’t stop the enthusiasm for the day. It was a marvellous event to showcase the new Jubilee Centre and everyone agreed how enjoyable it was. I also had the privilege of unveiling the Fields in Trust plaque, meaning that our fields will remain the town’s forever.
This Saturday was the Food Festival with a fantastic turn out on a cool but dry day. An estimated 7-10 thousand people turned up which is marvellous for our town. In the afternoon I was invited to present the medals to Alcester football club. This is one of the largest single sporting organisations of its type in Warwickshire with over 250 youngsters in the club. What a fantastic and well run organisation it is.
This is the first Mayoral blog and I hope to keep you informed on what I’ve been doing, both from a Civic and Council perspective, so that you are all able to keep up with what’s happening in your town. I hope you enjoy reading this blog, so do please keep checking back to see what I’ve been up to.