NEXT January has been set as the target date for the public launch of the Teignmouth Regeneration Plan.
Bill Ridley, chairman of the regeneration project's management group, said that a public exhibition of ideas to revitalise Teignmouth would open on Wednesday, January 21.
'It will show that we're still alive and kicking,' said Mr Ridley. 'I'm hopeful that the plan we're working on will satisfy the majority of the population of Teignmouth. But the important thing is to get public reaction so that we can amend the plan in the light of their comments.'
Mr Ridley said that the completed community plan would be submitted in April 2004 to a new company, backed by the South West Regional Development Agency (SWERDA), which will help Teignmouth to find medium to long-term funding for the project.
'There will be a six-month consultation period with the company, after which we will know whether we have been successful,' he said.
Last week the project's management received reports from the sub-groups working on the key aspects of the plan: sports and leisure, arts and culture, business and tourism, and youth.
Mr Ridley said that while some sub-groups still had work to do, a draft community plan outlining short, medium and long-term goals would be presented to a scrutiny meeting on October 22.
Caroline Rae, working with the chairmen of the sub-groups, will lead the drafting team consisting of Ian Parkes (sport and leisure and youth), Roger Stone (art and culture) and Keir Duffin (business and tourism).
'We had hoped that we could go public by the end of October,' said Mr Ridley.
'But the plan will contain all the ideas generated as a result of past consultations, such as the Fighting Back document, the 2002 Halcrow Report commissioned by Teignbridge Council on the economic future of Teignmouth. Indeed, some of the ideas stretch back at least half a century.'
Mr Ridley confirmed that the Teignmouth Regeneration Project's 2002 statement of interest to SWERDA would be updated and sent off early in November.