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THE WAREHOUSE CLUB RAID: THE INSIDE STORY
21/2/03: Almost two years ago the Warehouse, Lancaster's smallest night club, was raided by the police after an extensive undercover investigation into alleged drug dealing known as "Operation Bubblewrap."
The entire investigation -- from surveillance to raid to eventual court case -- cost over £1 million pound to mount. The club closed down and the premises are now under new ownership.
With the Warehouse case now over, local journalist Paul Wilkinson looks at the background to Lancaster's biggest ever nightclub raid and asks if 'Operation Bubblewrap' really was in the public interest. Importantly, he reveals exclusive video and new information about the discovery of cocaine inside the club on the night of the raid which raises serious questions about the conduct of the police that night.

. Find out why questions are still being asked and view video footage of the raid

A twisted wreckage of metal spaghetti is all that is left of scaffolding poles after the Stagecoach bus ran into them on Rosemary Lane on Tuesday afternon. One pole can be seen sticking into the top deck. Photo: Pascal Desmond Click HERE for a larger image

Workmen clear up some of the debris from the crash. Photo: Pascal Desmond

One of Totty's supply lorries parked on double yellow lines on St. Georges Quay.

LORRY PARKING MONITORED
19/2/03: Lorries servicing building works on St Georges Quay may be responsible for the dozens of broken flagstones laid just after the Millennium Bridge opened. Several lorries have been seen parking on the pavement in the morning, in clear breach of the double yellow lines on the street.
City Council engineers told Virtual-Lancaster they are "monitoring the situation".
It is unclear whether building company Totty or Persimmon Homes, who are responsible for the development, have any duty to make good the pavements after work has been completed.

DUKES LAUNCHES NEW YOUTH DRAMA GROUP
19/2/03: The Dukes Youth Arts Centre is keen to hear from any young people aged 14 ­ 16 years-old who are interested in drama.
The centre is setting up a new group who will meet on Saturdays from 11.00am ­ 1.00pm, starting on 8 March. The centre is planning a public performance of the group's work to take place in June. The Youth Arts Centre already has many established drama groups that are geared towards different ages, skills and interests. This new drama group offers a great opportunity to young people to be involved with a fresh project with experienced team workers.
If you are interested, please call Helen Clugston on 01524 64857.

PEACE MESSAGES REMOVED
19/2/03: The Council took down the peace messages tied to railings beside the Town Hall almost 24 hours after they started going up. The move prompted several annoyed calls and e-mails from peace protestors to the Council.
Commenting on the decision, a council spokesperson said "Although the anti war demonstration took place on Sunday many of the peace messages were in place on Friday and were left up over the weekend.
"It was thought that it was entirely reasonable to "clean up" on Monday. The gates are at the entrance to the Garden of Remembrance which is a particularly sensitive area for many people and there was a concern that if the messages had been left up at that location then there could have been complaints."
Council Chief Executive Mark Cullinan says there has been a situation recently where the Garden has been the subject of further "decorations" that the Council were asked to remove. However, the removal of the peace messages "was not > intended to cause offence and I apologise for any offence caused". Some complainants pointed out that other tributes -- and even birthday messages tied to railings on the Poynter Roundabout -- stay up for far longer than the peace messages. "The tributes to Princess Diana were not in that location, so therefore did not have the same sensitivity," says the Council.
"The issue of the birthday notices on highway railings is that they are illegal and are removed when highways staff are available. In this case staff at the Town Hall were available to remove the messages at relatively short notice."
Some peace protestors have begun to put peace messages on the temporary barriers surrounding new paving work in Lancaster's Market Square.

LATHAM EXHBITION AT THE DUKES 19/2/03: An exhibition of drawings and digital prints entitled Finger Bozron by Adam Latham is on display in the Dukes Gallery until 18 April.
Adam's work comprises digital prints drawn on the computer using a drawing tablet and other drawings made with a more traditional approach. He combines hideous ideas with absurd cartoon imagery that relates closely to the world of graphics. "My style of drawing would be best described as comic book," says Adam of his work. "I frequently use gruesome imagery combined with bright colours to give the work a childish but vaguely sinister quality. The drawn line can create a feeling of continuity throughout the picture to create a visual buzz is produced. I am interested in a blend of absurdity and horror and I try to make work that deals with our desire to sanitise issues through humour."
Adam is from Lancaster and studied art and design at Blackpool and the Fylde College. He is currently studying at Byam-Shaw School of Art in North London. He has had several exhibitions locally including the Whaletail, the No 6 Café and in March this year he will be in part of a group show at Nylon in Bethnal Green, East London.
The exhibition is open to everyone. Please call the Dukes on 01524 598500 for more details.

RECYCLING COULD WIN YOU 100 POUNDS
17/2/03: As part of Lancashire Waste Partnerships ongoing campaign to encourage people within Lancaster district to recycle more of their rubbish, householders are being offered the chance to win £100 during February and March.
Last year people in Lancaster City Council recycled over 1500 tonnes of paper through their doorstep collection scheme. The scheme covers 36,500 households across the Authority and participating households will be given the chance to win £100 in February and March.
To stand a chance of winning the prize householders should either pick up a leaflet from their local town halls, libraries or watch out for a voucher in the Lancashire Evening Post.
Simply fill in your details and put the slip in with your fortnightly newspaper recycling collection.
Recycling newspapers and magazines can save energy and prevent a valuable resource from being wasted. As an example, every tonne of paper recycled will save 15 trees, as well as their surrounding habitat and wildlife.
"Newspaper and magazines make up a significant portion of the typical bin in Lancaster," explained Cabinet member with responsibility for Environmental Health, Coun David Barker. "If we are to achieve the challenging targets for waste reduction that we have set then they are an important element for everyone to tackle. At Lancaster City Council we are committed to making it easy for people to recycle and our doorstep collection scheme is a good idea."
The draws will be held in 28 February and 28 March.

KEEP THE MARKET IN MARKET SQUARE SAY GREENS
17/2/03: Green councillors are urging the Council to stand firm and to keep the street market centred on Market Saquare.
The statement comes after calls at a recent meeting with the Chamber of Commerce for the market to move back to Church Street. This is apparently to encourage people into Church Street and because of complaints from a few large shops around Market Square.
"The street market brings an important vitality to the City Centre," says Coun Jon Barry. "Market Square is the traditional home of the market and that is where it should stay. "The City Council should support the street market and encourage it to expand along New Street and Cheapside and into Church street."
The street market has been in a variety of locations over the years including Church Street and Penny Street.

PICTURE THIS -- BEFORE IT'S TOO LATE
17/2/03: Lancaster City Council is urging the junior David Baileys of the District to come forward with their prize snapshots for their Photographic Competition - before the competition closing date of 28 February.
Featured in the Winter/Spring Issue of Lancaster City Council's Community Magazine YOUR District Council MATTERS, residents were asked to send in their favourite photograph of a scene from the district such as a summer event in Morecambe, a sunset across the bay, one of Lancaster's historic buildings or a landscape from the Lune Valley.
The response and quality of photographs has to date been amazing and whilst entries are still flooding in for the Senior Section (17 or over) very little interest has been received for the junior section (under 17 years).
So if you are a young keen photographer or simply have a special photograph you may have taken on a day out in the District why not send it to the Council?
This could be your chance to get your snapshot adorning the front cover of a future edition of YOUR District Council MATTERS. The magazine is sent to some 61,000 households across the district and as an added bonus the winning entries will also be put on display in the Folly Gallery on Friday 21st of March, 2003.
Slides and prints should be posted to Cath Gillin, Communications Office, Lancaster Town Hall, Lancaster LA1 1PJ. Digital images must be a minimum of 300 dpi, in jpeg or tif format and emailed to Cath Gillin at or sent on disk to the above address. Don't forget to include your name, age, address and telephone number with your picture.

BANNERS PROTEST AT WAR PLANS
17/2/03: Lancastrians returning from Saturday's Stop The War protests showed their views around the city this morning by hanging banners on Morecambe Rd and above the motorway near Galgate. The banners, reading 'Blood for Oil?' and 'Our Tax for War?' were clearly visible to passing drivers.
A spokesperson for the group, Sam Highgate said: "We were inspired by the massive march against war in London. We wanted to do something here in Lancaster, and at the same time we're asking ourselves whether we're happy to sit back and let our taxes fund the killing of children for oil. We're extremely unhappy at the US sabre-rattling.
"The UK has put aside £3.2bn for fighting this war - just think how many nurses could be employed, how many children in the third world we could feed, how many teachers could be trained with that money. All of these would do more to fight terrorism than any war ever could."

£1000 BOOST FOR MAYOR'S CHARITY FUND
17/2/03: The Mayor's Charity Fund "Donate 2Sk8" received a boost this week when £1000 was donated from Lancaster University by the Vice-Chancellor, Professor Paul Welling.
Along with a donation of £100 from local Chartered Surveyors Harrison Willis & Moore, £250 from Ripley St Thomas School and another £100 from various members of the public the total so far has now reached £4,415.
"I'm delighted with the donations we have received this week," commented the Mayor, Councillor Eileen Blamire. "I am very grateful of the support we have received from the local educational establishments and that of local companies. We still have a long way to go, but I still have a few fundraising events before I finish my year of office".
The Mayor will be holding a Charity Bowling Night at Morecambe Superbowl on Wednesday 2 April, anyone wishing to enter a team can do so either by contacting the Superbowl or the Mayor's Office at Lancaster Town Hall for an application form.

• Any donations to the Mayor's Charity should be made payable to "The Mayor's Charity Fund" and sent to The Mayor's Office, Town Hall, Lancaster LA1 1PJ

COUNCILLOR'S SEEKS GM MOTION SUPPORT
17/2/03: In response to the FoE GM-Free Britain campaign, councillor Jonathan Sear has tabled a motion to county council (drafted in consultation with FoE national staff) proposing that Lancashire commits to becoming a GM-Free area.
"If the motion is to be passed it will need the support of the Council's majority Labour group," explains Coun Sear. "Please try to find time to contact Cllr Brian Johnson - the cabinet member for Rural Affairs - and ask him to ensure the Labour Group supports the motion.
Alternatively you can also register your support for the motion by e-mailing the leader of the County Council.
Souht Hams Council in Devon recently went GM-Free, Friends of the Earth has reported: see news story

POO!
17/2/03: A rash of little American flags has appeared in the dog piles along the canal, carrying the unarguable slogan 'poo to war'. An inspired piece of local-meets-global campaigning or what? (Thanks to Sue Holden for this)
• Strong stomach? View the poo!

HANNAH FRANK ­ DRAWINGS OF THE THIRTIES AND FIFTIES
17/2/03: The work of Hannah Frank, Glasgow artist and sculptor, will be March's art exhibition at the Gregson Community Centre, Moorgate, Lancaster. With an opening night on Tuesday, 4 March (starts 7.00 - all welcome) the exhibition runs throughout the month and includes a selection of Hannah Frank's haunting, Aubrey Beardsley-like black and white drawings, mainly depicting women, some with a Jewish theme. Many of the drawings are for sale as reasonably priced reproduction prints (signed by the author) and as cards.
Over the past century Glasgow has been the home of significant women artists producing very personal and individual work in a variety of different media. Hannah Frank's artistic career spans seventy years. Aged 94 today and still going strong, having only stopped working around five years ago. he currently lives in a care home in her native Glasgow with her husband, Lionel Levy, a former Maths teacher, surrounded by many of her sculptures and drawings, which are much admired by the care home staff, other residents, and visitors.
This exhibition only shows her drawings, mainly done in the 1930s and 1950s, and won't provide a chance to see her later sculpture, some of which is pictured on her website at www.linknet1.com/hfrank.
Hannah Frank studied at the Jordanhill Training College and the Glasgow School of Art. She has had drawings and sculpture exhibited at the Royal Scottish Institute, the Royal Scottish Academy, and the Hunterian, in her native Scotland, and at the Royal Academy. Last year her drawings and sculpture were exhibited at Lancaster University's Peter Scott Gallery.
The Lancaster connection comes through Hannah Frank's niece, Fiona Frank, who lives in the city and worked at the University until recently. "My aunt has always said that like Longfellow, she wanted to leave 'footsteps in the sands of time'," reveals Ms. Frank "I've grown up with her drawings and sculptures and I'm really pleased that I can contribute to getting her work to a wider audience. First and foremost my Aunt Hannah wants to be known as a Glasgow artist, though she's pleased that people in other parts of the United Kingdom are interested in her work!".


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