Firm closing

[Vaaish]

The oldest building still standing in Douglas is Isola in John Street, from around 1715/1720. Prior to that area being developed it was once owned by Deemster Parr (as in Parr St.) who had a large residence located more or less where Ballakermeen School now stands. The former Douglas Hotel on the Quay dates from 1759 and is likely the second oldest building. Built on land owned by the Duke of Athol it was the home of an Irish ‘businessman’ (smuggler) called Robert Black. After his departure, the Duke lived there while waiting for the Castle Mona to be built. 

[Roger Mexico]

18 minutes ago, Omobono said:

what about the towers on South Quay where the French Spy who has supposed to have escaped napoleon  lived just by the bridge  start of leigh terrace 

This sounds to likely to have been Pierre Baume, who had quite a colourful life before coming to the Island and lived on South Quay.  He was a great benefactor via his will - Frances has more detail.

[The Voice of Reason]

12 hours ago, Andy Onchan said:

Scott's was a favourite of ours when Donald Slee had it.

Gosh that was years ago. You’ve just reminded me.

[Albert Tatlock]

I worked briefly with the son of the owner of Sam Webb's (shop) in the early 2000s...he said that Webb's was the third building to be built on the prom...Castle Mona the 1st.

...and that Sam Webb's has a couple of cellar tunnels under it...extending to the shops opposite. 

[John Wright]

1 hour ago, Albert Tatlock said:

I remember reading it was St. Matthew's Church, which goes back to around 1700 ish.

St Matthew’s is 1880’s. Built to replace the church, old St Matthew’s, that stood where the Legion ( ex Market Hall ) now is

[John Wright]

35 minutes ago, Vaaish said:

Deemster Parr (as in Parr St.) who had a large residence located more or less where Ballakermeen School now stands.

As in Parrville Ballabeg to where he retired. He wrote the very first treatise on Manx Law - Deemster Parr’s Abstract.

[John Wright]

10 minutes ago, Albert Tatlock said:

I worked briefly with the son of the owner of Sam Webb's (shop) in the early 2000s...he said that Webb's was the third building to be built on the prom...Castle Mona the 1st.

...and that Sam Webb's has a couple of cellar tunnels under it...extending to the shops opposite. 

Sam and his Belgian wife ( Mary Adolphine Augusta Eugenie Webb ) were childless.

They met in Flanders in WW1. She was a wartime child bride.

He went on to run the Webbs business, become an Alderman and Mayor of Douglas.

he was a few years older than Mary. I remember her in the late 70’s and early 80’s, in the shop, in a wheelchair. She ruled the place with a rod of iron. When Sam died he left everything to Mary and she was a successful businesswoman in her own right.

It’s due to Mary that the Regency houses, on Strathallan Crescent, were so well preserved. She lived in one and bought 4 or 5 of the others.

Of course there wasn’t a prom in those days. The approach to the Castlemona was from St George’s Church, Hill Street, Finch Road, the across the Villa gardens, across what is now Broadway, along Castlemona Avenue, and then the lane that ran through behind what are now the promenade hotels. Almost a straight line.

The block of hotels that is Clarence Terrace, and all the fine houses on Finch Road date from 1800’s to 1820’s when the Castlemona was the vice Regal lodge

 

[Non-Believer]

Speaking of closures...

[Tinpot]

36 minutes ago, Non-Believer said:

Speaking of closures...

They aren’t closures though.

[The Phantom]

41 minutes ago, Tinpot said:

They aren’t closures though.

Mentioned in 'Two tier fear'.

The statement is not clear.  Some will be old defunct names and they are having a sweep out.  Many will however be strike-offs, dissolutions or liquidations and I can assure you the number of those going through now is the highest I have ever seen. 

[Barlow]

  

6 hours ago, Non-Believer said:

Speaking of closures...

I can see there is a need for a periodic clearut of companies. I understand that many were written to and if no reply then taken off the register. It would appear that Isle of Man Bank have used the data and employed a similar tactic to try and close down accounts (there's money in them thar closed bank accounts, it has to go 'somewhere' - see bona vacantia for reference). The Company Registry are happy to reinstate a company name for 50 quid.

The bleedin' bank less happy, and they have set their many hurdles for some trying to keep their business bank account.

Someone needs a jolly good dressing down for this, it has caused a lot of trouble.

 

Edited Wednesday at 03:31 PM by Barlow

[Non-Believer]

19 minutes ago, The Phantom said:

Mentioned in 'Two tier fear'.

The statement is not clear.  Some will be old defunct names and they are having a sweep out.  Many will however be strike-offs, dissolutions or liquidations and I can assure you the number of those going through now is the highest I have ever seen. 

This is the point of concern, many of these strike-offs will be as a result of Govt doing a bit of housekeeping and having a periodic clear out of the register; however all these names represent work and employment for CSPs etc. and to have @ 3 times as many as usual (and also still within 6 months of the end of the financial year already) does not appear to be a good omen, on the face of it.

[manxman8180]

3 hours ago, Non-Believer said:

This is the point of concern, many of these strike-offs will be as a result of Govt doing a bit of housekeeping and having a periodic clear out of the register; however all these names represent work and employment for CSPs etc. and to have @ 3 times as many as usual (and also still within 6 months of the end of the financial year already) does not appear to be a good omen, on the face of it.

represent work and employment for CSP's?  If you look at the actual answer:

https://www.tynwald.org.im/spfile?file=/business/BusinessHansardIndex2126/W-202401-1229.pdf

2006 and 1931 Act removals are not dissimilar in pattern to previous years, if not lower.  The entire spike appears almost exclusively down to Business Names.  Anyone can (and clearly many people do) register something on the off-chance and then never use, or hold many different potential names, or just let it lapse.

It's a lot of people's £50's down the drain for them, but don't think you can read doom and gloom into it.

 

[Roger Mexico]

39 minutes ago, manxman8180 said:

represent work and employment for CSP's?  If you look at the actual answer:

https://www.tynwald.org.im/spfile?file=/business/BusinessHansardIndex2126/W-202401-1229.pdf

2006 and 1931 Act removals are not dissimilar in pattern to previous years, if not lower.  The entire spike appears almost exclusively down to Business Names.  Anyone can (and clearly many people do) register something on the off-chance and then never use, or hold many different potential names, or just let it lapse.

It's a lot of people's £50's down the drain for them, but don't think you can read doom and gloom into it.

Indeed if you look at that answer the Registry gave they make this explicit:

By way of explanation, the significant increase in the number of business names removed from the register already this year is a result of the Central Registry completing a full review of the business name register to remove those names that are no longer carrying on business.

It's actually a good example of a Tynwald WQ getting a better answer that it deserved.  Ashford had only asked for the totals: How many companies have been removed from the companies registry in each year from 2014 to the present.  The Registry broke it down by type to show what was going on.

Looking at the table, it's obvious that a similar exercise was carried out in 2014 and to a lesser extent 2018-9.  So one was clearly overdue.

By way of anecdote I got a couple of strike-off letters relating to a long-departed resident earlier this year and I suspect I'm not alone.