I see from last week's paper that East Devon District Council are still determined to force two viable businesses in Seaton to close just at a time when it is vital for the town and the owners to keep them going. Where is common sense? As I pointed out i

I see from last week's paper that East Devon District Council are still determined to force two viable businesses in Seaton to close just at a time when it is vital for the town and the owners to keep them going. Where is common sense? As I pointed out in a previous letter, Green Dragon Antiques are next door to Pastimes - a place full of slot machines, which is hardly in keeping with a so-called Conservation Area. It is even more ludicrous when, apparently, the council had given consent for the windows to be replaced and then, when the owner had spent a considerable amount doing so for very good reasons, the council changed its mind. It's the same with Animal Botanical - who on earth notices the windows are plastic framed? - it is a well-presented property, not empty or derelict.If the council is so nit-picking about some things, how was it they allowed plastic framed doors to be put in the town hall? I remember one well-known local who wished to replace windows with a Georgian type a few years ago but they weren't allowed to. Who decides what is in keeping and what is not? There are more important things to worry about now, such as stopping Seaton from becoming a ghost town - we need all the shops we can get. The two shops in question are not an eyesore, so logically they should stay as they are. I think one or two properties below them in Queen Street have plastic framed windows and doors.I expect the Woolworths premises will remain depressingly empty for goodness knows how long, rather like the previous Co-op premises in Fore Street. We do not need empty shops. It is a bit late in the day to worry about conservation as a lot of the premises which gave Seaton its unique character 50 years ago have been demolished.B DuckhouseHarepath Road Seaton