How does Gravesend-upon-Thames sound to you? That's how the town could soon be known as part of council ideas to try to increase tourism in the borough.

The re-brand was put forward by Cllr Jordan Meade (Con) at a Gravesham council cabinet meeting, where members had assembled to start coming up with proposals to cope with impending government cuts.

Cllr Meade, cabinet member for tourism and youth, said a change of name would “end some of the stigma” attached to Gravesend and increase footfall in the borough, despite the need to make cuts to the current spend on tourism.

“For too long we have looked at tourism as a cost instead of looking at the potential economic benefits,” he said.

“Tourism is on the up in the county but we are not seeing that trend reflected in the borough. Towncentric is serving people who already live in the borough rather than visitors.”

Last week, the council revealed it would have to find savings of £10,000 per working day once support grants completely evaporate in April 2019, with £1.43 million needed to come from changes to frontline services.

"Tourism is on the up in the county but we are not seeing that trend reflected in the borough" - Cllr Jordan Meade

As part of the changes to tourism, it was proposed that Towncentric, the information hub for attractions in the town, be moved from St George’s Shopping Centre to the new market hall when it opens later this year.

Town centre management would also be handled at the market, which Cllr Samir Jassal (Con) described as “a flagship building within the borough”, one that he hopes will attract more tourists to Gravesend.

It was also proposed that gate keepers in King Street, who ensure the road remains accessible to emergency services while closed to general traffic, be replaced by electronic bollards.

The changes presented by Cllrs Meade and Jassal regarding tourism and town centre management, in addition to economic development, would save the council £300,000 — more than half of those services’ combined net cost for this year.

Cllr Jassal added: “We have tried to still keep the spirit of the borough. This is about making savings while still keeping efficiency.

“Being the second highest tourism spenders in Kent — behind Canterbury — is clearly not sustainable.”

Council leader John Cubitt (Con) said that, despite the tourism cuts, the council needed to maintain “a programme of events that the public can enjoy, respect and look forward to”.

However, deputy leader David Turner (Con) said the council needed to reduce spending on events by £50,000 as part of a £185,000 reduction to public health and communities services.

Some of the suggestions included reducing the number of stages at the popular Riverside Festival to just a single platform, and scaling back the borough’s annual fireworks display in a bid to save £15,000.

Such events cost the council £84,830 a year, with sports and leisure facilities, excluding leisure centres, costing a further £198,000.

Cllr Leslie Hills, cabinet member for performance and administration, admitted that the cuts were “regrettable and unfortunate”, but the council’s director of public services, Stuart Bobby, said they had been prepared for.

In 2014 a review team was set up to help find ways in which the council could manage the cuts, notably through income provided through property acquisition.

Earlier this year it spent more than £3 million on Network House, at Gillingham Business Park, in the hope of leasing it out to bring in more than £220,000 in rent per year.

The investment is funded by balances the council had been holding in banks, building societies and other financial institutions, with £10 million set aside for purchasing property.

It would take 14 years for the council’s purchase to be completely paid off, by which point new businesses will be able to lease the building once an existing contract with Virgin Media expires.

Other measures taken to close part of the funding gap will see £270,000 made up in fees and charges, and another £240,000 from combining office services with other councils.

Although there were no objections to the proposals made for cuts at Monday’s cabinet meeting, there are two more steps they must go through before being approved.

Next Thursday the council’s scrutiny committee will meet to discuss the proposals and they will then be put back before the cabinet on November 7.

The council will then move on to the second set of services to be reviewed, which includes parking and amenities, revenues and benefits, and regulatory services such as dog wardens and community safety.

After that, planning, regeneration, customer and theatre services and the council’s maintenance and repairs workforce will all be considered.