Tories Raid Playing Fields Fund (Saffron Walden Constituency Liberal Democrats)

Saffron Walden Constituency Liberal Democrats <info@saffronwaldenlibdems.org.uk>

Tories Raid Playing Fields Fund

September 20, 2008 10:54 PM

Councillor Richard Freeman with shoppers in Saffron Walden In a letter to the press, Saffron Walden Lib Dem Town Councillor Richard Freeman has raised concerns about the attitude of the Town Council's current Conservative leadership to playing fields in the town.

Cllr Freeman writes "The current Council hijacked the £100k fund carefully set aside for playing fields so that it could take over the Tourist Information Centre, and help get Uttlesford District Council off the hook. Raiding the playing fields reserve was an easy way to do this - and Conservative Cllr Ketteridge caused Standing Orders to be suspended just so that the raid could take place.

Cllr Freeman went on "I was Mayor at the time we attempted the purchase of some 20 hectares of land which had become available on Thaxted Road. There were four lots, but by the time the Town Council had raised the necessary £100k, only one was left, and that was unsuitable for reasons of access. In the time it took to raise the monies (without taking the easy option of going for a loan), we lost the piece of land which would have been ideal. Your last Council therefore set aside the hard-won £100k to expedite the purchase of land, when it became available. Walden is under-supplied for decent playing fields - we have less than 50% of the recommended area for a town this size. Playing fields are an enduring asset (look at the Anglo-American Memorial fields, which hosts both our cricket and football clubs). Adding to our playing field space would have benefited the townsfolk for generations to come.

Cllr Freeman concluded "Instead, we are now right back where we started. We cannot move quickly to buy land on the rare occasions that it becomes available, so your Town Council will always be beaten by those with the cash. The money has been spent keeping the TIC going for one year only. What happens next year, no-one seems to know. You can only raid the piggy bank once. Next year, the playing field fund will have been spent, and the TIC will have to be paid for out of real money - from our taxes, in other words. Either that, or the council will have to cut some of its services, such as looking after the open spaces around the town, or maintaining our excellent childrens' playgrounds. Saving the TIC may have been a grand gesture, but it remains to be seen if it is a sustainable one - and to what extent it will damage the rest of the Town Council's services to the community."