| Topic: | Re:Re:Re:Re:Re:Roehampton playing fields (Dover House Road) | |
| Posted by: | Nicholas Evans | |
| Date/Time: | 30/09/17 16:03:00 |
| Here’s a report from the Evening Standard published 3 days ago: Council bosses plan to sell off nearly 12 acres of public playing fields in the hope of saving £50,000 a year for upkeep while earning extra cash. Wandsworth council wants to lease the equivalent of six football pitches to developers in a 30-year deal. The “intention to dispose of” the land will be heard at the council’s finance committee tomorrow, after which a public consultation will take place. The lease for the land, officially registered as public open space since 1920, was awarded to TFC Leisure Ltd, and plans include building a pavilion with new changing rooms at the Dover House Road site. New lighting is planned along with a full-size “3G” artificial pitch for football, rugby and hockey. Other upgrades include a new cafe and revamped tennis courts. Selling off the site would cut £50,000 in annual maintenance fees and generate extra money, according to council agenda documents. But Wandsworth gave no guarantees that extra charges for new facilities being built will not be imposed. Reporting to councillors, Paul Chadwick, Wandsworth’s director of environment, said: “There are risks to the completion of the proposal due to planning consent requirements and potential objections delaying or preventing the project from progressing. “There is also a potential risk to the income stream projected for the council, which is profiled in such a way that revenues are far lower in earlier years than they are in later years.” Nick |