Chorleywood PC vote against Play Area on Common
Following the agreement by Three Rivers RC and Chorleywood Parish Council to create a play area on Chorleywood Common residents voted The Spider Trap, designed by Eibe Play, as their preferred equipment design. But at a recent Parish Council meeting (Tues 1 Oct), Councillors voted against accepting the chosen design to be located on the site on the Common they had previously put forward near Shepherd’s Bridge (Location 13).
Most members of the public who spoke at the meeting were against the proposed scheme and voiced concerns ranging from formal equipment being visually intrusive and the possible adverse effect of a play area on a Local Nature reserve to lack of parking facilities, potential dangers arising from absence of fencing, health risks associated with dog fouling and proximity to the main road plus golf course as well as the likelihood of the location attracting youths in the evenings resulting in the possibility of anti-social behaviour.
Maria Larkin, representing Chorleywood Residents’ Association spoke in favour of the play area to be sited at the location The Parish Council ultimately rejected the proposal to accept Location 13 /13A as a suitable play area for Chorleywood. They went on to propose that the Open Spaces Committee be asked to promptly create a Play Trail on the Common and that they should respectfully suggest that Three Rivers District Council look at sitting a Play Area in the grounds of Chorleywood House. Both these proposals were carried.
Simone Tyson of Chorleywood Mums did not speak at the meeting
“It had not been made clear that normal procedures for speaking for or against an item on the agenda had been changed until after the log for representations had been closed.”
Parish Council Play Area Decision – “Disgraceful” and a “Monumental Mess Up” (Mon 7 Oct)
Chorleywood Parish Council were severely criticised for their decision to reject the proposed play area near Shepherd’s Bridge on the Common (Site 13) at a local forum held at the Memorial Hall yesterday (Mon 7 October)
The main concerns raised by the floor focused on the considerable time and money that had been invested before the proposed site was turned down.
County Councillor Chris Hayward described the way the Play Area had been handled as a “monumental mess up by the Parish Council” and added…
“I totally disassociate from them in the decision that they’ve made.
I respect that they can reject it but they have allowed thousands of pounds of public money to be spent on working up a scheme on the Common and at the eleventh hour pulled the rug from under our feet. I appreciate the quality of the Common… but this is a matter of huge regret.”
Henry Goldberg,Vice Chairman of Chorleywood Residents’ Association summed up the PC’s decision as “disgraceful.”
The scheme has been turned down “mainly for health and safety reasons” which prompted comments about the PC not having any health and safety consultants or traffic experts on board.
Tony Edwards of the Open Spaces Committee stated that the Play Area Focus Group was made up of members of the Parish Council, District Council, Residents’ Association and Chorleywood Mums
“ We were all guilty of not being aware of the potential dangers of the site.”
Once the initial suggestion of a location near Christ Church had been ruled out he implied the PC had made a rash move in an attempt to come up with a solution.
“ We panicked into trying to find an alternative and we did say we had misgivings from the beginning.”
Jackie Worrall, Councillor for Open Spaces and Planning, pointed out that there had been as many phonecalls opposing the scheme as those in favour and that the PC had stated early on that access and parking would be a problem with Site 13. She finished by saying that going ahead with this proposed site would have been “an accident waiting to happen.”
The Parish have requested that Chorleywood House Grounds be considered by 3RDC as an alternative location, and Tim Venner, representing Friends of Chorleywood House, said that while the Estate would be ‘more than happy’ to accommodate a play facility it was a ‘silly place’… as it was neither “within toddling or cycling distance of the village centre.”
Simone Tyson from Chorleywood Mums urged the PC to reconsider their decision in order to achieve a gold standard “door step provision” play space for the young people of Chorleywood and asked the PC to continue discussions with 3RDC on providing a space on the Common.
“The Common makes most sense as the location due to its proximity and the fact that you aren’t encouraging people to cross one of the busiest roads in the area (A404) “
She highlighted the reasons why, in her opinion, Chorleywood House should not be a first choice.
“The Common was chosen by local people as their preferred site”…
“Dog fouling is an issue on both sites. Education, self policing, and natural barriers on Chorleywood Common can be used to guard against this.”
She added that over recent years local childhood obesity statistics have more than tripled.
“Encouraging people to drive to Chorleywood House Estate rather than walking to Chorleywood Common hardly addresses this issue.”
Martin Trevett concluded the meeting by stressing that the funding from Three Rivers has not been withdrawn and went on to suggest that the Play Area be put on hold until next June when there would be some new members on the Parish Council Committee and the proposal could be looked at afresh.
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