When I was elected to Tunbridge Wells Borough Council in 1996 one of my early appointments was to attend the AGM of the Rusthall Community and Youth Project. At the meeting I was elected to the committee of the Project: my two councillor colleagues declining to be nominated.
The Project had a number of problems to contend with and came close to closing down. I became chairman and invited Mike Bassett to join the committee. Since then the Project has gone from strength to strength and when I retired as chairman Mike took over.
Recently the Project has distributed a leaflet in Rusthall setting out ideas for a new pavilion at the Southwood Road recreation ground which could double up as a community facility.
An excellent idea, but the Project has been here before. Then we were informed by the planners at Tunbridge Wells Borough Council that we could not have a building as it would be on green belt land, even though there were football pitches and allotments adjacent to the existing changing rooms. Since then two play areas have been developed close to the changing rooms.
The reason given for refusal was that a community room would not be a building incidental to use of land. Had we been building a golf course a club house would have been permitted! Logical, yes: helpful, no.
Hopefully common sense will prevail and planning permission will be granted for the proposed pavilion along with an increase in parking provision in the area.
No comments:
Post a Comment