[milton-chat] [milton-news] Milton News 19/12/2006

[sally summerfield]

   I've been told it would not be feasable but I would love to see the
   Counrty Park return to the wild and wonderful place it was before
   S.C.D.C. "tamed" much of it to resemble a city park. Our 2 sons used
   to have fantastic times scrambling on their pedal-bikes, swinging from
   tree ropes,fishing and,when supervised, swimming in the pit. A  lovely
   way to cool off in the summer, even Richard and I were not averse to
   the occasional dip. Even the footpaths have been laid to indulge in
   passive policing preventing access to the best blackberry bushes. Oh
   happy days.
   Sally
       ______________________________________________________________

     From: Paul Oldham <paul at the-hug.org>
     To: milton-news at the-hug.net
     Subject: [milton-news] Milton News 19/12/2006
     Date: Tue, 19 Dec 2006 23:22:37 +0000
     >Country Park to Close?
     >----------------------
     >You may have seen the story in Saturday's "Cambridge Evening News"
     >titled "Closure threat for Milton park". This followed on from an
     >unexpected decision by SCDC's cabinet on Thursday.
     >
     >You may remember the recent SCDC press release about the future of
     the
     >park, it's still here
     <http://www.miltonvillage.org.uk/opus1654.html> on
     >the village web site. In it Councillor Vicky Ford, community
     development
     >portfolio holder said, "I do not want to see Milton Country Park
     closed.
     >Our longer-term options are to consider establishing a trust to
     take on
     >the park. But for now we need funds and local support to help us
     >maintain and improve this very special place for everyone in the
     >Cambridge area".
     >
     >The papers officers had prepared for cabinet backed this up, with
     a
     >proposal for a "super trust" to manage both Milton Country Park
     and
     >future country parks at Northstowe and elsewhere being the most
     likely
     >long term option.
     >
     >Cabinet changed all that though. The decision is recorded on
     SCDC's web
     >site thus:
     >
     >------------------------------------------------------------------
     -----
     > Cabinet AGREED to approve work to establish the medium /
     long-term
     > future of Milton Country Park through:
     > (a) Undertaking an Asset Management Review with the assistance of
     > Cambridgeshire County Council, subject to the outcome of the 15
     > December 2006 meeting between the Head of Community Services and
     > the Cambridgeshire County Council Head of Property Asset
     > Management, and
     > (b) Seeking an appropriate external organisation to take on by 31
     > August 2007 the management and possible ownership of the park,
     > whether through a Trust or by another suitable agency, but if no
     > suitable partnership could be arranged or appeared likely by that
     > date, that officers be instructed to take the necessary steps to
     > close the park.
     >------------------------------------------------------------------
     -----
     >
     >Ignoring the glorious irony of "[establishing] the medium /
     long-term
     >future of Milton Country Park" by proposing to close it item (b)
     >basically says that if they can't find someone else to take on
     >management or ownership of the park by 31/08/07 then they will
     close the
     >park. Whether closing the park is practical, possible or even
     legal is
     >open to debate but that's the possibility we're confronted with if
     they
     >can't find someone to take it on by the end of August.
     >
     >SCDC has been trying to find someone to take on management of the
     park
     >for a long time now and various organisations, Milton PC included,
     have
     >put up proposals but none have been accepted by SCDC for a variety
     of
     >reasons.
     >
     >Now the cabinet have presented the portfolio holder and her
     officers
     >with a fixed time scale in which they have to find a solution, or
     close
     >the park.
     >
     >I hope to have more to say on this later in the week - this
     posting is
     >just to keep you up to date.
     >
     >Oh, and by the way the cabinet also decided to reduce the number
     of
     >rangers running the park from three to two, again against the
     >recommendation of officers. This will happen anyway well before
     August.
     >
     >One final thing. The CEN article quotes SCDC Cllr Roger Hall
     agreeing
     >with the cabinet decision and it says he is a member of the
     Friends of
     >Milton Country Park. I'm assured by the Friends that this is not
     the
     >case and that he is not a member and does not speak for the
     Friends.
     >
     >--
     >~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
     ~~~~~~~~
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     _________________________________________________________________

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