A Large area of Heaton Park is under threat from the development of a sports facility by a private firm. Heaton Park is a Grade II Listed Public Park, yet little effort appears to have been made in consulting the tax paying public, users of the park or those that record the natural history within it on this privatisation of our park. This is to be a major development affecting users and local residents significantly.
The development is set to destroy a large area of natural beauty, as well as adding noise and light pollution to an otherwise quiet area of the park in the region of St Margaret's Road.
I received a letter inviting me, as a resident near to the park, to a 'meeting' outlining the proposals for a new sports development in the park. I went along this evening after work and found it was not really a meeting but more of a promotion for the development, which will include the following:
13 new small-sided football pitches; Two multi-use games areas; A pavilion incorporating shower and changing facilities; Two multipurpose meeting rooms with educational facilities, and a sports cafe/bar; A climbing wall; Cagesoccer; and a A skate park.
All of this is set to be built on the area of grassland that is to the west of the bowling greens in the north west of the park. They had a board stating that both ecological and noise impact surveys had been completed and that no significant ecology/species were found or were evident in the vicinity of the facility. A link to the details of the development is: http://www.heatonpark.org.uk/HeatonPark/System/Right_Menu/News/Default.aspx?CmsContentID=243 I will certainly be placing an objection to this development, as it would certainly impact on the reservoir through increased use of and expanded car park, noise from participants of outdoor games being played and floodlights pertruding from the development, which may impact on the roosting and feeding birds on the reservoir throughout the winter.
Goals Soccer Centres' proposal is being displayed again this Saturday in an open 'meeting' between 10am and 2pm, so if you would like to see it for yourselves then pop along, it is in the farm centre in the park.
Anyway, you can register your objections in a variety of ways through local MPs, Councillors, Goals Soccer Centres or offer your support to the objections through the Heaton Park trust, which is against all developments with the park, which was left to the people of Greater Manchester, not to businesses and the Council to take over and make money from.
They certainly have not contacted anyone involved in birds at any level in their 'survey' work, which would certainly have brought to their attention the reservoirs importance to certain species throughout the winter as a roost, nesting Tawny Owls near to the proposed development and Lesser Spotted Woodpeckers which are found occasionally in this area of the park, which will all be impacted by both noise from people playing football and the increase in traffic in and out of the park up to and beyond 10:30pm every evening, plus the light impact from floodlights lighting the 13 pitches. I hope that enough support is found to object to this, Regards, Sean.
Your objections are the only thing that can stop the loss of an area of park we will never get back and an opportunity to stop the impacts on bird numbers on the reservoir in the future.
You can support objections through Heaton Park trust at: Heatonpark.trust@ntlworld.com
You can lobby the local MP for Bury South on: ivanlewis@burysouth.fsnet.co.uk
and finally, Tom Pickstone, Liberal Democrat Councillor for Holyrood Ward has a good website which covers this as well as other issues. Although he not for or against it I am sure if enough people protest he will be against it: http://timpickstone.mycouncillor.org.uk his contact details are on the website.
