Clubs call foul on pitch pricing
Council under-fire over costs
Concerns have been raised about the council’s pricing structure for clubs using football pitches at parks in Blairgowrie.
The issue was brought to light in a presentation by community councillor Sandy Thomson, highlighting the many and varied uses of public parks, at the latest meeting of Blairgowrie and Rattray Community Council, held last week in Rattray Church Hall.
Mr Thomson, who is also the chair of Blairgowrie and Rattray Community Football Club (BRCFC), said that the pricing structure for pitch fees seemed to be unfair, claiming that a number of football clubs use the pitches at Davie
Park and are paying around £300 each a year for using the same pitches.
However, despite paying the pitch fees several times, Davie Park receives the same level of maintenance from Perth and Kinross Council that a pitch used and paid for by one team would get.
Mr Thomson also pointed out at the public meeting that the £60,000 PKC promised a number of years ago to upgrade the pavilion at Davie Park has never materialised.
BRCFC pays around £2000 per annum for the pavilion’s upkeep, even though it is a council-owned property.
In his presentation, Mr Thomson said: “Everyone uses the parks - dog walkers, picnickers, families, golfers, tennis fans - but only BRCFC has to pay.
“We don’t object to paying for pitches but there are four teams at Davie Park and the Juniors and the clubs are paying £1200.
“We are not asking for it to be free, we just want a level playing field and for PKC to sit down and discuss it with us.”
Mr Thomson added that this was not just an issue affecting Blairgowrie and Rattray, before going on to say he has received emails from other football associations and clubs in Perth and Kinross highlighting the same problem.
He continued: “To be fair to PKC, they have renovated one of the pitches at Davie Park and put up new goals but the whole of Davie Park has been decimated and is needing refertilised.
“Piggy Lane needs work too.
“And PKC is meant to keep the pitches safe as well as maintain them - which means keeping joyriders off the pitches.”
Blairgowrie and Glens councillor Caroline Shiers told the meeting: “The system does seem to be not very fair.
“I will certainly raise this with the chair of the environment committee, which is responsible for coming up with the overall pricing structure.”
The Blairie contacted the local authority and asked for a response to the concerns raised at the meeting but did not receive a reply prior to going to press on Tuesday this week.