Scout group strikes lucky with access road land exchange deal
‘MORE GAINED THAN LOST’ IN AGREEMENT WITH £40M GEDLING BY-PASS DEVELOPERS
A GEDLING Scout group is reaping the benefits of a new £40m bypass.
The Gedling Access Road is expected to be finished by the spring following some delays. It will provide a link between the B684 Mapperley Plains and the A612 Trent Valley Road/nottingham Road.
Land owned by the 3rd Woodthorpe (St Mark’s) Scout Group was on the route and Ron Hodgest, trustee and group secretary, said a land exchange deal has been agreed with the developers to their mutual benefit.
The Scout grounds on Mapperley Top are used by around 100 youngsters every week and it has been part of Gedling since the 1970s.
The replacement site will be on Arnold Lane, and the group says it will have a better Scout hut than before.
Mr Hodgest said: “We were worried that the road would carve through our site and we wanted to avoid that.
“We’ve lost about a quarter of our site as a result so we wanted land in exchange for the land we were using.
“We should get the site early next year and we will end up with a far better Scout site than before.”
The Scout site had a campfire circle that had to be destroyed to build the road.
Developers have replaced it after the Scout leaders worked successfully with Nottinghamshire County Council.
Mr Hodgest added: “It’s been replaced and put on a different part of the site.
“It’s an absolutely terrific camp circle now. It is better than before – we’re very happy with it.”
Scout Group chairman Dean Robinson thinks they’ve struck lucky.
He said: “We’ve been lucky in terms of the land that we’ve lost and the land we are gaining.
“The Gedling Access Road hasn’t had as much impact as we first thought – we’ve done slightly better than most.
“The new field we get will give us greater benefit of being able to possibly camp locally.”
Mr Robinson explained that because they can’t access the land until the road is complete, they feel they are in a state of limbo.
He said: “Our main concern is while the road is still ongoing and being delayed, we can’t plan to do anything until it’s complete.
“We can’t plan to redevelop it yet because we don’t own the land yet.
“We understand projects can overrun but we’re in a state of limbo.
“Until we get the land we can’t really do anything.” Group Scout Leader Ben Danvers thinks the deal is fantastic, and is positive about the future of the Scout group.
He said: “They’ve been accommodating and very helpful. They’re redoing our car park and a new fence and gate at the top of the land. I think it’s actually fantastic.
“At first we were a bit apprehensive but we’ve gained far more than we’ve lost.
“We’ve now got space to put a second facility in.
“We can do a lot with it, that’s the important thing.
“It’ll benefit the local community and we can hopefully make it something that provides joy to children across Gedling.”
Balfour Beatty has been approached for a comment.
We should get the site early next year and we will end up with a far better Scout site than before Ron Hodgest