Council’s castle revamp plan is ‘short-sighted’
CAMPAIGN GROUP SAYS IT HAS A CHEAPER ALTERNATIVE
DERBYSHIRE County Council’s project to revamp Elvaston Castle would be short-sighted, says a member of a campaign group that has secured 10,500 signatures calling for an alternative plan.
Speaking at a full council meeting in Matlock, Sarah Leuenberger, spokesperson for the Elvaston Castle Action Group, called for a plan which she says would cost less than the authority’s proposal and result in less harm to the grounds.
She suggested that the council could look into a community buyout scheme – “We would love it”, she said.
Ms Leuenberger said her group’s proposal would cost £8 million and would not require public funding.
It has previously been mooted that the cost of the council’s scheme would be £45 million.
In response, deputy leader Councillor Simon Spencer said that the castle was “in a last chance saloon” and cannot continue as it is.
He said that the council has invested £33 million in the site, which is Grade II listed, with a further £6.4 million required for the backlog in repairs and £5 million for running costs.
Cllr Spencer said: “It is a wonderful setting and a wonderful place. But we need to have a pragmatic approach.
“Of course, we should give the public access to as many areas as we can, but we cannot give total access, as our plan sets out.”
He said that so many people refused to pay the “reasonable” parking charge fees at the site, which was leading to “chaos” in the village of Elvaston.
Cllr Spencer said: “Moving forward, we have proposed a new road into the site, which she (Ms Leuenberger) says is unacceptable.
“But we need to make sure that infrastructure can support the site, and we need a proposal that is sustainable to residents in Elvaston and to council taxpayers.” Council leader Barry Lewis said that the running costs of the castle and its grounds had fluctuated over the years but it “cannot continue to go down this road”.
He said that running costs in 2010 were £675,000 and rose to £955,000 in 2012.
Cllr Lewis said the site was of “national significance”. He said a long-term sustainable solution was required to safeguard it.
During Cllr Lewis’s statement, the 15-minute time limit allocated to debate the petition expired.
Ms Leuenberger said: “we were privy to the worst type of time stalling debate by the deputy leader to ensure that any pertinent or relevant detail that the incumbent council may be challenged by was quashed due to time constraints.” She would have liked to ask followup questions after hearing the councillor’s statements.
The county council intends to hand over the running of the site to the Elvaston Castle and Gardens Trust.
As it stands, the authority’s master plan for the site, drawn up alongside the trust, would include the construction of a new access route off the A6 and Shardlow Road junction at the Thulston Roundabout.
Alongside this are plans to build a new visitor centre – which would be filled with cafes, shops, office space and education rooms.
There would also be an adventure playground, and the courtyard, gardens and other areas around the estate would be repaired to be used
for weddings and large events. These events would see some areas cordoned off from the public.
Meanwhile, the upper floors of the castle would be converted into short-term holiday lets, which could be used by wedding parties, as well as long-term leases.
Controversially, the car park would be moved from next to the current showground to what is currently an empty field to the north of the castle near St Bartholomew’s Church, alongside a further overspill car park.
The showground would be moved from its location off the B5010 to the smaller Oak Flat site, due to issues with the field becoming waterlogged.
Finally, the plan includes a proposal to turn the former kennels into 10 homes, along with a further two homes on the former saw yard.