‘We’ll fight to keep heart of our village’
First hall now playpark threatened
Residents facing the prospect of losing their hall have now been told the village’s playpark is also under threat.
Cambuskenneth Community Council chairman Andy Kippen say they have been given notice that Stirling Council will not renew the lease on the village’s park.
The move places the future of the park in doubt just months after the local authority, in a money-saving bid, said they wanted to withdraw from the village hall lease agreement and place responsibility for running the facility on to villagers.
At the moment Stirling Council lease the hall and park from Cowane’s Trust. In October last year they agreed to continue to pay the lease on the hall until March, 2016, to allow time for further discussions on the hall’s future.
Stirling Council insist those discussions are continuing and no final decision on either the hall or the park has been taken.
However Mr Kippen said: “The hall and park are owned by Cowane’s Trust who have advised the community council that from March, 2016, the lease will not be renewed and the ground may be sold for housing,” he added.
“The community council has never been consulted by Stirling Council who have leased the park for the minimal sum of £75 a year.”
He said the park was a well used and safe haven for mothers and toddlers both from the village and nearby Riverside. It was also used by teenagers for football.
“Getting children out of doors and active is supposed to be a priority but not in Cambuskenneth apparently,” said Mr Kippen who explained that in the last two years grants had been secured to improve the park’s footpath, erect hanging baskets and put up a notice board as part of the city Heritage Trail initiative.
“If the lease is not renewed then all this and the children’s swings will be removed,” he added. “Cowane’s Trust will sell the land to the highest bidder, as they will also do for our hall and in doing so take the heart out of the village.”
Stirling Council signed an eightyear lease on the hall in 2012, at a cost of £ 1250 a year, but had the opportunity of withdrawing from the agreement last year. It was claimed the cost of running the facility had gone up from £7500 in 2012 to £9941 in 2013.
Mr Kippen said the residents of Cambuskenneth and Riverside would fight the threat to the hall and park.
“The fight will be led by Cambuskenneth Community Council who have many statutory powers at their disposal,” he added.
A Stirling Council spokesman said was ”absolutely wrong” to say that any final decision has been made over the lease of either the village hall or park.
“There have already been a number of fruitful discussions with the community council and the Cowane’s Trust over the best way forward for these important assets and these are continuing,” he added.
The fight will be led by Cambuskenneth Community Council
Andy Kippen