Monday, April 20, 2009

Newsham Park Lottery Bid - FAILED!

I don't think it is any exaggeration to say that I was gutted when I found out last week that Liverpool City Council had failed in its bid for £3million of Heritage Lottery Funds for our 140 year old Newsham Park.

I guess I was disappointed and depressed but also sanguine about it, when I thought it was because the HLF was oversubscribed by a factor of 6:1. There being £120million of bids for parks, against a pot of £20million.

However we have since learnt that the HLF say it was because the LCC bid was under-developed.

This is disgraceful!

Fairfield residents have been working on plans for park improvements for 30 years - yes really, that long. They have been involved in meetings, discussions, plans and drawings, prioritising and selecting since at least 1980.

And yet our LibDem council has submitted under-developed plans we are told - how can this be? They managed to put in good plans for Sefton Park and Princes Park, obviously, why not for Newsham Park, given the weight and depth of work that has gone in here over all those years.

And what on earth are we supposed to do now? From where else can such huge funding come?

A total and absolute let-down!

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