Former Walsall mayor calls for park project cash to be spent immediately
A former Walsall mayor is calling for money promised for park projects to be spent immediately.
Councillor Paul Bott, the former Mayor of Walsall, is concerned about delays to restoring the former park keeper’s building at George Rose Park.
Both he and his wife, Councillor Chris Bott, campaigned for £100,000 to be earmarked to the project and lead to the building being renovated for community use.
Money for the project was expected to be set aside from part of a Section 106 planning agreement which saw 190 homes built on The Wards Keep site in Darlaston.
Councillor Bott is also concerned that another project seems to have also been delayed.
He said that £28,000 had been earmarked for a Healthy Walk and Trim Trail at Darlaston Community Centre but the project never took place.
At a planning committee councillor Paul Bott called for the £100,000 to be spent quickly on the restoration project. He said: “The chairman and leader of the council, councillor Mike Bird, has agreed to the £100,000 being spent on the project.”
Councillor Oliver Butler, portfolio holder for clean and green services, said: “We are currently assessing quotes for prospective work at George Rose Park Lodge and these will be actioned against the key priorities as identified in the Section 106 agreement.
“The Section 106 funding for the Heathfield Road Development for work on green spaces has not yet been spent. Funding has been allocated to a number of Green spaces in the Darlaston area with some match-funding to allow for a substantial European bid that will deliver bio-diversity improvements to the area. Work on the Park lodge will commence shortly.
“The £28,000 mentioned has not been spent, but is allocated for key work which will be completed as part of this project.
“The earlier work potentially identified for the Darlaston Recreation Centre will not be progressed, as this building has since been leased to a sports club, and is not a public open space. Funding will instead be spent on Darlaston open spaces for the benefit of the residents of the Heathfield Road development.”
