Re: Princes Risborough Skateboard Park

YOUR report June 29 of the extraordinary meeting called to discuss this project and other contentious matters did not, I think, fairly cover the event, in that you quote the words of two persons supporting the Skateboard Park project but nothing from the majority of those present who spoke against it.

The crux of the matter is that the proposed site in the King George V Recreation ground is quite unsuitable for many reasons which have been made abundantly clear by local residents who actually live close by and by the council's own environmental expert.

In spite of those objections, and the lack of prior consultation with local residents, the town council had made up its mind that it was going to install the skateboard equipment there come what many.

It admitted at the previous disastrous meeting that it had not done a survey to ascertain what level of demand there was from local youth, yet even though it has no statutory duty to provide such equipment it was prepared to spend in excess of £20, 000 on the equipment.

This was a major cause of the local precept rising by 50 per cent this year.

Nobody is denying the youth of the town skateboarding facilities but as has been well and truly demonstrated, if they are uncontrolled and unsupervised then gross aggravation results (Holtspur beware!)

Such facilities should be provided in a closed environment and funded commercially perhaps with some form of council subsidy.

Many residents of Princes Risborough are obviously ignorant of the undesirable activities which already go on in the KGV and the new equipment will only attract more undesirable attention.

It is said that a site there will enable the teenagers to play safely and near enough to be kept an eye on. By whom?? Very much more could be said about all this but time will tell!

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