Any new proposal to the MUGA must adhere to existing funding rules, warns the Parish Council
David Kellner, Chairman of the Wing Parish Council, welcomed the help of all interested stakeholders in arriving at a solution for the Recreation Ground Improvements Project, and said the Council had asked the sporting clubs to put together an alternative proposal in case the shortfall in funding was not reached. He did clarify that any new proposals submitted, had not yet been discussed by the Parish Council.
Mr Kellner said: “It must be clearly understood that the ‘Plan B’ being suggested would require new planning permission but, more importantly, would not be covered by the £458,000 New Homes Bonus funding as this amount cannot be reallocated. This money would therefore be added to the Community Board’s funding pot and potentially lost to Wing. This is something we cannot see happen.”
Mr Kellner was able to confirm that the Parish Council has instructed a contractor to carry out the work required to relevel and resurface the football pitch. Once approval from SGN (Scottish Gas Network) is received, the fencing will be erected. It is anticipated that this will take place shortly, so please look out for updates on the Parish Council website and Facebook page.
The fencing will be positioned to still enable access to the recreation ground by all entrances and provide a perimeter for people to walk around the outside. The area will be treated to reduce the amount of vegetation before it is stripped and the topsoil excavated. The area will then be levelled, recovered with topsoil and seeded. The seeding part of the work is expected to be carried out in September. The final hand over of the area is expected to be April 2021. The funding for this stage of the project is from the New Homes Bonus Scheme.
At the last meeting of the Recreation Ground Working Party, it was agreed that applying for a public works loan would be the best solution to provide the shortfall in funding for the Recreation Ground Improvements Project. At the February Parish Council meeting, the Council supported this view. While this process is to be carried out, external grants will also be applied for to try and reduce the amount in the shortfall required.
With the current pandemic, a majority of grant funding schemes have been placed on hold, but the Council is actively watching this situation and will continue to apply for grants as opportunities arise.
The consultation with the Parish on the application for a Public Works loan will be carried out online and via leaflet drop, where detailed information will be available. The consultation responses will be accepted from parishioners via a number of methods, including an online poll and written comments.
As part of the fund raising for the whole project, a crowd funding page has been set up for a standalone element of the project. AVDC granted £5,000 towards the crowdfunding project for the bowls club but we need the village’s help in achieving this target. If the target is not reached, the pledged funding from AVDC (which will be honoured by the new Unitary Council) will be lost. To make a pledge, please visit https://www.spacehive.com/upgrading-wings-bowling-green.