To consider the above report

Members recalled that in 2012 an award of £25,000 had been made to a project to build an Olympic Legacy bridge from Sutherland Grange in Clewer North to provide access to public footpaths in Buckinghamshire. The cost had been estimated at £1-2m and hence the £25,000 funding had yet to be used. The council would prefer for the funding to be utilised and the report therefore proposed three options:

Option 1 would provide improvement works to the car park and entrance of Sutherland Grange.  The proposal would increase the number of car parking spaces available by 15.The park was very popular with dog walkers.

Option 2 would be to investment in new facilities in Broom Farm Park located in Clewer South ward, a 12 acre park adjacent to the Broom Farm housing estate.  The land was owned by the Armed Forces and had limited use at present.  The council had agreed Heads of Terms to lease the land and operate it as an open space for all residents.  Councillor Stretton highlighted this as a legacy project. The project could later include an upgrade of the football pitch and multi-use games area. The project would also aid community cohesion

Option 3 would enable full community consultation on a range of potential projects with a defined Olympic Legacy for the wider Windsor community, as part of the PB consultation about to go out with Around the Royal Borough.

The Head of Communities and Economic Development explained that when the Army let the contract to maintain the housing estate the park was not included and hence it was currently in a poor condition.  As a favour the council’s contractor mowed the grass once a year before an event on the field. The council had been negotiating with the Army for the past two years after the issue had been raised as part of the Love Dedworth campaign. The council was very close to the signing of a ten-year lease for a peppercorn rent. Many of the local residents were army wives who used the park to walk dogs with their children. The park was very boggy and a ditch would need to be opened for better drainage. The park was not lit and there were no benches. Councillors in both Clewer North and Clewer South had been consulted on the proposals.

Members noted that the park was not currently in the council’s portfolio therefore it had not attracted s106 funding. There was little flexibility in many of the agreements in the Windsor area. The Head of Communities and Economic Development agreed to look through all existing agreements to identify any s106 funding that could be used.

Councillor Stretton suggested any signage at the park could explain that the maintenance of the park was provided from Olympic legacy funding. It was suggested the park, once upgraded, could be opened by an Olympian. The Chairman suggested a ‘Friends of Broom Park’ group be established.

RESOLVED UNANIMOUSLY: That Option 2,  investment in new facilities in Broom Farm Park, be selected as an alternative Olympic legacy project for the Windsor area.