Consultation specialists TK Associates highlights that over two thousand members of the community have got involved in helping to shape the project through workshops, exhibitions and 952 completed questionnaires. This has revealed an overwhelming 76% of people in favour of the project.
The project team is revealing its early thoughts for the design of the park – encompassing a nature reserve, sports, art and new woodland – based on the consultation findings plus market and technical studies. Further comments and questions are now invited from the community. Consultation findings in more detail:
- Amongst the three quarters of people in support, 60% are "strongly in favour". As many as 88% from Hastings and Bexhill support the project.
- There is less support from Crowhurst, where a quarter is in favour and 63% against. This is primarily because of concerns about the impact of the park on the tranquillity of the village. Some private land owners within the area also expressed concerns about the park’s impact and how it would be managed. The project team is looking carefully at these issues.
- The most popular purpose for the park is nature conservation, chosen by 47%
- The most popular activities amongst over-30s are wildlife watching, cited by 80%, followed by walking, cited by 63%
- While the under-30s rate these highly too, 42% see sport as a priority. Play facilities are also popular with young people (25%)
- Cycling is the most popular sport amongst over-30s, chosen by 33% overall and by 42% from Hastings. ‘No sports’ was chosen by 30%, while 24% want riding
- Young people also want cycling and riding but are even keener on water sports (31%)
TK Associates have outlined that many new ideas were suggested during the consultation which are also being taken into consideration. There were popular calls for a café, visitor centre, sheltered areas and picnic spots.
There were also suggestions of an ecologically-friendly art-house, zip wires, an energy park, a wind farm, a llama park, rock climbing, dry-skiing, a BMX centre, a water maze and many more. A full account of the ideas suggested throughout the consultation can be found in the workshop notes on the project web site: www.eastsussex.gov.uk/pebsham. Park design in more detail: Based on the consultation findings, the project team’s proposed design ideas include:
- Division of the park into a northern nature reserve (potentially ‘Combe Haven Nature Reserve’) and a southern area developed for sports and events
- Access for everyone as an integral part of the park design from the outset – catering for walkers, orienteers, cyclists, riders, bird watchers and people with disabilities
- Facilities for people to find out about the local environment and to watch wildlife – through hides and using technology such as remote cameras as well as out in the open
- Many sections of new and improved woodland
- A sports area incorporating a wide range of activities from BMX and skateboarding to archery, model aircraft, bouldering and more
- Play facilities for young people
- Areas for water activities, such as angling and boating, including a 2.5km ‘Coastal Park’ along the seafront from Glyne Gap in Bexhill to Bulverhythe in St Leonards
- Areas for sculpture and other public art
- Sections in the northern area where private land owners could take advantage of new business opportunities brought by the park – such as visitor accommodation and animal centres.
- The scope, longer term, to introduce a more ambitious development – perhaps of the scale of the Eden Project in Cornwall – if the right proposals and funding can be found.
The project team also considers that some of the ideas suggested during the consultation are not feasible or appropriate for Pebsham Countryside Park – mostly because of space constraints or noise. These include a swimming lake, golf, motor-biking, kite buggying and hunting.
A further chance to give views
A copy of the consultation report and the preliminary design ideas will be available from 1 March on the project web site (www.eastsussex.gov.uk/pebsham) or from Toni Roberts on troberts@hastings.gov.uk or 01424 451432.
People now have a final three weeks to express their opinions by emailing pebshamviews@tkassociates-uk.com or writing to:
Pebsham Views,
TK Associates,
16 Florence Road,
London W5 3TX.
Responses must be received by Wednesday 22 March 2006, at which point the initial consultation programme closes.
Notes to editors
The Pebsham Countryside Park Project seeks to develop a high quality, sustainable park in the 600 hectare green space between Hastings, Bexhill and Crowhurst. It is designed to create a recreational area for local people and to attract visitors, thereby helping to regenerate the area.
The project is a collaboration between East Sussex County, Hastings Borough and Rother District councils. The early stages are part-financed by the European Union’s ERDF fund and run in partnership with countryside initiatives in the Lille and Somme regions of France. The consultation exercise has been run by TK Associates (www.tkassociates-uk.com).
More information about the project can be found at www.eastsussex.gov.uk/pebsham or by contacting Toni Roberts at troberts@hastings.gov.uk or 01424 451432.
For further media information and images, please contact:
Tariq Khwaja, TK Associates
T: 07833 336 271
E: tariq.khwaja@tkassociates-uk.com
Reference:
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