Plea for protection of Rectory Fields and library

Cllrs at Wilmslow Leisure Centre2

A Wilmslow resident has pleaded with the Town Council to defend the interests of the residents of Wilmslow and not just follow the wishes of Cheshire East Council (CEC) when deciding how to redevelop the town centre.

Clive Bassil, of Edgeway, also asked councillors, at their meeting on Monday December 19th, to protect Rectory Fields and the library.

Wilmslow Town Council has joined forces with CEC to develop ambitious plans for the town centre and has set up a working group to liaise with them on the multi-million pound project. They have held their first meeting and are now drawing up a list of the main organisations which should be consulted in the new year.

The Town Council also voted to financially support the project by paying £15,000 towards the appointment of external consultations to "help interpret base line data, provide specialised planning experience, advise on viability, advise on the property market and give independent input into public and stakeholder engagement."

Speaking about Rectory Fields, Clive, who has lived in Wilmslow for 25 years, said "It is my appreciation that the current proposals anticipate that this area will be incorporated into the project, either as car parking or retail store.

"This area in its sylvan setting was inherited by the residents of Wilmslow. Is it not our duty and should it not be our legacy to future generations of Wilmslow to permit them to benefit from this special town centre green space in the future?"

Mr Bassil's second plea was regarding proposals which he believes will affect the library.

He told councillors "As I understand it the plans are that the existing library will be demolished and incorporated into the lifestyle building. It is also my understanding that the Lifestyle Centre, incorporating the library, will be situated on the North school playing fields.

"I believe the outcome of removing it from its present location to the proposed one, 1/4 mile out of the town centre, will cause a significant drop in usage and an equivalent increased car usage by those determined to access it.

"Casual foot traffic, the ageing population of Wilmslow and young mothers with pushchairs will be dissuaded from spending the time and effort in making the visit that would otherwise have been routine."

Mr Bassil urged the town council to "resist any efforts that result in the Rectory Fields and their setting being lost and the library being moved from its current location, no matter what effort it takes."

Adding "My final plea is that Wilmslow Town Council stands up and defends the interests of the residents of Wilmslow and does not merely fall into the slipstream of the wishes of Cheshire East Council."

Cheshire East Council and Wilmslow Town Council will be engaging with a number of key stakeholders over the coming months, including Wilmslow High School and local business groups, and hope to have more solid plans in place by spring.

Cllr Rod Menlove, Cabinet member with responsibility for environmental services, told me that Cheshire East Council intends to hold a public consultation about their ambitious plans for the town centre in January or February 2012.

Photo: Cheshire East Council Leader Councillor Wesley Fitzgerald with Wilmslow Town Councillors Ruth McNulty and Jim Crockatt at Rectory Fields.

Tags:
Cheshire East Council, Town Vision Project, Wilmslow Town Council
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Comments

Here's what readers have had to say so far. Why not add your thoughts below.

Rob Sawyer
Friday 30th December 2011 at 9:58 am
Mr Bassil raises valid points. I would call for transparency at an early stage - one assumes that CEC and/or the Town Council already have an idea of the outline concept that will then go to consultation in 2012. Therefore please share with us if this does involve selling the Leisure Centre, Library and Rectory Fields Sites and relocating the functions to another site such as the High School.
Gary Barton
Wednesday 4th January 2012 at 2:37 am
Hi Rob,
There will be considerable consultation efforts beginning in the early part of this year with a body of local representatives (e.g., CEC and WTC Councillors and people representing various local volutury bodies, schools and faith groups).

The initial consultation is to help develop the new town plan for Wilmslow which will have a bearing on all future development in Wilmslow.

Later on in the year we will begin widespread consultation on how we can best improve Wilmslow's leisure and cultural facilities.

No decisions have been made, but any future major developments would have to be funded primarily through selling off existing Council properties such as Remenham (the building near the clinic) and it may be that selling the existing Leisure Centre site and building a new Leisure Centre near by will be the best option. The exisitng Leisure Centre is rather tired and in need of a level of investment that is not possible in the current economic climate - a climate that is likely to last into the latter part of the decade.

So yes big decisions to be made. The reason the Town Council is taking a leading roll in this is to keep the decision making process as local as possible and the Town Council will communicate and consult with as many local residents as possible. We have already spoken with the press about this on multiple occassions and we will continue to keep all the various local media outlets informed of what is happening and when.

In the meantime your local Councillors are always available via phone or email (see http://moderngov.cheshireeast.gov.uk/ecminutes/mgFindCouncillor.aspx for your local Councillor(s)). Or indeed use wilmslow.co.uk's comment facilities :)
Monday 9th January 2012 at 9:41 am
Cllr. Barton,
Your reponse to my plea fails to address the two matters of principle that I set out on 16th December at the WTC meeting. Politicians of all colours , of which you are a remarkably successful one, fail over time, to hear the the Community that they claim to represent, they only listen to fellow Politicians. I suggest that you are not listening to your Constituents.
Do you not recognise as a matter of principle, that it is wrong to concrete over The Rectory Playing Fields? No equivocation now, YES or NO. Let your electorate know where you stand.
Do you not recognise that it is wrong to move The Library from the Centre of the Town? I ask once again, YES or NO.
Gary Barton
Monday 9th January 2012 at 4:52 pm
Mr Bassil,
I think the point here is that it is not my place to tell Wilmslow residents what they should think. I realise that you have very strong opions on this issue and I welcome your input. I have already spoken to many residents who have expressed a wide range of views. I am listening to residents, and more efforsts will be made to listen to resident's thoughts on this issue. Criticism for a process that has not yet begun is difficult for me to respond to.
I am a Conservative and a long term (28 years) resident of Wilmslow, so protecting my home town and green spaces is hugely important to me. I also want to make sure that all current and future Wilmslow residents will have high quality health and leisure facicilities avialabe to them.
I know that you have my contact details so please feel free to contact me at any point.
Yes I have not responded directly to your challenge, but I do not want to tell people what they want - I want to listen and as best as possible respond to residents' opinions. However, I can say that the future of the Rectory Fields is a very important issue and I and all local Councillors are aware of this. The future of the library is more complex as the exisitng building is of a poor quality and has a limited life.
Denise Hutchinson
Tuesday 10th January 2012 at 12:13 pm
I was very pleased to see that Clive Bassil is trying to protect our library and the Rectory Fields. I contacted Wilmslow.co.uk and Wilmslow Express (as well as writing to Councillor Knowles) back in March last year asking for clarification of plans and expressing my dismay at the intention of closing Wilmslow leisure centre and moving the library away from the town centre into a new "Lifestyle centre". I am surprised how little uproar there has been about closing the present library because everyone I have spoken to has been quite horrified at the idea. Also at that time there was a suggestion that Waitrose wanted to buy the leisure centre although this seems to have gone quiet again. As a very regular user of the leisure centre, I do not agree that it is tired and think at present it is very adequate and very convenient for the town. I am also concerned about the Evans theatre as initially no mention was made of a theatre in the new development plans. I do hope that the local council will keep people informed because not everyone reads this on-line newspaper and many people do not receive the Wilmslow Express. Perhaps large posters in the leisure centre and library might be the best way of making people aware of what is happening and any public consultation.
Birgitta Hoffmann
Tuesday 10th January 2012 at 12:48 pm
Mr Bassil indeed raises some very important points. One of THE selling points to people moving into the area is the fact that Wilmslow still has a functioning town centre, where everything can be reached on foot. Starting with several supermarket, a series of shops and restaurant as well as facilities such as the library and leisure centre next to doctor's surgeries and for want of a better word a town centre park in the form of the rectory fields. All that connected to bus stops and train station within easy reach. It makes it possible to actually possible to function in Wilmslow without a car, but also to be able to get everything done in an afternoon's shopping, while picking up the children (and non shopping partners) from the leisure centre/library afterwards.

The greatest danger is that either the CEC or the Wilmslow Council in an attempt to 'grow' the towns attraction is going to turn it into the soulless and non functioning town centres that we see in so many parts of Cheshire and Staffordshire, where over-active councillors driven by outside 'interests' (in the worst case) or ill-informed consultants who offer off-the-peg solutions, that frequently haven't worked elsewhere have sought to 'improve' by moving facilities out of the town to provide ease of access to drivers or provide large 'community centres' much of which invariably turns into a white elephant (e.g. a dedicated theatre, when the theatres in Manchester and Stockport are half an hour away, and we already have 2 venues in this town (The Guild and the Green Room). These grand schemes rarely work, and certainly not in times where many families have to think carefully about how much money they have to spend on transport.

I for one love my routine of being able to go to work via the leisure centre in the morning and return in the evening being able to do my shopping on the way home and round it off with a quick stop at the library. Keep it local and keep it affordable.
Christine McClory
Tuesday 10th January 2012 at 1:04 pm
Consultation? I have started a petition which should give a fairly clear idea of what the people of Wilmslow really want.
I took it out this morning and everyone I spoke to signed to say NO we do not want this.
Please contact me if you would like to help out by taking a copy.
Rob Sawyer
Tuesday 10th January 2012 at 4:13 pm
Hello Gary and All,
I support stakeholders helping to formulate a Town Plan but my scepticism antennae were raised by the positive spin on the media headlines when the news broke in December: e.g. "Cultural revolution to revive Wilmslow". Can such claims be made there are no firm proposals already devised (by CEC and/or the Town Council)?. I re-iterate that I hope that any consultation will be genuine, transparent and acted upon. I am interested to understand the relationship between CEC and the Town Council in this project as, presumably, CEC will be keen to raise funds by selling some town centre lands assets - will the Town Council acquiesce? I agree with other posters that key facilities such as the library should remain central and accessible. If we do have some form of arts/lifestyle centre I hope a small cinema is included.
Saturday 14th January 2012 at 4:27 pm
Dear Councillor Barton, I do appreciate your offer to me that I may contact you directly. However, my intention is quite posssibly the same as yours that there should be the widest possible public participation and debate on this significant issue.
Regrettably no one on either WTC or CEC are looking at other than spinning that the Leisure Centre is tired and the Library is a poor quality building. The facts are that neiher building is remotely in a condition where demolition can be considered a realistic solution even assuming that your hypothesis is factual. If we go around knocking buildings down that are less than 30 years old then 95% of Wilmslow should be flattened.
The position that you have taken in response to my question "concrete over The Rectory Playing Fields" yes or no, is illogical when considering yours and WTC support for the expenditure of £15,000 to Consultants to come up with suggestions for The Lifestyle Centre. Such expenditure that you support ,clearly demonstrates that the Playing Fields should be concreted over.
Is there no support within either CEC or WTC that what is being contemplated is plain wrong?

Clive Bassil