Findlay Kicks-Off Again!

Last updated : 27 July 2011 By Bournemouth Co-Ordinator

AFC Bournemouth are proposing to renovate some all-weather pitches that are just next to Dean Court, but the plans have provoked a storm of protest from local residents!

Who else, but Elaine Findlay, is quoted in the Bournemouth Evening Echo as saying: "Residents are really up in arms. I knew nothing about the proposal until my phone started ringing off the hook. The biggest issue is the denial of general access. No-one has any objection to football pitches being laid out, but they do have serious objections to it being fenced off. The worst thing really is the wording of the council’s public notice – it goes along the lines of ‘The council is not disposing of open space but AFC Bournemouth can fence that area off for the next 125 years".

Bournemouth Borough Council have responded by saying: "This area has been earmarked for playing pitches for a long time, but the issue has always been the condition of the ground, which has been tipped in the past. It is our intention to designate the remainder of the less formal part of Kings Park a Local Nature Reserve along with Littledown Valley and to manage this for the enjoyment of walkers, dog walkers and for the benefit of wildlife".