Wasting Our Money On Things They Say We Need…

Remember this bunch from a post at OoL?

Well, I've kept my eye on them. Funded by Sustrans (i.e. the taxpayer), their latest wheeze is the terrible dilemma of children ‘needing space to play’.

Wait! Does that seem...familiar?

Over the last few weeks we’ve been thinking about play, green space and the urban environment. Lots of the younger people we’ve spoken to are really keen to use the green spaces in the area but often find this causes tension and conflict with residents who live very near these greens who often feel threatened by the people on the greens and disrupted by noise and litter.

As you've already found out, when one of your ideas backfired in spectacular fashion:

We’ve now removed this temporary poster (pictured below) from the sign on the green on Cannington road as it was upsetting residents who live nearby.

Hopefully we can work to understand what would be an improvement to this green space which would make it an ideal and usable space for those who live around it and the wider community.

Why does it need ‘improvement’? Who requires this? The residents? Did they beg you 'Save us, DIYPortersLodge, you're our only hope!"..?

You may also have seen the chalk hopscotch that we’ve been busy creating in the area trying to encourage people to think differently about their streets and spaces – helping them to be more liveable! What do you think?

I think you’re lucky not to have been threatened with arrest…

But, despite having to remove a poster when faced with local residents’ ire, they are ploughing ahead regardless:

This year we’ll be celebrating PlayDay 2013 by having an event on the cut through between Waterbeach road and Clementhorpe. We’ll be there from 10am-3pm with face painting, games so join us and bring your picnic to share. This is a free event and everyone is welcome.

Here’s a picture of the ‘cut through’ they are referring to:

And now here’s a picture showing the location of that ‘cut through’.

Recognise those two huuuuuge green spaces within ten minutes walk either side? Yes. They are parks. Great, big, designed for playtime parks.

Just as in yesterday's post about the scheme in York.

Now can anyone tell me just what is gained by having an organisation dedicated to encouraging people to let their kids play on what amounts to a grass verge in the middle of a housing development, rather than take them for a ten minute walk to a park?

I mean, I know what’s lost; a considerable amount of taxpayer’s money employing these fruitloops!

Multiply that with just how many more there are of these little quangos being funded by the government me and you, seeking to solve problems that don’t exist, while the Highways Agency claims it has no money to fix potholes in the roads that are big enough to break axles…

It's madness!