Official complaint about post-Wireless state of Finsbury Park

Below is my official complaint to Haringey Council regarding the state of Finsbury after the Wireless Festival occupation. I have also made my continuing concerns known to the manager of the Green Flag Award scheme.

If you share my concerns - and have concerns about your local park being hired out by the council - then please contact the Green Flag Award scheme manager and your ward councillors.

Regards,
Martin

Martin Ball
Chair, Friends of Down Lane Park

++++++

To: paul.todd@keepbritaintidy.org
CC: stuart.mcnamara@haringey.gov.uk; simon.farrow@haringey.gov.uk; Kevin Duffy (Chair, Friends of FInsbury Park)
Subject: FW: Formal complaint re safety and state of Finsbury Park
Date: Mon, 13 Jul 2015 10:39:45 +0000

Hi Mr Todd,

Thanks for your reply regarding my request for the Green Flag Award for FInsbury Park be suspended for the duration of the Wireless Festival. I accept your position in not suspending the award, but my concerns remain.

I am forwarding the official complaint made today to Haringey Council following my visit to Finsbury Park on Sunday 12th July. Please read the detail of the very bad state of the park and the highly visible damage.

Please can you or the Finsbury Park judges make it a priority to contact Haringey Council regarding the timetable for repairing the damage and the need for an immediate safety check of the grounds to remove items left by the event. A visit in official capacity or a mystery shop guise would be timely.

Regards,
Martin Ball
Tottenham Hale resident

PS I have copied in Cllr McNamara (lead member of parks), Mr Farrow (lead officer on parks), and Mr Kevin Duffy, who is the Chair of the Friends of Finsbury Park group.

From: Martin Ball
To: stuart.mcnamara@haringey.gov.uk; simon.farrow@haringey.gov.uk
CC: anthony.healey@haringey.gov.uk; bob.hare@haringey.gov.uk; daliah.barrett@haringey.gov.uk; ali.demirci@haringey.gov.uk; claire.kober@haringey.gov.uk; nick.walkley@haringey.gov.uk; stephen.mcdonnell@haringey.gov.uk; Kevin Duffy; Dave Morris (Hariney Friends of Parks Forum); bernice.vanier@haringey.gov.uk; peter.morton@haringey.gov.uk; ann.waters@haringey.gov.uk; sarah.jones@haringey.gov.uk
Subject: Formal complaint re safety and state of Finsbury Park
Date: Mon, 13 Jul 2015 09:55:13 +0000

Dear Cllr McNamara and Mr Farrow,

See below for an account of the state of Finsbury Park witnessed on my visit there yesterday, Sunday 12th July.

The park is in a bad way - and I am being mild about it - and requires immediate action to bring it up to acceptable standard for a Green Flag Award park and to make it safe for the public. There are bolts, screws, plastic straps, and glass scattered on various sections of the park. These are a danger to children and animals; and require clearing today as a safety priority.

Because of my concerns about what I saw then I am making an official compliant about the condition of the park. This is in respect of the failure to maintain a decent park (outside the event fortress) and to manage the damage to the park caused inside the fortress by the hire agreement with Live Nation UK for the Wireless Festival.

Alongside my formal compliant I am asking for the following to be actioned this week:

1. A thorough check across the park for any loose metals or plastic.

2. A thorough clean of the long grass area along the railway line. It is a disgrace.

3. A general clean across the footprint of the land use agreement to remove rubbish.

4. A removal of the contractor machinery and other equipment. Plus the Veolia container.

These must happen this week, and suggest that the safety check be started today with just a basic walkaround that would spot the big items. I am happy to share my information if somebody phones me for a straightforward exchange of locations.

Long-term, but not too long-term I hope, I want to know about the repairs of the structural damage. Some of which I outline below.

There are significant areas of the park that are damaged. Large areas of the grass have been stripped of grass and have lined impressions from contractor buildings. There are bad repair jobs of turf unevenly covering where trenches were dug for underground cabling.

The roads and pavements have areas of serious damage. Even the extra thick path the council laid for the heavy presence around the stage area has been damaged. Quite an achievement given the height of tarmac you rolled out as a repair of last year's event.

Several manholes are broken and exposed. There are other holes in the ground. Many of which I believe have inadequate safety barriers around. Fencing around play facilities are buckled or missing. There is even a bench that has been broken off its legs.

Please can you share with the public your assessment of the damage to the park? In addition, the works schedule for completing the repairs.

I am willing to meet to discuss how residents can be involved in discussion regarding the repair of Finsbury Park and can rightfully claim to be of Green Flag Award standard.

Regards,
Martin Ball
Tottenham Hale resident


To: fohpforum@yahoogroups.com
From: FoHPForum@yahoogroups.com
Date: Sun, 12 Jul 2015 21:42:40 +0000
Subject: [FoHPForum] My visit today (Sunday 12th July) to Finsbury Park [5 Attachments]

[Attachment(s) from Martin Ball included below]

Hi,

I visited Finsbury Park today (Sunday 12th July) to see the impact on the park of the Wireless concert occupation.

Today is a week after the last night (5th) of the event, and after the Friday (10th) exit of the Live Nation promoter as per the land use agreement with Haringey council.

Well, there is clear evidence that Live Nation have not entirely left the park as there are several large vehicles still parked up. In addition, there are bits and pieces of equipment still lying around. Also lying around are screws, bolts, and metal pegs. Plus, broken glass and discarded plastic tags scattered on the grass.

There is serious damage to the roads through the park, and damage to several paths. All around you are holes in the grass, wheel ruts in the grass, lumpy patching over cabling trenches that have been dug in the grass, yellow patches of grass, fresh soil over damaged grass, impressions of the temporary buildings on the grass, and dust where there should be grass. A number of manholes are broken open, and there is even a bench broken off all four legs. A large waste container remains in the park.

The long grass area along the railway line is littered with rubbish and I will be demanding an immediate clean-up of this area. There are glass bottles, cans, broken glass bottles, plastic bottles, cig packets, takeaway containers, plastic bags, shoes, various items of clothes. newspaper, and paper used as toilet paper (- and yes that).

This has to be the end of these large commercial events and I hope you can join me in making your views know to your ward councillors.

Sad regards,
Martin

Martin Ball
Chair, Friends of Down Lane Park