Five-a-side plans for Finsbury Park

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Permalink Reply by Liz on March 8, 2010 at 15:09

It appears that the dates originally listed for consultation on the council website have been taken down and we have now been told that the open days will take place on the 27/27 June. I will amend the listings accordingly.

Permalink Reply by John McMullan on April 21, 2010 at 14:17

As a Cricketer I'm slightly sad that Cricket is no longer played there but quite happy that something is. The baseball on Sunday was great. You seemed to have lots of Americans there to watch if the banter in the queue for the Ladies was anything to go by.

Ignore the odd weird voice and spend some of that money on a toilet for your increasing band of spectators.

What do you think of the plans for a commercial company to run 5-a-side football in the park?

Permalink Reply by John McMullan on April 21, 2010 at 15:51

Agree wholeheartedly about the schools but they've just spent a fortune on pedophile proof fences. I just don't see it happening.

Now... big empty flat place with no real purpose.

It is heavily used as it is. Pop up there and take a look.

Grass is nice enough to sit on, check out the queue for the ladies when your games are on.

Permalink Reply by John McMullan on April 21, 2010 at 16:15

I work with a bunch of Americans... they know them very well. A "football" is sometimes tossed around the office. There are lots of Americans in London.

Permalink Reply by Erica Boateng on May 19, 2010 at 17:22

The above consultation on the proposal of developing a 5-a-side Football Centre within Finsbury Park is now open and we would like to hear what you think about this proposal.

You can have your say by;
- completing the online survey at www.haringey.gov.uk/footballconsultation
- print attached survey and send to freepost; Consultation Team, London Borough of Haringey, FREEPOST NAT20890, PO Box 264, London N22 8BR
- Attend the Consultation Open Day on Saturday 26th June, 10am-1pm in Finsbury Park on the tarmac area (basketball courts) near the Endymion Road entrance
- Request a postal survey by calling: 020 8489 4629 or email: parks@haringey.gov.uk

Attachments:

• Finsbury park football consultation survey.pdf, 1 MB

Permalink Reply by Alison P on May 27, 2010 at 9:27

I just did the online survey. It doesn't really give you much hope of any outcome bar the one that Haringey want. My particular bugbear is the parking issue, and there isn't really any option that allows you to express that - you just have to add it yourself in one of the comment boxes towards the end.

Permalink Reply by Ruth on May 22, 2010 at 23:55

Anything to give kids (and adults??) something to do in a designated space is a good thing. TBut parking spaces? Please no, there are already too many cars going in and out of FP. Some folk drive in, let their dogs out to poo and then drive off. Then some are driving around the bits they can and it gets a bit busy and polluted. Parking space only encourages people to drive rather than walk to the park (hey, good exercise!) or take the bus. The W5 stops right by Endymion road entrance.

Permalink Reply by John McMullan on May 26, 2010 at 12:08

Topcorner's Finsbury Park site advertises itself as a 5 minute walk from Finsbury Park Station and has no off street parking. Go figure.

Permalink Reply by John McMullan on May 26, 2010 at 16:15

for the more slow-witted among us

You're being modest...

I mean that the commercial company are not the ones asking for the parking, they'd probably rather another two football courts. I think it's the council asking for these.

Permalink Reply by Alan Stanton on May 30, 2010 at 16:37

I posted this comment in January. So I'm disappointed about the less than comprehensive information included in the consultation process.

I am not criticising Erica Boateng who, I am sure, is trying to be as open as possible on behalf of the Council, with the information she has available. Nor do I share the scepticism of one or two people who suggest that the plan has already been decided on.

There is a basic issue - raised by Mark Whitehead - of land being leased to a commercial company. And not just publicly-owned land; but part of a major park. Although there is nothing particularly new about the principle. Lettings to commercial companies for events in parks are commonplace everywhere. As are leases to cafés etc. Like other sorts of "concession" agreements the 5-a-side proposal may be a perfectly sound scheme which could secure professionally managed facilities for the public and provide income for the Council.

But the key difference is that a commercial operator isn't going to invest a couple of million without a lease for a substantial number of years.

Former councillor Ray Dodds and I have taken an interest in another 5-a-Side facility: the Powerleague Centre at the Frederick Knight Sports Ground in Willoughby Lane N17. As you can see from the map here it covers approximately a third of the Sports Ground which is owned by a Charity called Community Action Sport.

I'm not suggesting any links between Finsbury Park and the Powerleague ground. But simply that this is the business model now operating in this market. Commercial 5-a-side football pitches seem to be one of the currently expanding areas of sports development, and a number of companies are looking at potential new sites. This is the wider context for the Finsbury Park proposal.

I suggest it would be helpful if interested residents' groups cooperated in requesting from the council and then publicising the factual information needed for residents to make an informed judgement on the proposal. A plain "Yes/No/Don't know" question isn't enough.

(Tottenham Hale ward councillor)

Permalink Reply by HoL Site Admin on July 2, 2010 at 11:13

Three threads have been started on this. This one is now closed. The latest is here.

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