Love Parks Week: 23-31 July

Love Parks Week is an annual campaign, organised by parks charity GreenSpace. Founded in 2006, the campaign has grown steadily and is now established as a major event that is celebrated in parks across the country. Each year hundreds of events take place enabling thousands of people to get out and enjoy their parks and help put forward the case for reinvestment.

http://www.loveparksweek.org.uk/About.html

NB: I was reminded the other day that the Tyndall Centre for Climate Change said in one report that a 10% increase in green space was needed to help protect us from climate change. I hope therefore that not only does Bristol City Council permanently abandon plans to sell off parks and green spaces but that in the process of reviewing policy it plans, with private and voluntary sector involvement, to create an overall increase in total city green space of all kinds, whether publicly or privately owned, whether classed as a park, allotment or other type of green space.

Petition : The Big Save Our Parks Petition

Please click on the title above or the link after the petition wording to sign up. I'm happy for Neighbourhood Partnerships to take decisions on green spaces provided local people are fully informed and involved in them at all times.

“We, the undersigned, call on Bristol City Council to reconsider the proposed land sales as part of the Parks & Area Green Spaces Strategy. We consider the consultation process undertaken by the Cabinet to be flawed and by signing this petition, we want the Cabinet Councillors and officers to hear our concerns. Neighbourhood Partnerships should decide on any green space disposals in their area - making sure local people are involved in the decision making, unlike the decisions taken so far by Cabinet. We support continued investment in green spaces but not at the price of selling off the green lungs of our City.We understand that, under new rules, petitions with 3,500 or more signatures will be debated at Full Council. The 20-year green space strategy is so important to Bristol and will affect communities for many years to come, so we believe it is right for all Councillors and the public to have their say at a meeting of the Council."

Background Information
Under recently adopted rules governing petitions, the Authority is obliged to bring a matter to Full Council where an issue attracts 3,500 signatures from people who live, work or study in the city.Once this trigger point is reached, petition organisers can advise Council Officers that they wish to take up this opportunity for debate at the next available meeting.We hope that by getting enough signatures from across the city that we can call for a debate at the March Council meeting and SAVE OUR PARKS.

Petition : The Big Save Our Parks Petition

Illogical and unreasonable Cllr Hopkins

Those campaigning to save their local green spaces from being flogged certainly wont be thinking that their concerns are 'facile', though Knowle's Cllr Hopkins does (see quote below from today's Post). But we've come not to expect reason and logic from Cllr Hopkins and the Lib Dems on this. The consultations have, as very large numbers of people agree, been rubbish. The planned sell-off is a dud even on its own money raising terms because its very far short of its target - and not all income gained would be spent on parks and green spaces or in the localities that lose spaces in any case. As for buying more land than is sold: most will find this idea ludicrous and unbelievable at this time of huge spending cuts - and spending money undermines the amount available to spend on improving green space quality and access. Since Cllr Hopkins Lib Dems would be buying existing green spaces that are limited in supply the total green space of all kinds in Bristol will decrease as flogging proceeds and so people will lose the valuable functions their green spaces provide.

Liberal Democrats on the city council have used their majority to block an attempt to reconsider selling off parks and green spaces....

...The executive member responsible for the scheme, Gary Hopkins (Lib Dem, Knowle), rubbished any criticism of either the consultation or the plan.
He said: "It is facile to concentrate on things being flogged off.
"We know not everyone is going to be happy about every decision but that is what we are there for – to make those decisions strategically.
"Lots of people do want a large number of things in their parks but all of that costs money and it can't be magicked out of thin air."
Mr Hopkins said the council would also acquire more new land than it sold off...

Lib Dems Bristol City Council green spaces rethink

Illogical and incoherent Cllr Rogers...

Cllr Dr Jon Rogers [pictured] says, ‘We are determined to see the quality, quantity and accessibility of our parks and open spaces improve all across the city in the next 20 years’ (‘Land sell-off is right’, Post, Letters Dec 27). But hang on this man has, along with all Lib Dem and other councillors except the Greens, said it’s the right thing to do to plan to sell many acres of Bristol’s parks and green spaces over the next 20 years! That’s a decrease not the ‘quantity...improved’ that he claims he wants to see. As for improving accessibility to green spaces, well it’s self-evident that you make it more difficult to achieve this if you plan to sell some of them off and allow building over them. It’s worrying in the extreme to see such a lack of logic and coherence from Cllr Rogers. It was always illogical, inconsistent and incoherent to plan to sell-off chunks of our parks and green spaces whilst saying you are committed to health, wildlife, climate change and economic policies that require protecting and increasing green spaces.

Cllr Rogers contact details on the Bristol City Council website are:
email - jon.rogers@bristol.gov.uk , or telephone (0117) 914 2558, if you want to get in touch to set him straight.

Local Lib Dem mess; national Lib Dem mess - people should vote Green Party instead

The news on Bristol's green spaces is mostly very depressing isn't it. About three quarters of all sites proposed for sell off by the council, around 48 sites at least I believe, will still be sold, despite very strong objections from multiple directions.

The Lib Dem local position on green spaces is a real mess. Their national position on student tuition fees is also a real mess. They said they believe in the value of green spaces but then agree to sell them off. They said they believed in the abolition of student tuition fees but then agreed to massively increase them.

The Bristol Cabinet still has to meet to agree all that was reported in the Post - I think they might be meeting on the 16 Dec. I suppose they could (and will) be lobbied and a question or two could be put to them.

After that I think many local people in many areas will have to look out for individual land sales proposals and then for planning applications in the event of development proposals. Some might well campaign in the run up to next May to remove any local Cllrs they now object to!!

Lib Dem "hypocrites"

Voters will find the Lib Dem denial very hard to accept - you only have to look at what they have actually done. Words are cheap and actions speak louder!

BRISTOL Liberal Democrats have strongly denied allegations they are "hypocrites" over a plan to sell off open spaces across the city.

Lib Dems vote to continue green spaces sell off

Punish these people at the ballot box in next May's local elections - and support the Greens, the only party with elected councillors who opposed selling off green spaces right from the start!

THE sell-off of open spaces in Bristol will go ahead despite protests and an attempt by opposition councillors to stop it.

BBC - Nature UK - Get invovled in nature on the web

BBC - Nature UK - Get invovled in nature on the web

The web offers some great ways you can talk to other nature lovers, share experiences and find answers to questions, all from the comfort of your computer (or even mobile phone). A warning though – they can become very addictive!...

Several green spaces petitions handed in and applauded again and again

PEOPLE opposed to plans to sell off swathes of green space across Bristol packed into the Council House last night to hand in petitions filled with thousands of signatures.

Residents from across the city received round after round of applause as they each presented bulky petitions to councillors and delivered passionate speeches at the end of a five-month consultation into the project. Dog walkers, boy scouts and brownies were among those who united to vent their anger at the proposals to sell 90 acres of parkland at a meeting of Bristol City Council's cabinet. Residents attacked plans to sell green space they claimed was regularly used for recreational and sporting activities or as a tranquil getaway from hectic city life...

THE Conservatives have tabled a motion calling for the £87 million plan to sell off up to 62 green spaces across Bristol to be scrapped.

Its not often that I have cause to praise the Conservative Party in Bristol but on this occasion I have to say well done to them for changing their minds and calling for the councils plans to sell green spaces to be abandoned, especially given the strength of the widespread public opposition. I hope that Labour and maybe even some Lib Dems will support the Tories on this - and respect local people's wishes.

THE Conservatives have tabled a motion calling for the £87 million plan to sell off up to 62 green spaces across Bristol to be scrapped.

The group has also launched an online petition for people to support the motion [click here to sign]

Councillor Mark Weston (Henbury, Conservative) said: "Public consultation has clearly shown that Bristolians simply do not want to lose any more of their recreational space.
"The area green space plans are fundamentally dishonest, in that many potential plots of land suggested for sale are not, as previously promised, of low value or quality.
"This version of the strategy has also proved itself to be extremely divisive, in that it requires some wards in the city to make land sacrifices not shared by others."

Labour group leader Helen Holland told the Evening Post she didn't want to pre-empt her group's response to the Tory motion, but she criticised the consultation process.
She said: "The consultation has been flawed, with a lack of information.
"The one thing you need to do if you want major change is have absolute transparency."

Councillor Tess Green (Southville, Green) said: "The Green Party has always opposed selling any green space which is valued by local people, although we could see the logic of selling off space that is not valued in order to improve green space more generally.
"The voice of local people has been very strong on this issue and needs to be taken seriously."

Q and A on the huge green spaces sell off that's backed by Lib Dem, Labour and Tory Cllrs

Q THERE has been vocal opposition to a quarter of the areas put forward for sale at the very least – is that an acceptable number?

Just added the comment below to this Evening Post article on green space flogging (link above) to correct the errors made by two 'conveniently forgetful' Lib Dem Cllrs...

This statement in the article is incorrect 'The whole point of the strategy, which all parties signed up for..' because the Green Party opposed the Parks and Green Spaces Strategy sell off plans from the very beginning and are still opposing them now.

Cllr Rogers comment 'The Area Green Space Strategy was supported by all three parties on the council' is wrong because there are four parties with councillors in Bristol - and one of them, the Greens, opposes the large scale green space flogging. Cllr Rogers is right to indicate that Labour, Conservative and Lib Dem Parties all backed this extremely unpopular and short-sighted green spaces sell-off.

*

Update: Just added a further comment (below) because Cllrs Rogers has replied saying, 'There remain only three parties on Bristol City council - the Conservatives, the Lib Dems and the Labour Party.The Green Party do have a councillor on the council, but one person is not regarded as a party! The Green Party councillor did, as Mr Vowles suggests, vote against a proper green space strategy for Bristol.'

*

Cllr Rogers - its clearly ridiculous and absurd to say that there are three parties on the council. The Greens have an elected Cllr - fact. Because it is one person does not mean the party does not exist it simply means that Green Party GROUP STATUS is not recognised (until there are at least two Cllrs ie next May!). If you were fully open and honest here you would tell the whole truth ie that there is a Cllr representing a party on the council that opposes these green space sell-off plans. The Greens do not recognise the current approach as a proper green spaces strategy because of its flog off plans - and looking at the scale of opposition it appears that Bristol's public agree with us not the Lib Dem, Tory and Labour Cllrs that all endorse it.

Thousands sign petitions to save Hartcliffe and Bishopsworth green spaces

MORE than 1,000 people have signed a petition demonstrating against the proposed sell off of land in Hartcliffe, and 800 more in Bishopsworth.

...Keith Way lives in Hartcliffe and is concerned about the proposal to sell off two plots of land along Valley Walk, which includes Pigeonhouse Stream.

He said: "We've got a lot of wildlife in south Bristol, I don't think people realise.
"That's a nice quiet park, lots of trees, good for wildlife.
"These sites should never have been put forward in the first place."

Environmental campaigner and former Hartcliffe resident Glenn Vowles has been involved in the petition against this part of the proposals, so far signed by around 120 people.
A petition against the general proposals for Hartcliffe has attracted more than 1,000 more.

Mr Vowles said: "I look at it from a quality of life, health and wellbeing point of view. You need green spaces to provide a decent standard of life.

"People simply don't like the sell off policy. It seems to be a sales target for selling off land.
"Like so many council consultations, most people you talk to have not known about it."...

MORE than 50 people gathered on College Green to protest against plans to sell off plots of green land across Bristol.

MORE than 50 people gathered on College Green to protest against plans to sell off plots of green land across Bristol.

Residents representing more than half a dozen of the 62 sites Bristol City Council is considering disposing of assembled in front of the Council House ahead of last night's council meeting.
Inside they submitted five petitions with thousands of signatures opposing the proposed sales, and public speaking time was extended twice to allow 15 statements to be read out, to roars of applause from the gallery.
Outside protesters chanted slogans including "Don't be mean, keep it green" and "Save our green spaces", while holding placards and banners....

STOCKWOOD residents say they do not want more houses – they want more facilities and to keep their green spaces.

In my experience Cllr Gary Hopkins (Knowle) often disrespects the public's views and laughs at comments made too...Bristol's Parks and Green Spaces Strategy is and always was more of a 'build over green spaces' strategy...

STOCKWOOD residents say they do not want more houses – they want more facilities and to keep their green spaces.

In a public meeting at Christ the Servant Church last night, more than 150 people came to discuss the city council's Area Green Space Plan.

There are ten Stockwood "disposal" sites identified for possible sale and development, including: part of Craydon Road open space; part of Sturminster Close open space; and small areas near Burnbush Close and Maple Close.

The city council has promised to reinvest 70 per cent of any money made from sales back into improving parks and green spaces across the city. The other 30 per cent will go into general funds...

...In a fiery public meeting, the council's cabinet member for strategic transport, waste and targeted improvement, Gary Hopkins, came in for criticism.

Residents said he had been "disrespectful" and "appalling" for apparently laughing several times as he fielded questions.

The Liberal Democrat member said he was not laughing at the issues in hand but found it ironic that Conservative ward councillors Jay Jethwa and David Morris had been "doing nothing for two years" while the plans were being developed by officers, with input from the Bristol Park Forum.

**Mr Hopkins said: "All three political parties, not including the Green Party, were in agreement with the strategy two years ago.

"I fully understand that people are very concerned about the land next to them. I would be."

Mrs Jethwa accused Mr Hopkins, whom she called a liar...

Valuing our Parks and Green Spaces | Green Spaces

Valuing our Parks and Green Spaces Green Spaces

Given the determination of Bristol City Council to flog off large amounts of our green spaces to developers people may be interested the longstanding and continuing opposition of Bristol Green Party to this sell-off. No other political party takes this stand. This policy (click on link above), which I co-wrote with Pete Goodwin, details why we need to genuinely value all our parks and green spaces. Green spaces have long been listed by both locals and visitors as in their top three 'best things about Bristol'.