Rosefield Park improvements

[Porty]

Great news and another victory over the objection squad. Right on their doorstep too
Well done to the Towerbank kids and to the coup


le of dozen cash brokers customers who completed questionnaires.

[Mark Cameron]

It really is great news and just proves that with a bit of communication the wider community will engage and positive outcomes can be achieved.

[Bob Jefferson]

Yeah, well done everyone. Like mcdryburn says, with this and things like the Annie and Belle petition, ordinary people are proving that, with a little effort and co-ordination, we can make things happen in this town.

[Mark Cameron]

Right what's next

How about we petition the council to get them to spend money (not a lot) to paint some markers at equal intervals on the prom wall, put up some signs at the start and end of this new running course. Add in a few outdoor exercise stations along the way (see examples in the link below) and you've got something that would bring health benefits and add another string to the Porty bow.

http://www.fittrail.com/20station.html

Just a thought and not something that would cost the earth.

Add some colourful beach huts that can be hired out and a big wheel at the seafield end, give the playparks a much needed upgrade and we start to look like a place people will come, bring their kids and spend time (and spend money). That then draws in the new businesses and the upward spiral begins.

As you might have gathered I'm one of life's dreamers.

[Bob Jefferson]

I think I can see an admin split topic coming up here. A marked distance along the Prom is an idea I put a fair bit of work into a few years back and it certainly had lots of support.

[Mark Cameron]

what were the blockers Bob? Oh....and Wangi feel free to split.

[Bob Jefferson]

Probably the fact that I was trying to make it happen single-handedly and juggling it with several other projects at the same time. I still have an email folder with messages of support from various stakeholder groups and looking back I can see that there was an invitation that I never took up to meet up with James Hunter and the Roads Manager to discuss the idea further. I'm sure the idea could easily be resurrected if you want to champion it?

[Franck]

As I type this I feel like I'm listening to my dad

Over the past week and the nice weather, Rosefield Park seems to have become the place for teenagers to meet of an evening, which I have no problem with at all.I do however, have a major issue with the state they are leaving the place in, it's disgraceful.
Ask them to put their rubbish in the bin and the response makes it difficult for me to refrain myself.The amount of broken glass I pick up each morning is out of order.
Since the railings have been removed, the contact details for the east team have also gone...anyone got them to hand?

Roll on the feckin rain and cold if that's what we have to put up with.

[Makaveli]

Franck if you are on twitter you can reach them at @east_team

[SoupDragon]

There's a coincidence, one of my neighbours was telling me this morning about having words with teenagers breaking bottles in Rosefield Park this weekend..
I thought there was cctv up there

[Bob Jefferson]

There is and, contrary to rumour, it works and is monitored but by the time that they are being anti-social enough to merit police attendance, particularly on a busy weekend, and it's given a grade 3 (at best) or grade 4 (more likely) rating etc etc. You can expect things to get worse. The police budget is being slashed and cops who should be on the street are back-filling the support staff posts that have had to be axed to make the savings. Remember the TV drama, 'Life on Mars'? That's where we're heading.

[Franck]

I see the work has started on The MUGA over the weekend, should be completed in a 6-8 weeks according to one workie I asked.

[fresian]

Soup Dragon, There has been CCTV in the park since about 2004. I had to upgrade the lighting in there as part of the scheme. The problem is, as Bob states, the Police can't give it as much attention as they wanted. Perhaps DC et all could make themselves useful and form a vigilan... oops sorry, "protest group" to deal with the little miscreants. Portobello Against Little S**tbags (PALS) perhaps???

[lg1726]

At least you guys have cctv, we are at the Quarry and have been plagued in the last few weekends with the little miscreants and their under age booze booty! Broken glass everywhere on Saturday and Sunday mornings and one section of the park designated the toilet! At least they had loo roll, so no skid marks for Mum to deal with!!

I personally don't get why we (that is DC et al) are getting in such a tizzy about the issue of Sainsburys getting an off sales licence a year from now when we have such anti social/public order issues from current off licences!!

[fresian]

lg, probably because most of the current ones are run by, how can I put it? "Ethnic" people, and having a crackdown on that problem might be construed as politically incorrect. CEC would consider it be far more socially acceptable to tackle the big bad capitalist supermarkets instead.

[lg1726]

lg, probably because most of the current ones are run by, how can I put it? "Ethnic" people, and having a crackdown on that problem might be construed as politically incorrect. CEC would consider it be far more socially acceptable to tackle the big bad capitalist supermarkets instead.

Agree, but we really do need to have this tackled and the proposed arrival of Sainsburys and the noise that this has generated may well help to get some focus on the problem!!

[Pal of Porty]

The little drinking miscreants are reaping havoc everywhere with their broken glass. There are 5 patches of broken glass from Big W through to the end of the Innocent Tunnel - got yet another glass puncture the other day and I have already fitted my bike with anti-flak kevlar tyres!

[lg1726]

Well as I've said before, I would rather see six Sainsburys on the High Street with stringent under age sales policies than the current arrangement where the little darlings seem able to get booze without any restriction. The public order/anti social concerns of residents seem to have been put to one side in an attempt to use the alcohol over provision argument to prevent their licence by DC et al and our elected representatives! I do hope that the minority group do not yet again drive the agenda!!!

[StarVanMan]

My experience is that if you approach young people having a drink nicely and ask them to be careful about their bottles they are pretty civil. I dont know what happens in the end, and it only takes one stupid act to leave glass everywhere, but I like to think that approaching them with some respect gets some respect back. It doesnt cost anything.

[wangi]

Pretty much on the ball SVM - most of the mass carnage is when they've been moved on.

Am I unique in having a drink, bought illegally, with friends on a park/prom/beach before I was 18?! Doubt it.

Tighten up please - but the young folk are just making best use of the avenues available! Maist are good kids.

[gillian]

They are good kids, mostly, and no wangi you are definitely not the only one. I just wish they would have their get togethers have a wee drink and then put their bottles in the bin!!! There are usually plenty to be found, Brighton Park for example has 3 or 4 all near the benches. The same goes for lunch times though, how hard can it be to put your chip paper in the bin?

[lg1726]

They are good kids, mostly, and no wangi you are definitely not the only one. I just wish they would have their get togethers have a wee drink and then put their bottles in the bin!!! There are usually plenty to be found, Brighton Park for example has 3 or 4 all near the benches. The same goes for lunch times though, how hard can it be to put your chip paper in the bin?

Agreed, it's not the hanging about the parks that the problem and yes many of them would comply and tidy up, but not all. There is also the repercussions of the "wee drinks" of which the broken glass is one aspect. The last cut paw we had cost over £100, but we also experience vandalism to the cars. In the last year we have had both front driver and passenger windows smashed, wing mirrors broken x 3 and damaged windscreen wipers x 2 - all to one little car!! We moved to park the car quite a bit away from the park entrance, but now the neighbour's gets it instead! Like Rosefield Park, the Quarry Park is accessed via quiet no thoroughfare streets and this the police feel is a major contributory factor the this aspect of drinking in the park - more likely to get seen and caught at Brighton Park, the daisy park or the Prom!

Anyway, not being a killjoy about the "wee drink" in the park, more concerned about some of the issues that leads to!

[SoupDragon]

I have no doubt most of them are good kids and there may even be some local teens in there.
But they aren't reasonable if you ask them not to smash bottles, my post up the thread in May was about our neighbour asking some teens not to smash their bottles in the play area, in the daytime for which she got a mouthful of abuse.

I have no illusions that Clanger 4 when he went on his rough camping trips didn't drink, but they all cleaned up after themselves, even clearing up other folks rubbish

As usual its a small minority that gie all a group or area a bad name

[Franck]

As usual its a small minority that gie all a group or area a bad name

Correct.I've drank in all the above names places as a kid, and some that are now gone.

I've also asked the kids in rosefield to clean up after them, as I'm getting pretty bored with my dog slicing it's foot open on broken glass.Usually the kids comply politely, maybe because I know their parents or grand parents and they know I'll grass them up , but sometimes I don't know them and they still say 'no worries mister' which makes me feel old.

The occasional wee scrote will say something smart-arsed, and you can either see their pals cringe or laugh.I just walk off usually, there's no point in becoming embrollied in verbals with a 16 year old and their mates, the only way you can gain satisfaction is by beating the youth about the head with a bag of dog shit, which the last time I looked, is illegal.

[Pal of Porty]

I have no problems with teenagers in general and given the age of my kids, I know and like many of them anyway. I have tried to reason with some of the young drinkers on one occasion along the lines of - drink and clean up your mess and very few people will be on your backs - leave broken glass everywhere and ultimately, after a lot of hassle, you will just get moved on. Cue another puncture.

[SoupDragon]

the only way you can gain satisfaction is by beating the youth about the head with a bag of dog shit, which the last time I looked, is illegal.

But it's a nice mental picture

I'd nearly forgotten that it was in Rosefield Park our dog had his foot cut open, that was in the mid 90s. Seems some things don't change

[dino]

Hi there, my husband and I are interested in buying a property in West Brighton Crescent (right next to Rosefield Park), but after doing some research i.e. finding out about the new MUGA install and the fact that currently it seems to be a gathering area for young kids drinking, we are a bit concerned.

Can someone tell me whether this is an ongoing problem or if it only happens now and again and should we be worried? The thing is we really like the property and the area around it but don't want to make the wrong move!!!!

Any help is very much appreciated.

[Franck]

Hi there, my husband and I are interested in buying a property in West Brighton Crescent (right next to Rosefield Park), but after doing some research i.e. finding out about the new MUGA install and the fact that currently it seems to be a gathering area for young kids drinking, we are a bit concerned.

Can someone tell me whether this is an ongoing problem or if it only happens now and again and should we be worried? The thing is we really like the property and the area around it but don't want to make the wrong move!!!!

Any help is very much appreciated.

The lower conversion? I wouldn't be overly concerned, the vast majority of kids are decent, with the occasional loud mouth thrown in.I spend alot of time in rosefield, either walking the pooch or playing football with my lad and I've never had any hastle.

WBC is a lovely street...have you managed to speak to any of your potential neighbours, and do you have kids you intend on sending to school in the area? I know a few people who live there, and they're all great people.

[lg1726]

Can someone tell me whether this is an ongoing problem or if it only happens now and again and should we be worried? The thing is we really like the property and the area around it but don't want to make the wrong move!!!!

Hi there, I'm sure those closer to the Rosefield Park could give you more specific information. However, we live beside Quarry Park and have done for 12-13 years now. In our time there we have found that the park is used by kids and residents of all ages at all times of the day and night and we very much enjoy having access to these facilities. It has, like other parks in this and almost all residential areas, anywhere been used as a gathering place for under age drinking and other associated nefarious activities. For almost all of the 12-13 years this has not been a problem for us and the other residents. However, it would appear to be a "year group" thing and once in a while a particular year group appear who are more troublesome than others. This current lot and one lot about 5 years ago or so come to mind for me with the group then way more bother than this current group.

For the rest of the time we have been aware of the teenagers in the park, but not in any distinctly negative way and have enjoyed living in such close proximity to the benefits of the park. We have dogs and kids, so the park is a favoured place for the family and that, for the most part outweighs the nuisance periods.

Hope that helps, but 'm sure others will have more valuable info for you!

[Bob Jefferson]

Rosefield Park did have a problem a few years back but the introduction of CCTV moved the troublemakers on. I'm sure there is still a bit of noise occasionally during Summer evenings but no more than you might expect living next to any park. It's a great area to bring up a family and WBC is a lovely street.

[rmolehusband]

Hi there, my husband and I are interested in buying a property in West Brighton Crescent (right next to Rosefield Park)

The kids are fine, it's the neighbours I'd be worried about if I were you. You'll be right in the shadow of Barad-dûr, you'll get into trouble if you try to change so much as a light bulb*.


*None of this is actually true. While I like Rosefield Park and take the kids there often, I don't like close enough to know if there are any problems associated with yoofs hanging out there or therwise. Porty is a great place to live though, I do know that.

[dino]

Thanks for the updates, much appreciated. Not quite sure what you mean about the neighbours. Its seems a nice neighbourhood???

[Pal of Porty]

I don't live in WBC but do visit frequently as I have very good friends there and between us we have children ranging from 9 to 16 years old. Brilliant place for a family and easy walking distance to parks, the beach, Porty and the local primary and secondary schools.

[Maria]

It's a nice, friendly street dino. I,honestly, wouldn't worry too much about teenagers hanging around the park- mostly they are just nice kids chilling with their mates. I admit there were two separate incidents incidents last week, where some (very nice) teens from West Brighton Crescent were beaten up for fun by some older youths (the same ones on each occasion) in Rosefield Park , but the Police, I believe, are pursuing a definite lead.

Youth related crime is pretty city wide and tends to come in waves. Often, as the Police clamp down on one area, it simply moves to another.

[dino]

I realise it may only be occasionally that these issues occur at the moment but were worried about what will happen when the muga is installed. This has potential to get worse which is such a shame for the residents because its a really nice street! If only we could see into the future