NEW plans for a skate park at South Hill will be submitted ‘as soon as possible’ this year, according to the Deputy Chief Minister.
Senator Lyndon Farnham said that the original outline planning application for the project, which was submitted last March, had been withdrawn following concerns over ‘heritage and ecology issues’.
Work on the main skate park at Les Quennevais officially began last week, and is expected to take almost six months to complete.
Senator Farnham said that proposals for a similar provision at South Hill – and to identify potential ‘satellite’ facilities around the Island – were still being developed.
He said: ‘Work on the South Hill skate park is being progressed in the context of the wider South Hill Gardens area, where there is potential to significantly improve the public space and provide a valuable amenity in this part of St Helier. This regeneration is particularly timely in light of the new residential units that are being developed.
‘The original outline planning application was submitted on 12 March 2021 but was later withdrawn on the advice of planning officers after a concern had been raised about heritage and ecology issues.’
He added: ‘There will be further consultation with the public and key stakeholders prior to the development of revised proposals. A detailed project programme will be prepared and a planning application will be resubmitted as soon as possible this year.
‘Work to identify possible sites for satellite facilities around the Island is also being progressed. This will involve public and stakeholder consultation. Submission of planning applications will follow. Funding has been allocated for forthcoming years in the Government Plan.’
However, Senator Steve Pallett, who previously held political responsibility for sport, said he was ‘not surprised’ the scheme had faced setbacks.
He said: ‘I have always been suspicious about the reasoning behind choosing South Hill – there are heritage issues and it just seems like a difficult place to build.’
He added that the upcoming election could also affect the project.
‘This seems to be something that government is good at – kicking the can down the road. Whoever comes in [to government] with responsibility for sport may decide that South Hill is not the right site.’
Calls for new skate parks were ignited in 2018 after the New North Quay facility was temporarily closed.
