Former Muratti footballer James Scott is calling for politicians to intervene as he attempts to build a new facility on the disused netball courts beside the athletics track in St Clement. He had been in the advanced stages of seeking planning permission to convert the land, having already agreed a nine-year lease with the landlord, Jersey Property Holdings However, JPH backed out of the agreement in November after the ‘discovery’ of a covenant which they thought restricted the ability for planning to be approved.
Since then, Scott has sought legal advice to contest the JPH u-turn as well as the terms of the covenant, and launched the petition to help raise the profile of his plans for the area.
The petition received over 1,000 signatures within hours of its release – enough to force a ministerial response. The matter will be considered for debate by the States Assembly if it reaches 5,000 signatures.
‘We’ve got the petition up and running so it can give footballers a voice that can be heard,’ said Scott. ‘I thought it was the best way to raise the profile again.
‘It doesn’t surprise me that we have received a few signatures already. We just want to highlight it so that the top politicians can understand there is a need for it on the Island and they will hopefully listen to the football community and we can move forward together to make it happen.
‘I like to think I’m quite determined individual. It’s taken a lot of time and energy to get his far and I’m willing to push and keep chipping away and it just shows the amount of signatures in a short space of time, there is definitely a need for such a facility on the Island and it’s really good to hear the support of the football community.’
The petition is available to view here.
More in Friday’s JEP.
