COUNCILLORS in Evenwood have decided not to help the village’s cricket team repair flooding issues on their pitch claiming it is not their responsibility – and even if it was, they don’t have the cash to fix it.
Parish chairwoman Cllr Barbara Nicholson told fellow members during their February meeting that she had been given a quote from village cricketers stating it would cost £180 for a contractor to inspect drainage around the pitch at the Randolph Social Welfare Ground.
She said: “I accepted the quote to get it done. It was a quote for an investigation and nothing else.”
Cllr Nicholson said the cricketers had subsequently come back to her saying the contractor had found that drains on the pitch had collapsed, while others leading to the pavilion were in danger of “collapsing completely”.
The cost to replace the drains would be £3,132, she said.
However, she said she had asked for a proper report on the inspection as well as photographs to confirm the damage to the drains, but she had received only one image in reply.
She said there was no evidence that the drains to the pavilion were in danger of collapse. Cllr Nicholson said: “If it is to do with the pavilion, we will sort it.
“There is no evidence (of collapse) other than those around the pitch.
“This is the drains on the cricket pitch. We are not responsible for the land drains because we did not install them. It doesn’t matter because we can’t [afford] to do it,” she added.
She added that she would pass on the information to members of the welfare ground committee to see if they could help.
More information sought over club’s plans for practice facilities
EVENWOOD’s parish councillors will not support the village cricket team’s bid for funding for practice nets until they have more information about where the new facility will be placed.
Councillors are worried the nets might be put in an area currently used for parking.
The council was made aware of Evenwood Cricket Club’s funding bid for new nets during their February meeting.
The cricket club is based at the Randolph Social Welfare Ground.
Chairwoman Barbara Nicholson said: “We worked out the only place it can go is the straight bit from the gate to the pavilion where the cars park.”
However, Cllr Paul Townsend said while he was only speculating, he imagined the cricketers would place it on top of an area where a previous practice pitch had been.
He said: “They have put a wicket in there before and used it as a practice wicket.”
Cllr Rachel Webb said: “The only other place they could put it is down the bottom where the container was.”
The council decided to ask the club for more information about the dimensions of the practice net and where they wanted to place it before they would offer their backing to the project.
