Ex-Provost backs fight to save the Allander
FORMER Provost Pat Steel this week entered the ring over the future of the Allander Leisure centre.
The PE teacher said she was "horrified" that the council could be considering making any decisions that could lead to the area being without a sports centre in the future.
She said: "All the administration councillors represent the Strathkelvin end of the district where there are two good sports centres in Kirkintilloch and Bishopbriggs.
"Now, the Allander, the oldest facility in East Dunbartonshire that serves Bearsden and Milngavie — which is perceived to be well served with private sports facilities — is under threat. It can't be allowed to happen."
The Allander faces being demolished after East Dunbartonshire Council made a controversial decision to come to terms with housebuilder CALA in a deal which will see hundreds of houses being built on the Kilmardinny area between Bearsden and Milngavie.
There are fears that once the Allander goes the area will have to wait for years for a new, part privately-financed replacement to the well-used sports centre to be built.
In their mission to see that it doesn't happen, members of the opposition Kilmardinny/Westpark Action Group (KWAG) met with officials last Thursday night with a raft of questions about the controversial private meeting which gave the go-ahead for entering into a legal agreement with CALA.
Burning questions were asked like whether the final draft legal agreement will come before the full council for approval.
Chairman Keith Small was angry and disappointed that the answer was no as negotiations have been devolved to officials.
He said the fact that officers did not appear to know that the draft agreement gives the developers sole discretion on whether access to the Allander is kept available during construction work is "extremely worrying" and added: "It's quite unbelievable that officers were not aware of this clause — they could therefore give us no assurances as to whether the council would, or would not, accept such a vital condition."
The question of what financial plans are in place to fund a replacement sports centre is one Pat Steel, who was Provost from 2003 to 2007, is also asking — and the response was that there was no funding plan in place at the moment but that options were being considered.
A disappointed Mr Small said: "Particularly since there was such a dearth of councillors at the meeting when it was decided to go ahead with the legal agreement, it's quite shocking that the detail is to be left to officers.
"Given the importance of this I would have hoped all 24 councillors would have had the opportunity to vote on the final terms of the agreement."
Derek Cunningham, the council's director of development and infrastructure, confirmed to The Extra this week that while the legal agreement was devolved to officers, recommendations on issues such as land transfers would go back to councillors for a final decision.
See this week's Milngavie and Bearsden Herald, which is in shops now, for more reaction to the Kilmardinny controversy.
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Weather for Milngavie
Wednesday 23 May 2012
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