Download PDF Copy here 3Gpitchupdate271114
16th February 2015
Dear Resident
New 3rd Generation All Weather Pitch Proposal at the Poplars Sports Ground
Residents Consultation
Burton Joyce Parish Council and local Sports Clubs are looking into the feasibility of installing a new flood-lit, all weather pitch at the Poplars Sports Ground towards the end of 2015. As a resident living close to the Ground, it is appropriate that we provide you with as much information as possible and ask you for your views on the proposal. Hopefully this letter, and the accompanying Questions & Answers page, will answer any concerns you may have but we will be pleased to answer any individual queries. The Parish Council is scheduled to make a final decision on this project at its meeting on the 3rd March 2015, so we would ask that any comments you may wish to make are sent to the Parish Office (contact details below) by Saturday 28th February please.
Background
The Poplars is owned and managed by Burton Joyce Parish Council and it is now home to 23 football teams, 7 cricket teams, archery, bowls and outdoor fitness club. It has been subsidised by the residents of Burton Joyce since it opened in 1997. The level of subsidy has been reduced from around £25,000 per annum to less than £10,000 in the current financial year. However, with pitches running at full capacity and the continued need to maintain a high quality ground, there is little room for reducing the subsidy any further without exploring other means of generating income. To secure the future of the Poplars as a valuable fitness and health promoting asset for the community, the Parish Council has developed a complex plan (working with the Football Association and many other parties) to provide a floodlit all-weather 3G facility.
The Poplars Sports Ground Upgrade Plan
The proposal is to install a 3G (3rd Generation) flood-lit, 7 a-side pitch to include the capability of having two 5 a-side pitches marked out crossways. The facility would be of the highest current technical standards set by the FA and provide a high-quality training area for all ages and a match play area for the under 10’s. The Parish Council has considered several potential sites at the Poplars Sports Ground but found that the one now proposed (on existing bonfire site scrubland) to be the most suitable. The proposed site is at maximum distance from households and it will provide some visual screening from the wind turbine which is scheduled to be built in July.
Within the tight grant funding Within the tight grant funding deadlines we would anticipate a completion date before the end of this year. The plan doesn’t just include football. The Parish Council and other funders want to ensure that multiple other activities can be played on the surface too in order to encourage a wide range of age groups and more females to take up sports. To counter the lack of playground space at the local Primary School it is likely that the facility will also be used for regular daytime PE sessions. We are currently in discussion with a variety of new sports and teams to try and secure their regular commitment to playing at the Poplars, and we hope to have our first disabled team signed up soon.
We hope you are able to support this project. Please take some time to read the attached Q & A section and we would welcome any comments
Cllr Chris Hutt Cllr Steve Cluff
Chairman BJPC Vice Chairman BJPC
Chairman Poplars Sports Ground Committee
——-Question and Answer Section Below—————————————————————————-
3rd Generation All Weather Pitch Proposal at the Poplars Sports Ground
Questions and Answers
Q: Why do we need an artificial pitch and why floodlit?
A: Currently the Burton Joyce football teams play on grass at the weekend in league matches. Over the winter period they also need to train too. The grass pitches at the Poplars cannot accommodate the heavy schedule of training and league matches and they are not floodlit, so on winter evenings the Burton Joyce football teams train up to 12 miles away on a variety of different floodlit artificial pitches of varying quality. We want to be able to offer facilities to other sports but are hampered in the winter by ground conditions and grass recovery times.
Q: What is a 3G Pitch?
A: It is a 50mm green artificial grass pitch with a shock layer and rubber crumb at its base. This gives a very even bounce and a fast pace that replicates grass but is all weather. Unlike the old Astro turf or sand based pitches it is less prone to burns and injury. It is the preferred choice of the Football Association and the proposed pitch will be 7 aside long with 2 x 5 aside crossways.
Q: Who will use it?
A: Depending on the season and time it varies. The main user on winter weekday evenings (up until about 9pm) will be Burton Joyce Junior Football Club (BJJFC). The local Burton Joyce Primary School will use it during the day time together with a whole variety of other sports and ad hoc games. There will be some pay and play sessions and some free sessions to encourage team join ups. BJJFC is upgrading its coaching levels and hopes to also encourage some Academy Coaching. We want to introduce brand new sports including walk football and netball too. It will be available to members of the public and residents and hopefully you will be able to reserve and book on line.
Q: I notice its mentions floodlights – won’t this be intrusive at night?
A: The Parish Council is keen to prevent light pollution and maintain dark skies, so has incorporated a down lighting LED lamppost style light in the proposal. This is totally different to regular large ground angled floodlights or those seen near the Ferry Boat Inn. Whilst they are very energy efficient, these lights are also designed to contain light upwards or sideways. There will be some reflective glow but this should be masked by vegetation between houses and the ground.
Q: Isn’t this Greenbelt area and what about the flood plain?
A: Yes, but it is within existing sports ground boundaries and exempt as a recreational facility. The surface is permeable and drains well and will make no difference to flood risk.
Q: What about noise – will this intrude on us?
A: On examination we noticed most of the existing, occasional, intrusive noise came from use of pitch 3 and pitch 6 nearest the railway at the weekend. The new pitch will be at a furthest point (see picture). We have been very careful to reduce any possible noise impact by a series of controlled measures.
- Moving the site to the furthest distance from residents (on the bonfire site) approximately 400m from the railway line.
- Ensuring any surround mesh fencing has acoustic rubber washers in its mounting to salience impact strikes.
- Inclusion of a 2m acoustic fence to help absorb stray sounds.
- Limit times of use in summer.
We think it very unlikely that noise will be an issue for anyone above what is already there and we will have the ability to monitor it and adapt accordingly. It is also worth noting that many BJPC councillors live nearby and will certainly make any issues known too.
Q: What about start and finish times?
A: This hasn’t been decided yet. During winter months (Sept-March) the predictive timetable shows the evening has the main usage from 6-9pm with BJJFC and possibly to a maximum of 10pm weeknights. During the summer and at weekends we do not anticipate much evening usage and are planning around 9pm finish.
Q: Parking around there is pretty bad at weekends will this make it worse?
A: No, within the plan there is an agreement to take over the fisherman’s car park opposite the Poplars from Severn Trent with room for 80 more cars. This would ease congestion at weekend for regular grass sport too.
Q: How much will this cost and who is paying?
A: The project cost is around £420K and most will be funded by grants from the Football Foundation (through Notts FA) and Waste Management funding. The Parish Council has provisionally committed £40k, with £20k coming from community fundraising by the Burton Joyce Junior Football Club and the Three Villages Gala Committee with other generous donors still adding to the shortfall.
Q: If the Poplars has traditionally lost money, won’t this plan mean even more subsidy?
A: Quite the opposite, FA data shows 3G Pitches are a strong source of positive income and our business plan indicates the ground should be self financing in the first year, meaning less drain on the public purse and less rises in BJPC precept in future years.
Q: So is it just money making scheme for the BJPC?
A: The continued viability of the Poplars Sports Ground is very important to all of us but there are three other key targets for this project in association with our partners.
- To improve the quality and quantity of football played at the Poplars by use of this very high quality winter training facility, at a time when our national sport needs encouragement at grass route level. Within this framework, to encourage the playing of female football, over 40s football (including walk football) and to address youth 14-18 drop out of football.
- To target and encourage more non football sports at the ground and on the 3G pitch including netball, hockey, nonstop cricket, outdoor fitness classes and to cultivate a greater age range of local participants and activities.
- To encourage Burton Joyce Primary School, who for historical reasons have poor sport field and playground, to use the Poplars in the daytime for regular organized sport and to provide a venue for interschool events.
Q: Will it affect me?
A: Each household is different, we have not identified one household that we think will notice much or any difference at all by the proposal, but they may get healthier if we can encourage more sport participation.
Q: I’m still not happy about an aspect of this project- what can I do?
A: Please contact the Parish Council via email or a telephone, we may be able to address your concerns easily or arrange for a meeting with us to discuss details more thoroughly.
Jackie Dawn, Parish Clerk : 01159 314084 clerk@burtonjoyceparishcouncil.org.uk
Cllr Steve Cluff, Poplars Chairman: 0787 5304266 steve.cluff@burtonjoyceparishcouncil.org.uk
Q: It sounds like a good scheme for the village – can I get involved?
A: There are many ways you can help. If you have an idea for a new sport, want to bring your team to the ground or, better still, join in with a sport please contact us on the above numbers. Participation in fund raising would also help bring the shortfall of £4,000 down.
More details as they become available will appear on the Parish Council’s website http://www.burtonjoyceparishcouncil.org.uk/proposed-new-floodlit-3g-pitch/