We know how to tackle park strife so let's make it happen

Published on Saturday 4 October 2008 11:04

PARKS are important. They are good for our physical and mental health. More importantly, they're one of the few free places left that anyone can go to, any time they like. For this reason, parks play an important role in promoting social health too.

On first glance on a sunny day, Leith Links looks great. But take a second look, and you realise that Leith Links is a bit run down. The signs are rusty and out of date. There's a mismatched collection of vandalised bins, and gang graffiti that the vandals have helpfully dated 2003.

In fact, if you compare Leith Links with the Meadows, then you really start to realise what is missing. The Meadows has a magnet play area that draws families from across the city. Leith Links has a sparse collection of ageing play equipment. The Meadows has great outdoor tennis facilities, whereas the courts on Leith Links fell into dereliction years ago. The Meadows has wide, well maintained paths, with dedicated cycle routes. Leith Links has bumpy, narrow paths that force people with prams or on bikes to squeeze past each other. Everyone agrees – Leith Links deserves better.

This summer, Greener Leith produced a series of ten YouTube video clips that explored the aspirations of Leithers for the park. In total, there were ten different proposals to improve the Links. 550 people selected their three favourite ideas.

Improvements to the children's play areas came top, followed by support for a 'Leith Gardens' and in third place, people voted to open a pavilion cafe. Top of the sports facilities list were proposals to improve the football and tennis facilities.

The trouble is, none of these improvements come cheap. At the last Neighbourhood Partnership meeting it was agreed that some of the easy issues will be addressed.

This means we should see the broken fences repaired, the bins replaced and the five-year-old graffiti removed. This will be matched by community action too – Leith Links Community Council is planning a community clean-up event on the Links this autumn. This is progress, but in the longer term the picture is mixed. The regeneration of the docks will see 30,000 new houses built nearby, putting Leith Links under even more pressure.

Despite our best efforts to ensure the developers who will build these new houses pay to upgrade Leith Links, the planning committee decided that they should only be made to pay for some path upgrades. This means the onus is now back on the council to work with local organisations to raise the extra investment needed to meet locals' aspirations. Our report has been sent to the council for consideration. We await on tenterhooks to see what returns.

&#149 Alastair Tibbitt is the chair of Greener Leith.. To watch the YouTube clips of Leith Links see http://www.youtube.com/user/GreenerLeith.