A new home for BaseballMK.
Back in 2007 we reported that MK Council had approached us and offered us a new home at Emerson Valley with a new diamond and multistory clubhouse. When the planning application was agreed we assumed that it was all systems go and we would soon be playing at the new field.
Unfortunately, the Milton Keynes Leisure Services team who are reponsible for the project had not "crossed every T and dotted every I". In May 2008 with ground breaking only weeks away we were called to a Development Control Committee meeting to have a document changed which would release the baseball funding to Emerson Valley. At the meeting two parish councillors objected to the transfer stating that they believed their was an alternate site which had not been considered. The DCC decided to defer their decision so that other options could be considered.
Great Linford Parish Council then contacted BaseballMK and suggested their was an alternate site at Conniburrow. They suggested that this alternate site was more appropriate to the funding agreement that would be used to develop the new baseball facility. BaseballMK were invited to look around the site and agreed that this site may be suitable and should be considered in more detail by the Leisure Team.
By this point, there were a lot of different views on where the funding would best be spent, and we had to rely on a political process to make the final decision. The funding application, called a Section 106, went to council on 3 more occasions before a final decision was made at the meeting on Thursday 12th February 2009.
At a rather heated debate, arguments were made by many interested parties relating to both proposed sites. This was composed of a number of 4 minute presentations by councillors and the public, and then committee discussions. The item took nearly an hour in total, and then DCC made their final vote.
| Voting Summary | ||
| Conniburrow | 4 | |
| Emerson Valley | 3 | |
| Abstention | 1 | |
This means that BaseballMK are now starting the design process again for a new field and pavillion to be located at Conniburrow.
Although this may sound like we have taken a few steps back, we believe that the DCC made the right decision, and they have chosen the best option for Baseball in Milton Keynes.
Hopefully, the design process will now progress quickly and we will soon have news about what will be developed at our new home.
