I BELIEVE many Bromsgrove residents, most of all those living in Sidemoor, cannot have failed to notice how very little care and attention has been given by the district council to the upkeep of our Recreation Ground adjacent to ASDA.

It has not even shown interest in returning it to the condition, although far from perfect, that it was in before the construction of the ASDA extension and multi-storey car park.

Sidemoor residents, I am sure, will well remember when Councillor Trevor Porter pursued his relentless agenda to develop the Recreation Ground, and at the following council elections he paid the price when voters showed their disapproval by outing the Labour seat on the council.

The then incoming Conservative administration did promise that development of the Recreation Ground would never again become an issue. But I suppose in politics nothing is forever. Now given its poor state, the council's reluctance to spend even a small amount of money to at least restore a more even surface, and finally the fiasco over the fair not coming to town for the Court Leet, means I am becoming suspicious that a 'back door' strategy might be emerging. This is on the basis that no-one has raised any issues about the poor state of the Recreation Ground and are now less likely to complain too strongly should the council see fit to consider any alternative use for the whole part of the land.

If, however, all my suspicions prove to be without substance, I of course offer my unequivocal apologies and must put down my little outburst to nothing more than my inherent mistrust of the present council administration.

In conclusion, if you would like to see your Recreation Ground looking less like a farmer field and more like an amenity to be enjoyed by Bromsgrove residents and visitors alike, contact Mr Rob Heard, the council's parks and recreational development manager. I am sure he has to be the man best equipped to deal with your concerns.

Finally just think the worst case scenario Mr Moody might be thinking - tarmac, white lines and even more parking meters. But surely that is the 'stuff of nightmares.'

David L Pardoe

Crabtree Lane

Bromsgrove