Forum for residents of St Georges Park and Long Leys Road Lincoln

[john shipton]

Like with support for the LLRA, its social events and vision for an village shop and the needed facilities for an Urban Village, I am being asked by local residents living on the Long Leys Road area, do people wish to build a community for the community.
My reply and response has been to neighbours and residents...do you really care? Also...are you involved?
For too many are making excuses over not getting involved, not wishing to play their part in supporting the LLRA objectives and making their voices heard on matters concerning our Urban Village. They appear to whinge and run and hide in their man-made castles known as houses. When knocking on doors for support, the draw bridges to their castles are held in an up upright position.
Well, these folk may have to dig deep if they want the West Common to remain and be maintained. For budget cuts are being considered by Lincoln City Council one of which could affect the West Common. And this is right on their doorstep and used by local residents like themselves.
Those who have dogs, walk them on the West Common. Residents like walking on the West Common too and use its facilities. In sunny and dry periods, folk like to picnic. Kids like to explore. Horses are ridden and people use it for recreation.
Surely a jewel in the crown, an natural assett for Lincoln and well worth keeping as such!
Well, folk are invited to put words into action and release the chains that keep the draw bridges up at their castle entrances.
The next meeting of the West Common Friends will be held on Wednesday, 15th August at the public house called the Queen of the West, Moor Street, off West Parade. It will start at 8pm.
West Common Friends has been set up to protect and conserve the West Common which was given to the people of Lincoln by King John, way back in the Middle Ages.
Do you have the time to care on what goes on around you? If so, please play your part and on walk on the pathway that has been built between Long Leys Road gate and the West Parade gate (on the West Common) on that Wednesday evening. It leads to the Queen of the West pub nearby. Perhaps you would like to buy and drink or two to refresh parts and need refreshing.
See you there...hopefully!

[SteveW]

I'm sorry John but your last two posts have referred to whingeing and the like which I am sure many others as well as me finds a bit offensive.

5 Years ago I decided to move to this part of the world and live my life within a pleasant and nice environment. Not once did I say to myself, I must move there because good old John Shipton the tireless campaigner lives there.

However because I keep myself to myself like lots of others and don't wish to be actively involved in local concerns and interests doesn't make me or us whingers. You have every right to fight for this and fight for that just as I have every right to keep out of it, so please give us a break.

By all means, campaign all you like and call every councillor from here to kingdom come but don't expect every resident to jump on your bandwagon and support you at every opportunity.

[john shipton]

Steve:

I am not forcing folk to do this and that for the sake of either the LLRA or the local community. Nor am I pressurising people to get involved. It is entirely upto them. I am just asking!
However, there are folk out there who have pledged their support over the past few years in order the get the needed facilities for the community. But in talking to them now, have gone into the hide and seek mode when action is required and needed.
I came to live in Lincoln having escaped the gang violence of the East End of London. What was gun culture, drugs and gang warefare then, still remains and very little has changed.
People say that the council estates of St Giles and Birchwood are rough and ready. Compared what my family endured in East London, well, what goes on in the city of Lincoln can be considered as timid.
What the East End of London lost was the use of common land and allotments. Most were sold by the London Borough of Newham Council never seen or used again.
The same happened in Romford, Essex, where I born.
A typical example was at Roneo Corner which was a main road which led into the shopping centre of Romford. Originally it was road junction. Opposite an engineering company, known as Roneo Works, was an allotment site. Quite large in size. There were green fields nearby too. All used by the general public.
This is what the London Borough of Havering Council did and which was done by stealth.
This local authority deliberatley ran down the allotments and their use. The council lost somehow the waiting list for those wanting an allotment and when someone gave up their allotment, did not bother to contact those wanting one. They closed the entrances to the fields.
18 months after using this tactic, they claimed that people did not want to use the allotments and said that children did not want to play in the fields anymore. Allotments and the fields were left overgrown and not maintained.
Guess what...the allotments were eventually sold for housing development and the fields became part of a maze of roads going north, south, east and west that led from a roundabout.
This happened in the 1980s.
Romford Brewery where I was the transport officer and which was the main employer for Romford and the surrounding area, is no more. Ind Coope was taken over by a larger brewering company. Then later bought out by another large conglomerate company. And what did this company finally do...it closed the premises down and sold it for development at a huge profit. My office that was, is now part of a bowling alley which is part of a huge entertainment and shopping complex. Romford Brewery employed thousands of people. The complex only employs several hundred. This is what is called today modernisation using the name of progress. To recognise what was Romford Brewery, the complex is called The Brewery.
If I offend people who promise this and that to begin with, then say I can't be bothered, then I do apologise in asking them again to get involved with the community.
As you say, the majority want a quiet and peaceful life and are not really bothered as what happens to the Urban Village and facilities. After all, they have their cars to use to shop elsewhere and a village shop would not be used. Most private households have two cars (or more) now anyway.
If the West Common goes to rack and ruin, again not many people are concerned as with the environment they live in. Who cares!
If the allotments on Long Leys Road are run down and not much is spent by Lincoln City Council to maintain the site, who is that bothered. Who cares!
If the former Social Education Centre is sold for more housing, who wants a community centre to meet and a play group for the local children. Together with this site and the allotments alongside who is concerned about more additional housing springing up in the area. Who cares!
Who cares as to what happens to the area they live in. Who really cares!
All for a nice, peaceful and quiet life without any hassle with very little contact with neighbours and people to speak to. But when disaster strikes, then what happens?
Just look what the town of Tewkesbury are doing over the recent flooding. Is this not now a community pulling together, young and old, rich and poor!
But having moved into the Urban Village, whereby Westbury Homes who sold one of their houses to me stating as a selling point, that my area was deemed to be part of the Urban Village, and Lincoln City Council at their meetings at the former SEC on Long Leys Road stated facilities would follow under the Lincoln Plan endorsed in 1998, then either this has been a lie from the beginning or, it can be achieved.
That is why the LLRA came into being and to solve other issues concerning the area.
But it takes residents to get involved to achieve this too.
It is not just the residents' association and the likes of John Shipton who care and play an active part for what could have been the Urban Village but should not others be encouraged to play their part also?
What do we pay council tax for...just a few wheelie bins?
Think about why I have this passion because what little we have, may be lost too.
Surely our Urban Village and facilities are worth fighting for?
And what about the West Common and the allotments nearby!

Shippo.