Thank you to everyone for your continuing support.
We are well on our way to 2500 signatures of people who oppose the demolition of Kingston's Kingfisher Leisure Centre - the same number of people who responded to Kingston Council's so-called "consultation" asking us what we would like to see in a possible new but totally uncommitted and unfunded leisure centre, a consultation where we were not even asked if we wanted The Kingfisher Leisure Centre to be demolished or re-opened
In the report to Planning Committee recommending APPROVAL of the plans to demolish The Kingfisher Leisure Centre in Kingston with no firm plans for what will replace it, councillors' attention was drawn to Policy P6 of the Kingston Town Area Action Plan 2008 which states that the council will pursue improvements to the quality of facilities and the environment, including:
- "upgrading or replacing The Kingfisher Leisure Centre for leisure, recreation or community use
- "retention and enhancement of the local open space
- "residential including affordable housing."
However, councillors were not made aware of the wording of Policy K6 in the same Kingston Town Area Action Plan and there was no explanation to the Planning Committee of the implications of that policy which had merely a passing and unexplained reference in parentheses in the report
Policy K6 clearly states that Kingston Council WILL REFUSE planning permission: "for proposals involving the loss of such uses, unless replacement facilities ARE provided"
This omission of this information and the explicit emphasis on one policy over another appears to call in to question whether the Planning Committee's decision to approve the demolition of The Kingfisher gave appropriate and necessary weight to all the policies that should have driven their decision
No replacement facilities for a demolished Kingfisher Leisure Centre were provided at the time that The Planning Committee made its decision to approve demolition and there are still none
The Kingfisher Leisure Centre must not be demolished
Please keep encouraging everyone you know to sign and share this petition and stop Kingston Council from demolishing The Kingfisher