Local councillors are asking Dringhouses residents for their views on a possible funding bid to deliver improvements to the playgound on Leeside.
In December 2020 the council announced a £100,000 fund for play area improvements, through which communities can bid for up to £10,000 to be spent on replacing outdated equipment and refreshing play ideas with new kit. Any successful bid would need a 15% contribution from other sources, such as ward funding.
In Dringhouses & Woodthorpe ward, the council playgrounds at Nelsons Lane and Woodthorpe Green have benefited from significant investment in recent years, but the play area on Leeside (which is also owned and managed by the council) has not seen any investment. In winter months it is very boggy due to poor drainage on the site – councillors have tried to address this, but Yorkshire Water have refused to allow a drainage channel to be installed to flow into their pipes.
Ward councillors are now asking local residents for their views on whether and how the Leeside play area could be improved. Feedback will help to shape an application for funding, if residents feel that the play area would benefit from some investment.
These are the questions on which we would welcome feedback:
- Do you think that the Leeside play area would benefit from some investment?
- The play area is very boggy in the winter, making it difficult to use. Would you like to see astroturf (or a similar surface) laid on the kickabout area to make it more useable during wet weather?
- Are there any pieces of equipment currently in the play area which need updating? If so, please tell us which ones.
- Are there new pieces of kit which could be added? If so, please tell us what you would like to see installed.
- Do you have any other ideas or suggestions to improve the play area?
Residents are asked to send their feedback by e-mail to cllr.sfenton@york.gov.uk by the end of January, to allow time for the feedback to be collated and for a funding bid to be potentially submitted by the end of February.