LETTER: Extol the virtues of unique facility

To remind everyone the council wishes to close down two popular and successful venues for an opportunity to build a hotel and a commercial enterprise of retail units together with a controversial medical centre and even more housing!

Horsham council will shortly say what their present intentions are and I would ask everyone to take advantage of this opportunity to express their objections.

It is not too late for them to change their minds and with the objections already expressed by these clubs the council have every opportunity to retain the status quo.

The bowls club is unique in that it has eight rinks and is capable of holding national or international competitions.

Together with its own restaurant and changing rooms and run by volunteers it is completely self sufficient and is a centre of excellence of everything to do with bowls.

Equally the leisure centre is also unique as I believe it has its own internal race training track.

To find an alternative facility I understand you would have to travel miles which does nothing to help foster our future athletic stars.

Everyone has probably read the articles by our successful medal holders whom bemoan the loss of a facility that helped them in their endeavours.

What the council are struggling with now is how to corkscrew two successful unique establishments into a smaller single building.

Both would lose the unique features which is the core of their success.

The council have been trying now for two years to find an answer when the obvious conclusion is staring them in the face. The lower cost to the community is to leave alone!

Far better to maintain existing buildings that provide what the bowling and athletic community require than to compromise.

Rather than downgrade let us showboat the facilities and what they offer.

If we have something unique then that will sell itself and be something to be proud of.

I would ask everyone to join with me in extolling the virtues of what we have now before it is too late.

TONY BACOT

Skylark View, Horsham