Digger smashed up on Oswestry town green

Tuesday 1st June 2010, 10:16AM BST.

Sub-contractor Keith Morris and the vandalised digger

A digger has been smashed up on Oswestry’s new town green in the latest incident at the vandal-plagued site.

Hundreds of pounds worth of damage was caused.

Almost all the digger’s windows were shattered in a Bank Holiday attack. It had only recently been bought.

The owner of the machine, sub-contractor Mr Keith Morris, discovered the damage this morning.

“The site was checked yesterday and it was fine then,” he said.

“Six of the eight windows are broken. The digger is only six months old and has only done about 200 hours work.”

He added: “It’s not the first vandalism on this new town green, we have already had tree saplings snapped off at the bottom.

“I have always defended the site against those who have said it would be vandalised.

“I have said that people will look after it. Now look what has happened.”

Other vandalism has seen fences trampled down after originally being put up to keep people off the land.

The £170,000 town green is being created on five acres of former railway land on the Gobowen Road in Oswestry.

Advantage West Midlands bought the site several years ago, planning to site a primary care centre there.

But a legal bid to designate the land a town green was successful, blocking the move, and Advantage West Midlands handed the land to Shropshire Council.

National grants have helped put together a scheme to turn the land into a mix of play areas and leisure and wildlife areas.

It is adjacent to the Shelf Bank land, which has recently been designated a local nature reserve.

The town green should be open to the public later in the summer.

View more: Oswestry news.

1
Brambly

June 1, 2010 at 13:02

Half term, is it?

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- Amanda
  
  June 1, 2010 at 21:40
  
  No, just a usual Oswestry recreational activity. It will be completely trashed within weeks of completion….a complete waste of money!
  
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2
Dlkov

June 2, 2010 at 10:45

Are people really suprised, this waste ground area has been known as a ‘Druggies Playground’ by the locals for years, calling it a town green and planting a few trees on it was never going to change that. The Health Centre would have been a much better use of the space.

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3
June

June 6, 2010 at 23:35

If Oswestry Town Green land had been left natural, allowing wild plants and trees to regenerate naturally, it would not be vulnerable to vandalism. Authorities need to realise this.

Man made structures and artificial plantings are vulnerable, it would have been cheaper and better to allow Nature to regenerate and design over time the new Town Green. People would have made paths where they wanted to go.

Some young people in depived areas vent their anger and dissatisfaction through vandalism. It is not right for them to do this , but better they do this to the Town Green than people’s cars or property.

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4
edwin turner

June 14, 2010 at 21:21

why oh why do we /me and you provide facilities it happens everywere even the kiddies work is not respected anymore get it sold off/given back and build the healt centre it would be more usefull there could even be a drug -councelling service like a lethal injection per visit

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