During this time of the biggest upheaval and uncertainty to our daily lives in 75 years, what’s more important to our health and wellbeing, green space or grey space?
How many are enjoying the burst of Spring in Wigmore Valley Park as we try and stay fit and healthy whilst in social isolation, or any of the little green oases within walking distance of where we live?
The birdsong is crisp and clear, the trees are budding, the flowers and hedgerows are bursting out and the thrum of insects can be heard with every step – and we can escape from the harsh new realities we face, even if just for a short while.
Nature’s beauty is free to all, it has no overheads, no hidden charges, no shareholders’ pockets to please. It is just there to make you smile and appreciate it, in all its forms and glories.
Make the most of it while you can, as it is still Luton Borough Council’s aim to replace it with acres of grey instead of the lushness of green, as the site for their expansion of London Luton Airport with its multi-million-pound Terminal 2 project.
The pursuit of those acres of grey concrete and glass are costing millions of pounds which the town couldn’t afford before Covid-19 arrived, and will be able to afford even less when it is finally overcome.
The loan facility that the Borough Council have made available to itself (under the guise of London Luton Airport Ltd), for airport expansion, already sits at £281 million. Around £94.3 million had already been consumed by March 2019. This figure sits on top of the £225 million that the Council committed on our behalf to build the DART transit link, purely for the benefit of airport passengers. This project will in all probability considerably overrun, and be even more expensive. In fact the second funding package of £125 million has still not been secured at this time.
We can also add to this the initial £124 million to build Phase 1 of the Terminal 2 access road, though this is still referred to by its code name of Century Park Access Road (CPAR), within Council circles. Funding is still being sought for this project at this time.
We won’t add all that debt together, as the figure is very frightening and we have enough worries to deal with in these unusual times.
What are the overheads for Wigmore Valley Park? Just a regular visit by the grounds people, whose skill in combination with the park’s natural assets won the Fields in Trust, Best Loved Park Eastern Region 2019 Award, in a competition that covered the United Kingdom.
Financially what is the better deal for the town and its residents, the free beauty of nature or the expensive coldness of concrete?
* The beauty of birdsong or the constant thrum of even more airport noise?
* The crisp clean air or the stench of more aviation and vehicle emissions?
* Minimal financial outlay for maximum health rewards, or massive financial outlay with a very good chance it may never be recovered at all?
Let’s keep Wigmore Valley Park for health and wellbeing. We have a big enough airport already
Stop Luton Airport Expansion
