Knoll Park is getting a recycled sports pitch, and it is saving the council thousands
Work under way on the recycled sports pitch at Knoll Park
Knoll Park is getting a recycled sports pitch, and it is saving the council thousands
A second recycled multi-use games area is being installed in the city, and this time it is Knoll Park residents who will benefit. Work has started to transform the park's MUGA using recycled surfacing and fencing that was previously in place at the Moulsecoomb Hub.
The project is part of planned refurbishment and upgrade work, expected to take around two weeks. Funded from the council's revenue budget, it costs around £47,000, a fraction of the price of building a new facility from scratch.
What is happening at Knoll Park
Parks officers had noticed the Knoll Park playing surface deteriorating for some time, and that it was reaching the end of its useful life. Some of the steel fencing also needed replacing. Rather than buy everything new, the council's sports development and parks teams are reusing surfacing and fencing panels salvaged from the Moulsecoomb Hub MUGA.
Once the new tarmac surface is laid, fresh lines will be painted for football and basketball, giving the park a court that looks like new. The council says the result is a cost-effective, long-lasting playing surface that should serve local residents for many years.
"I'm delighted our sports development and parks teams spotted a further opportunity to work together to recycle good-as-new surfacing materials to provide a perfect and sustainable solution for Knoll Park. This refurbishment means a valued sports facility will be greatly improved, look like new and provide a cost effective and long-lasting playing surface for local residents for many years to come."
Councillor Alan Robins, Cabinet member for Sport, Recreation and Libraries
How the recycling works
The clever bit is where the materials come from. The Moulsecoomb Hub MUGA was removed to make way for a major new housing and hub development, an £87 million scheme that includes new sports facilities of its own. Rather than scrap the old court, the council has been carefully lifting its steel structure, fencing and surfacing and giving them a second life in other parks that needed an upgrade.
The approach was first used earlier this year at Hangleton Park, whose ageing court was replaced with the nearly-new Moulsecoomb facility for around £56,000, against roughly £150,000 for a brand-new one. With Knoll Park now following, the council estimates the two recycling projects together save it close to £200,000.
A fair share for Hangleton and Knoll
Both recycled pitches have landed in the Hangleton and Knoll ward, an area councillors have said should get its fair share of investment. The first, at Hangleton Park, was officially opened in January by the Mayor, and the council said it was already proving popular with local football and basketball players within weeks.
Meanwhile Moulsecoomb, where the courts came from, is not losing out: its old MUGA is making way for the wider £87m housing and hub regeneration, which will bring 200 new homes and brand-new sports facilities including a 3G pitch to that part of the city.
This article is based on a Brighton and Hove City Council press release, with additional reporting. For the latest Brighton and Hove news, visit ImJustBrighton.