ALTON Town Council has decided to go ahead with an agreement to take on ownership of the public amenity land attached to the new Barley Fields development at the Holybourne end of town.

Despite grave concerns over flooding, due to underground springs, and flinty terrain, it was felt the site would be better in the hands of the town council rather than run by a management company, appointed by Persimmon Homes, over which the council would have no control.

Located on the Chandos Lodge site, the release of the land by Persimmon Homes is part of a Section 106 condition of planning, together with a commuted sum of £202,086.37 to cover future maintenance of the open space area and a contribution toward the play area.

The land already includes a school drop-off car park and would also be used to provide a children’s play area, all of which would be maintained by Alton Town Council.

The council has been reluctant to take over responsibility for the site while it is in such a poor state, and town clerk Leah Coney was asked to try to negotiate a settlement that would take some account of the amount of work still to do to bring it up to a useable standard.

At the local authority’s full council meeting last Wednesday, it was stressed that the S106 agreement was between Persimmon and East Hampshire District Council (EHDC) as the planning authority and that, before signing it off, by the end of March, it would be up to EHDC to ensure the land met the criteria for public open space.

The costs, other than the legal agreement associated with the transfer of the land, would be borne by Persimmon and EHDC.

While it was estimated that Alton Town Council may still need in the region of £70,000 to improve the drainage and remove the flints, Persimmon’s final offer was £5,000 over and above the agreed commuted sum to support this work.

If the decision was to walk away and leave the open spare area in the hands of a maintenance company, it had been indicated by Persimmon that this would probably result in the removal of the school drop-off car park, to reduce the liability for the company.

While conscious that the community would still consider the site to be the responsibility of Alton Town Council even if it was transferred to a maintenance company, in reaching a decision councillors considered a suggestion by Alton Town mayor Matthew Bayliss that, bearing in mind the meadow is the site of natural springs which drain toward the railway line, parts of which may be difficult to drain, if it proved too big an ask to bring the whole site up to scratch then part of it could be left in a more natural state.

In the event, the vote was in favour of Persimmon handing over the land in totality to Alton Town Council once work on it had been completed “strictly in accordance with the S106 agreement” with the commuted sum, plus an additional £5,000 to help with anticipated remedial works needed to bring the grassed areas up to a suitable standard.

Concerned about the state of the land and potential ongoing problems, Pam Jones voted against the proposal saying: “The land is not fit for purpose. I wouldn’t touch it with a bargepole.”

Fellow town councillors Graham Titterington and Bisi Eni-Olotu abstained.

Commenting on the problems associated with this particular S106 agreement, ward councillor Graham Hill said it was a “salutary lesson on how much better S106 agreements need to be”.