GROUPS have been created by Daventry Town Council to look into the futures of two controversial sites in the town centre.
On Monday night councillors agreed to create working groups to study information surrounding Daventry District Council's proposals for the
WaterSpace canal and marina development in Eastern Way with a possible view to holding a public meeting, and t
hey also formed a group to investigate the legal status of the former outdoor pool site.
Several councillors raised the issue that results from a survey carried out by the town council asking people's views on the WaterSpace scheme
and the findings from DDC's consultation did not match up, with a majority of the town council's respondents opposing the scheme but DDC's giving a more favourable result.
Councillor Mike Fletcher said: "There's a crisis of confidence in which authority people should believe.
"I think that we have made a commitment to the people of Daventry to make their voices heard.
"Their views are not being heard on this matter and I think we should consider how to re-enforce the results of our own survey."
The council agreed to form a working group to report back, possibly to a special meeting of the town council.
Then a decision would be made whether to hold a meeting asking members of the public to make their views known on the marina and canal plans.
A previous town council public meeting, addressing the PRT/pod proposals, saw hundreds pack into the Phoenix Centre with an almost unanimous opposition to DDC's ideas.
DDC has confirmed to the town council that it sees the land of the former outdoor pool as classed as 'recreational; whereas some town councillors believe it may legally be 'ublic open space'.
At the moment the site is fenced off and derelict awaiting redevelopment - a situation that would be allowed for 'recreational' land, but would not fit a classification of public open space.
Cllr Fletcher said: "Recently we joined the Open Spaces Society and we have talked to its legal advice officer.
"He believed that under the Open Spaces Act 1906 that the pool site is probably public open space, but we are following that up."
