The basketball court at Freshwater’s Moa Place Multi Use Games Area has received a full refurbishment, costing £22,500. The court was officially relaunched by local players and councillors alike taking part in a shooting skills and drills clinic run by the Isle of Wight Basketball Club. Funds for the project were initially raised through Crowdfunding by the Isle of Wight Basketball Club and the local community, with additional money contributed by the Isle of Wight Sports Foundation, Freshwater Parish Council, Tesco’s Community Fund and Basketball England. The court now boasts a new playing surface, which has been painted with the colours of the Isle of Wight flag thanks to Soft Surfaces, full-sized backboards and rings and repairs to the fencing, all installed by local contractor Sandrock Services. Chair of IOW Basketball Tim Brown MBE and club coach Ian Broadsmith saw the refurbishment as part of their strategy to develop the club’s junior basketball programme. Tim’s said:
“By doing up the court to publicise basketball, we’ve had loads of people walking onto it wanting to play or asking if their kids can play, and our junior sessions are growing all the time. Next summer, we will be moving our popular 3×3 league from inside, which is really expensive, to the outdoor court. It’s fantastic. ”The court was in a really dilapidated state, so with the help of the community, we Crowdfunded £10,000 and were supported by the parish council and the Isle of Wight Sports Foundation and Tesco. “One of the contractors, Sandrock, also did some of the work with no labour charge. It was a hugely community-based project.”
Toby Wilkinson, Basketball England’s court activation officer, has said:
“The Freshwater Park refurbishment caps off a busy summer for the #ProjectSwish campaign, which has helped six communities realise their dream of having a good-looking, bespoke outdoor court to play basketball on. “We were delighted to work with Tim, the Isle of Wight Basketball Club, and its funding partners to complete this project. The fact the club has already experienced an increased interest in young people wanting to play basketball because of access to a great basketball facility is exactly why #ProjectSwish is so integral to Basketball England’s mandate of growing the game and the health and well-being of the nation’s young people.”
Sadly soon to be vandalised.
Why don’t they build the 200 grand bump track alongside it instead of building it near houses which will be inconvenient to the neighbours with the noise and drug taking that happens in the old skate park already. The old skate park recently had tens of thousands spent on CCTV in that area so it would make sense.
It would appear that Freshwater Parish Councillors have a lot of money to spend, the residents must be wealthy to afford all this work including 200 grand for new toilets.
We residents are not wealthy, we are ripped off via Council tax, and do not support the appeasement of the feral brats by giving them 200k of pump track.
You’re right about the vandalism and drug taking, any money spent on these projects is a waste.
Sorry my mistake, it is pump track, not bump track. I have just been reading objections from local people on the planning application regarding noise, drugs, and antisocial behaviour. Local people do not want it.
It would appear that those comments in the planning application who are supporting it do not live anywhere near it, they are on the other side of the island and even the mainland.!
Is there anyway you could overthrow the Parish Council and elect people who listen to the needs of local people.?
Don’t be so negative
The drug dealer that goes there comes all the way ove rfrom ryde to deal,used to live in totland before he got evicted,slimy little scumbag,been reported many times,and surprise surprise,nothing has been done about him,even does deals in the public toilets by the skatepark,toilets constantly stink of weed,he will be rubbing his hands together at more customers