Hundreds expected to protest on D-day for People's Park

Tuesday 23 February 2016

The battle to save the People's Park moves into the Royal Square today with a public protest followed by a States debate over its future.

Town Constable Simon Crowcroft is asking his colleagues to force Ministers to remove the Park from a shortlist of four potential sites for a new hospital, costing up to £630m. But the Ministers have fought back arguing the Park is, “...the best-performing short-listed option in relation to clinical efficiency”, but deliberately stopping short of saying they support building there. They are supported by senior doctors who published an open letter calling for the Park to remain on the shortlist.

But yesterday, protestors lay down in front of a bulldozer on the Park, as a symbolic plea to stop the potential development - and they are planning a major rally of supporters in the Royal Square today at lunchtime, in a bid to convince States Members that Islanders don't want to lose the Park. 

The Save People's Park campaign has been building increasing momentum, with close to 6000 signatures gathered in Parish Halls and other locations across the Island for the petition to remove the Park from the shortlist of hospital sites.

Chairman of Save People's Park, Christian May, said "This lunchtime at 12:30pm all Islanders who support the preservation of the Park have the opportunity to confront their States members directly and ensure they enter the chamber with a clear message in their minds; we the people of Jersey do want quality healthcare, but we do not want a 'trade off' that removes essential green space from our community. People's Park must be removed from the Hospital shortlist."

The location of the new hospital has caused a short, but so far acrimonious, debate, with the Chief Minister, Senator Ian Gorst, and Health Minister, Deputy Andrew Green facing a fiery Town Hall meeting, amid allegations of poor communication, rigged websites and a lack of transparency. Those allegations have all been rejected by Ministers. 

Before Constable Crowcroft's plan to save the Park is even debated this afternoon, Ministers will face a barrage of questions covering how the cost will be met, how the consultation process was put together, whether they will stick to a decision by the Parish Assembly, the possible process for a compulsory purchase of the site, the cost of the current “public engagement” exercise” and demanding a full breakdown of costs.

A £2.5 million research project boiled the list of 40 potential sites down to a handful, and the Health department is now consulting with the public about the best way forward.

Unless States Members remove the People's Park from the list, here are the current potential options:

-      Building a new hospital on the existing site, at a cost of around £600 million over up to 12 years.

-      The People’s Park site, which would cost £450 million over six years.

-      The Waterfront, which would cost £450 million over six years.

-      The Overdale site, which would cost £450 million over six years.

Ministers have put together a compensation package for the People's Park site that would see them knock down existing hospital buildings and turn them into a replacement park, and extend the Millennium Town Park to provide more green space for town residents. The Park is owned by St Helier, but its Constable Simon Crowcroft has already reject any "swap deal."

Bailiwick Express will publish the result of today's debate as soon as it emerges.