Issue - meetings

Cabbell Park, Cromer

 

 

Meeting: 05/02/2024 - Cabinet (Item 26)

26 Cabbell Park, Cromer pdf icon PDF 1 MB

Executive Summary

Cabbell Park is situated on Mill Road in Cromer and was previously the home of Cromer Town Football Club.

 

Ownership of Cabbell Park was taken on by NNDC in 2015, with a section at the front of the site sold to make way for a new medical practice. The capital sum from this sale (approx. £360k) is held for the purpose of providing/improving football facilities in the town.

 

Cromer Youth Football Club (CYFC) have for many years been seeking a home for their club. Since the late 80s they have been playing matches at various satellite sites across the district, including Fearns Field, Northrepps, Southrepps, Bodham, East Runton and more.

 

A project is currently underway to build a 3G football facility on the adjacent Academy/Sports Centre site, for which the youth football club are a partner club.

 

It is proposed that Cabbell Park could become the home of CYFC.

 

Options considered

 
  1. The necessary improvements are made, and additional facilities added, to Cabbell Park to enable CYFC to lease the ground and have a home for all of their football operations. The car parking area would be leased to the NHS from 6am-6pm Monday to Friday.
  2. Do not follow option one and investigate further options for the site.

 

Consultation(s)

This proposal has been loosely discussed with CYFC, Norfolk FA, The Local Member and senior officers prior to the report being brought forward.

 

Recommendations

 
  1. That Cabinet supports in principle the necessary improvements and provision of additional facilities to Cabbell Park to enable Cromer Youth Football Club to lease the ground and have a home for all of their football operations.
  2. Officers are instructed to undertake further work to develop the scope of improvements, design of additional facilities and appropriate permissions and costings and present these in a paper to a future Cabinet meeting for consideration.

 

Reasons for recommendations

 

This is the first time in 30 years that a tangible option exists to provide a home for CYFC, a solution which will also maximise the use of Cabbell Park. A permanent home in Cromer for the club would enable them to grow and secure football in the town for a number of years to come. Football clubs for many are the heart of the community and this is an opportunity to bring this back to the town.

 

Background papers

 

NA

 

 

Wards affected

Cromer Town & Suffield Park

Cabinet member(s)

Cllr Liz Withington

Contact Officer

Colin Brown, Leisure and Locality Services Manager

 

Links to key documents:

 

Corporate Plan:          

Developing our Communities

Medium Term Financial Strategy (MTFS)                                

The proposal as a whole could generate a small amount of additional income

Council Policies & Strategies

List here which existing council policies and strategies the proposals are linked to

 

Corporate Governance:

 

Is this a key decision 

No

Has the public interest test been applied

 

Details of any previous decision(s) on this matter

 

 

Decision:

Decision

RESOLVED

 

  1. To support in principle the necessary improvements and provision of additional facilities to Cabbell Park to enable Cromer Youth Football Club to lease the ground and have a home for all of their football operations.
  2. To instruct officers to undertake further work to develop the scope of improvements, design of additional facilities and appropriate permissions and costings and present these in a paper to a future Cabinet meeting for consideration.

 

Reason for the decision:

 

This is the first time in 30 years that a tangible option exists to provide a home for CYFC, a solution which will also maximise the use of Cabbell Park. A permanent home in Cromer for the club would enable them to grow and secure football in the town for a number of years to come. Football clubs for many are the heart of the community and this is an opportunity to bring this back to the town.

 

Minutes:

The Chairman introduced this item. He explained that ownership of Cabbell Park (previously home to Cromer Town Football Club) was taken on by NNDC in 2015, with a section at the front of the site sold to make way for a new medical practice. The capital sum from that sale was held for the purpose of providing football facilities in the town. For many years Cromer Youth Football Club (CYFC) had been seeking a home. A project was currently underway to build a 3G football facility on the adjacent Academy / Sport Centre site, for which CYFC were a partner club. It was therefore proposed that Cabbell Park could become the home of CYFC.

 

The Chairman said that there may be some concerns from residents regarding the impact on parking on Blair Road and Mill Road and the hospital. The Assistant Director for Environment & Leisure Services said that the development of Cabbell Park would not impact on parking at the hospital. The lease that they had signed was between 6am and 6pm and it was not envisaged that it would be dual use at all. The Chairman agreed that this would be of comfort to residents.

 

Cllr L Shires referred to section 5.2 of the report which stated that the actual cost of the works was not yet known. She said that this report was very much about the intent to undertake the work but that officers had been asked to provide costs in advance of any work commencing.

 

It was proposed by Cllr L Withington, seconded by Cllr W Fredericks and

 

RESOLVED

 

  1. To support in principle the necessary improvements and provision of additional facilities to Cabbell Park to enable Cromer Youth Football Club to lease the ground and have a home for all of their football operations.
  2. To instruct officers to undertake further work to develop the scope of improvements, design of additional facilities and appropriate permissions and costings and present these in a paper to a future Cabinet meeting for consideration.

 

Reason for the decision:

 

This is the first time in 30 years that a tangible option exists to provide a home for CYFC, a solution which will also maximise the use of Cabbell Park. A permanent home in Cromer for the club would enable them to grow and secure football in the town for a number of years to come. Football clubs for many are the heart of the community and this is an opportunity to bring this back to the town.