Work on £500,000 Rossmere Park regeneration project hoped to start '˜as soon as possible'

Hartlepool Borough Council’s South and Central Community Forum heard the council had gone out to tender on its redevelopment of Rossmere Park.

That procedure ended on Friday, September 21, and council bosses are now going through the process of looking through all the information and putting a contract in place.

Once the contract is in place a consultation will be set up with residents to give them more information on the project and the chance to ask questions.

The redevelopment will begin with phase one of the work, which will include refurbishing the main and toddler play areas, creating a car park and an events space.

Sarah Scarr, council heritage and countryside manager, said:  “Once the contract is in place then we will be able to set a date when we will start work which we hope will be as soon as possible.

“Then there will also be an information session for residents to talk through the work that is going on, which will give them a chance to ask questions and have them answered.”

Mondegreen EB Ltd – a not-for-profit company which specialises in managing community projects funded through the Landfill Communities Fund – wrote to the council earlier this year offering them £549,810 for the project.

In March this year the council planning committee approved plans to install a new interactive football goal wall, zip line, climbing net, swing, benches and court at the park.

The regeneration of the park has been based on the 2015 masterplan which was drawn up by the council.

Coun Kevin Cranney, speaking at the meeting, said: “The park isn’t just for people who live near it, it’s for the whole of Hartlepool.”

Once the first phase of the scheme is completed they will the move onto the second area of redevelopment around the pond.

Nic Marko , Local Democracy Reporting Service