5,000 sign petition against Otley riverside fence (From Wharfedale Observer)

5,000 sign petition against Otley riverside fence

1:33pm Thursday 12th April 2007

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More than 5,000 people have signed a petition to stop the river being fenced off at Wharfemeadows Park in Otley.

The number of signatures counted so far by the action group fighting the plan has reached a staggering 5,647.

Campaigners say the number of signatures is a clear indication of the strength and depth of opposition in the town to the Leeds City Council plan.

Hundreds of visitors to Wharfemeadows Park have added their support to the campaign over the Easter holiday.

Linda Lukats, a spokeswoman for the Wharfedmeadows Action Group ( WAG), said: "When adding their names to the petition, many people pointed out that the £165,000 of council tax payers' money allocated to fencing off the river would be better spent on improving the footpaths and roads of Otley as well as providing and maintaining decent public toilets in the park."

The petition will be presented to the Lord Mayor of Leeds by a WAG deputation on Wednesday, April 18, at 2pm. One of the WAG members will address the full council at the start of the meeting and give their arguments for why the fencing scheme should be scrapped.

The proposed river fence has caused a storm of protest in the town, and Otley councillors have pledged £1,000 towards the fight to prevent it. The money will be used to take protesters to the Leeds City Council meeting.

WAG has succeeded in getting the city council to question legal arguments in safety recommendations for the riverside park. The action group says the safety recommendations to Leeds City council are flawed because they use an incorrect legal argument.

According to campaigners the report from the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents says a council was successfully sued for not taking appropriate safety measures - when in fact the case was thrown out by the Law Lords.

If the group is right, Leeds City Council could seek the views of alternative safety consultants, or scrap the most controversial part of the fence plans altogether.

Leeds City Council's joint leader, Coun Mark Harris, has already said independent legal advice was being taken following his discussions with WAG.

Anyone who wants to support the deputation is being asked to be outside Leeds Civic Hall in Calverley Street at 1pm on April 18.

Further details are available on the WAG website www.wharfemeadowsactiongroup.org The petition has been signed by Otley's MP Greg Mulholland, and the campaign is supported by the Otley Town Partnership.

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