August 3, 2010 9.15 am This story is over 162 months old

City Council Execs to discuss racecourse plans at special meeting for ‘full debate’

Controversial: The City Council Executive will allow for further debate on plans to reinstate horse racing in Lincoln at a special meeting.

The City of Lincoln Council’s Executive will gather for a special meeting on Monday, August 16, to discuss the proposals put forward by the Lincoln Racecourse Regeneration Company (LRRC) to reinstate flat racing on the West Common.

Council Leader, Councillor Darren Grice, has agreed to a special meeting to allow time for a full debate, and to offer extra space for members of the public to attend. The meeting was initially scheduled for August 9, but that gathering will now only deal with ordinary business.

LRRC are requesting that the council agrees to ‘heads of terms’ on a 12-month lease with the company, which would allow them to carry out detailed investigations to see if their proposal to bring horse racing back to the West Common in Lincoln is viable.

After two heated meetings on July 14 and 26, the independent Commons Advisory Panel deemed LRRC’s plans incomplete and recommended the City of Lincoln not to go ahead with the plans. The panel’s advice will be shared with the Executive as part of the report, to help inform their decision.

Lincoln MP Karl McCartney is one of the directors of LRRC, something which has triggered strong debate around the topic from constituents who do not wish to see the return of horse racing on the West Common.

A campaign called Hands Off Our Common was mounted over the past weeks, and claims it raised almost 1,500 signatures from residents against LRRC’s plans. A peaceful protest also took place on the High Street on July 31.

The city’s opinions are now divided between the economic benefits a racecourse would bring to Lincoln, and the environmental and traffic effects this would have on the West Common.

The City of Lincoln Council Executive is expected to take a decision regarding the matter on August 16, at the public meeting taking place at 6pm at the New Life Christian Fellowship Church on Newland.

Source: City of Lincoln Council | Photo: Steve 9091