Paddle sports club container issue at Morpeth site subject of petition

Called ‘Preserve the Paddle Sports Container Location in Morpeth Town’ – www.change.org/p/preserve-the-paddle-sports-container-location-in-morpeth-town – it relates to a container that was strategically placed adjacent to the former Morpeth Riverside Leisure Centre for a paddle sports club led by Luis.

Northumberland County Council has released a statement saying that it has been temporarily moved to another site, with safety a factor as “there have been issues with anti-social behaviour”.

Luis, who is hoping a local business might be able to help by offering land to house the 20ft container, said in the petition details: “We urge you, our local authority council, to keep the container at its current location until there is a clear plan for its future, which includes consultation with all stakeholders involved including families, schools and local organisations.”

A county council spokesperson said: “We acknowledge the activities carried out on the river have benefited many over recent years, but the shipping container, which is owned by a private commercial business, was on council land without formal agreement.

“Now the old leisure centre is empty, there have been issues with anti-social behaviour and reports of youths climbing on the container, and in the interests of safety we asked the owner to move it last autumn.

“We have been working with the town council on this issue. After a number of deadlines for the container’s removal passed, we arranged to move it on Monday, January 29 to nearby Storey Park as a temporary measure – where it can still be accessed pending the owner finding a longer-term solution.”