See also the Prospect Mound pages of this site where the Hastings Borough Council department that installed the metal fences decided again, without consultation with the public to destroy or vandalise all the wooden art features that had been installed and maintained by volunteers. It seems that HBC were not eager to ask the volunteers who gave their labour to HBC without charge if destruction of the Prospect Mound was the best way of dealing with a perceived public safety issue.
Prospect Mound Destroyed by Hastings Borough Council
Prospect Mound Summerfields -
"Spoil Heap" from the adjacent Walled Garden
The sketch below identifies the location of the spoil heaps that were created when the site for the walled garden was prepared when the sloping ground on the curent site of the walled garden was levelled. The surplus material was moved to the south east of the site to form a raised area adjacent to the garden.
The winding path that ascends to the top of the mound has recently been uncovered and the path to the top is now accessable. Joc Hare the Sussex artist who works with wood assisted to create what is now known as the Prospect Mound. The Bohemia Village Voice provided details of the opening day in 2007
In London at Marble Arch a decision to spend £6 Million on a temporary mound was approved and an artificial mound was created complete with grass and 130 steps to the top. The decision by Westminster Council to spend that amount of money on a hillock that will be removed in January 2022 is open to question. In Hastings the Borough Council and its members chose to destroy a genuine mound dating from Victorian times. Watch the You Tube video by Jago Hazzard and read on for more details of what the philistines at HBC continue to do to our cultural heritage.
The winding path that ascends to the top of the mound has recently been uncovered and the path to the top is now accessable. Joc Hare the Sussex artist who works with wood assisted to create what is now known as the Prospect Mound. The Bohemia Village Voice provided details of the opening day in 2007
In London at Marble Arch a decision to spend £6 Million on a temporary mound was approved and an artificial mound was created complete with grass and 130 steps to the top. The decision by Westminster Council to spend that amount of money on a hillock that will be removed in January 2022 is open to question. In Hastings the Borough Council and its members chose to destroy a genuine mound dating from Victorian times. Watch the You Tube video by Jago Hazzard and read on for more details of what the philistines at HBC continue to do to our cultural heritage.
From the day it opened the Prospect Mound proved popular with adults and children where the paths offered adventure for the young and a quietplace in in the woods to sit and rest.
At the end of summer 2020 HBC had Safety Concerns
It received periodic maintenance from volunteers and plastic wood was used for some repairs where it proved to be strong and unlikely to rot. During 2020 when pandemic rules were in place,little was done.
HBC did not provide any materials for volunteers and all the timbers were removed and now there are no handrails or seating. Also the timber at ground level has been removed that has reduced the stability of the paths, particularly important for the elderly and those with disability. This policy of corporate vandalism was performed without any consultation with the public, the users of the site. The councillors who were elected by the public have not made any comment to add to these pages. (December 2020)
HBC did not provide any materials for volunteers and all the timbers were removed and now there are no handrails or seating. Also the timber at ground level has been removed that has reduced the stability of the paths, particularly important for the elderly and those with disability. This policy of corporate vandalism was performed without any consultation with the public, the users of the site. The councillors who were elected by the public have not made any comment to add to these pages. (December 2020)
The Prospect Mound - Now Destroyed because of Health & Safety Concerns
The photographs taken in 2020 below, show that all the wooden fences and wooden artwork have been removed from the site. HBC considered it could not be maintained and their solution was to destroy all the wood fences and seating.
Before it was destroyed the mound was a popular location where children were seen with their parents exploring the paths around the mound.
Before it was destroyed the mound was a popular location where children were seen with their parents exploring the paths around the mound.
A statement from Hastings Council offers the following reasons for their actions that occurred without any prior consultation.
"With lockdown and pandemics this has not been a good year. To add to that a decision had to be made about Prospect Mound and the handrails on it. These had become very dilapidated in the past few years and this became a Health and Safety issue. Due to the cost of repair and the cuts happening to our parks budget we had to remove the handrails to make safe. The mound still exists and can be explored, only with less infrastructure (more natural)."
"A new bridge has appeared next to the Roman Baths, this was installed as the original bridge was way too narrow. The only solution was to install a bridge over the original one. The park manager reports, "still trying to work on the Roman Baths but this is a very high cost project so will take some time to move forward"
The statement above from Hastings Council fails to state that the new wooden bridge also fails to meet the needs of anyone with a disability and is within the curtilage of the the listed Roman Bath where LB permission would be required through Hastings planning department. The Park Manager, has been fully aware of the maintenance and conservation requirements for the Roman Bath for over twenty years but his department chose to ignore the requests for a conservation management plan and to enquire about funding opportunities from heritage organisations when they were offered.
"With lockdown and pandemics this has not been a good year. To add to that a decision had to be made about Prospect Mound and the handrails on it. These had become very dilapidated in the past few years and this became a Health and Safety issue. Due to the cost of repair and the cuts happening to our parks budget we had to remove the handrails to make safe. The mound still exists and can be explored, only with less infrastructure (more natural)."
"A new bridge has appeared next to the Roman Baths, this was installed as the original bridge was way too narrow. The only solution was to install a bridge over the original one. The park manager reports, "still trying to work on the Roman Baths but this is a very high cost project so will take some time to move forward"
The statement above from Hastings Council fails to state that the new wooden bridge also fails to meet the needs of anyone with a disability and is within the curtilage of the the listed Roman Bath where LB permission would be required through Hastings planning department. The Park Manager, has been fully aware of the maintenance and conservation requirements for the Roman Bath for over twenty years but his department chose to ignore the requests for a conservation management plan and to enquire about funding opportunities from heritage organisations when they were offered.