This Sunday, members of MPLTC get to decide on the tennis club's proposed sale of the Romany site to Mr Abid David, who wishes to develop it. If the members agree, the sale will immediately complete.
5 Reasons to Not Support the Proposed Romany Sale on Sunday
As a Club member you have a huge responsibility to make the right decision for the Tennis Club, the Romany site, and the wider community. Here are 5 reasons you should NOT sell the site to Mr Abid David on Sunday, but should instead put the sale on hold for a few weeks while the community makes a competing bid:
- We are forming a Community Interest Company that will raise funds and should make a BETTER offer than Mr David, but we need a few weeks to confirm this
- Mr David has stated his long-term commitment to the community, and if that is his genuine intention, his offer will still be on the table when we return to you with our counter-offer. So by voting no on Sunday you are getting the option to take a higher price, if only you will wait
- The Romany site is registered as an Asset of Community Value and as such can enforce a 6-month Moratorium prohibiting the Club from making a sale. Both sides have lawyers stating the Moratorium will or won’t apply, so why take the risk?
- If you sell to Mr David on Sunday, the Romany will trigger the Moratorium, and if found to be enforceable the Localism Act states that the deal immediately be reversed. So the club will waste money on another set of professional fees just to return to the current position. And the Club will look foolish for acting so hastily.
- Most importantly of all, the Site is NOT big enough to accommodate Mr David’s nursery and host the beautiful green space, the Scouts and the Playgroup. Do you really want to be responsible for rushing a decision that consigns one of those to history?
We urge you to not to support the sale on Sunday. This is the ONLY way we can meet the interests of the local residents, the Tennis Club, the Romany site and all of its wonderful community groups.
Please let the Romany parties negotiate directly with the Tennis Club and put a better offer forward by voting 'no' for now.