Things are getting decidedly ropey in the archival calendar, between 2008 and 2010. Nigel Baynes had kindly preserved this delightful clipping of the activity in the Recreation Ground before the big renovation programme could commence in earnest. But there’s no date to peg the activity to!
As I recall, first the chrysotile hard sheeting panels on the old Band Hut had to be removed. Thompson’s of Prudhoe kindly provided a skip with a lid in which to deposit all the broken pieces that had been carefully smashed away with a constant hose keeping the dust down and a safety mask for the smasher. After that watershed weekend, it was less of a hassle to demolish the frame of the old building, though the footings proved to be more of a pain.
But it seems to me, judging by the posters brandished by friendly Lions and young people, that this publicity piece must have been published during the spring before the 2008 May Fair, considering that the main beneficiary of that year was to be the Recreation Ground and its development. If this is so, then we Lions were certainly putting our effort where it could be most useful! And I shall have to revisit my blog publication dates again to place this entry in the run-up to the 2008 May Fair!
But the delight when the old Band Hut and its footings were finally eliminated from the ground was palpable among the charity’s trustees. No longer would that desperately unsafe structure be a magnet for anti-social activity. With special thanks to Giles Dodwell for running the big JCB, and the Allendale Lions Club engineering department for organising the big demolition day, the hut was finally eliminated.
Granted, much of the footing structures are still there, buried conveniently underground. Out of sight and out of mind, though they would pose some consternation to the builders erecting the play areas and swing sets, at a later date. Without the Lions’ contributions, of course, the Rec Ground development might well have foundered before it could even begin!
We certainly smashed some eggs though, didn’t we?!
