Stickle Tarn, one of eight areas on the market
More land has been put on the market, as part of a wholesale sell-off of land by the Lake District National Park Authority.
Seven properties have been put on the market by the cash-strapped national park, including Stickle Tarn in Great Langdale as part of a disposal of assets.
Properties up for sale include river frontage at Portinscale, Keswick; Blue Hill and Red Bank Wood at Ambleside; Blea Brows on the banks of Coniston Water at Torver; Baneriggs Wood between Grasmere and Rydal Water; Lady Wood, White Moss, Grasmere, and Yewbarrow in Longsleddale in the eastern Lake District.
All are up for sale by tender, with three woodland areas expected to fetch at least £100,000 each.
If all seven properties realise their guide prices, the sell-off will boost the Lake District National Park Authority’s coffers by half a million pounds.
Mark Hoggar, head of resources for the Lake District national park, said: “The properties advertised for sale in the Westmorland Gazette are part of the Lake District national park’s ongoing sales and acquisitions review to make sure our properties are managed effectively within the current financial climate.
“In line with this, and following consultation, we have agreed that the properties advertised are no longer required for our property needs and are suitable for sale by formal tender.
“We have put measures in place to ensure the responsible disposal of these properties, all of which are subject to the planning framework of the Lake District National Park.
“We have safeguarded and strengthened public access where it already exists and included other special conditions to protect the special qualities.
“The proceeds of any property sales will be reinvested into improving or maintaining other national park properties we own. This work is in support of the agreed vision and plan set out with our partners to jointly manage the national park.
“Lake District national park currently owns or manages nearly 9,000ha [22,240 acres] of land within the national park, comprising about four per cent of the total land area.”
- In our original story, we included the Boot campsite in the list of assets being sold off. Although the campsite is for sale with the same agents as those used by the Lake District national park, the site is not owned by the authority, and is currently owned by Eskdale Campsites.
Our apologies to owner Martyn Merckel.
Bob Jones
09 February 2015It just seems wrong that a public body can flogg off land and property - presumably to private individuals and companies - that belong to the public.
Frances rand
10 February 2015This area belong to the people of England. They should not be sold off for " a fast buck"
CJ France
23 February 2015Why did the authority purchase these areas now for sale, in the first place ? Why would I wish to purchase them if I can do nothing or very little with them ? Such areas, these woodlands, should be owned and managed by the National Trust when they would receive proper protection rather than at the hands of a political organisation who can sell so easily.
I recall one decision years ago when a property was sold completely at odds with an earlier committee/board decision.
For long enough I have thought the title National Parks incorrect in a UK context, Far more appropriate would be,
Lake District National Heritage Area which sums up all what the Lake District and other named National Parks stand for like history, culture, landscape, conservation, communities and tourism. Reading recent comments in a well known Lake District paper many people still seem to be under a false impression what a National Park really is in the UK context and who owns it.
LakesBloke
25 February 2015Typical of the way the LDNPA works these days I'm afraid. They've lost sight of why they were formed and utterly fail in their duty to maintain and enhance thriving communities. They're going for UNESCO World Heritage Site accreditation which will further knacker what's supposed to be being protected - it's not just the hills & the lakes it's the people, villages and communities within the area too, which they want to overrun with millions more tourists, whereas what the area really needs is proper jobs that aren't seasonal and pay a decent salary instead of minimum wage. LDNPA should hang its head in shame, it can't even be bothered to have its HQ in the Lake District!
Dayve
09 March 2015The cost of maintaining such areas of immense beauty and importance to the public is worth the extra funding. I feel that, as a custodian, any government must keep these special places within the public domain. I can't believe it's right that they can be irreversibly sold to the private sector. I don't believe the promises and assurances that the land will properly be maintained and public access unrestricted. We are going backward with this present coalition.
Peter Sutcliffe
27 March 2015Whatever shred of intelligent public trust that still adheres to the LDNPA must surely be destroyed by this astounding policy decision. Is there a means by which it can swiftly be rescinded?