TWINNING organisers hope Aberystwyth’s new skatepark will be completed in time for the visit of a delegation from Kronberg in September.

During a presentation by former mayor Carol Kolczak and Kronberg Twinning secretary Chris Simpson at a meeting of Aberystwyth Town Council last week, councillors heard that Kronberg twinning stalwart Fritz Pratschke, who was given the freedom of Aberystwyth in 2011, would be donating a bench for the new skatepark.

The news comes after it was revealed in October that the town council had been successful in its bid for £440,000 of funding from the Big Lottery in order to build a state-of-the-art skatepark and community park area.

Mrs Kolczak and Mr Simpson made the presentation in a plea for more funding from the town council for the 20th anniversary of the Aberystwyth-Kronberg twinning relationship later this year.

The relationship between the two towns goes back even further than that however, with pupils from Ardwyn, Penglais and Penweddig schools participating in exchange visits as far back as 1968.

“Fritz Pratschke has pledged a wooden bench with his name on a plaque to go on Parc Kronberg,” said Mrs Kolczak.

“We anticipate the committee wanting the bench to go on the narrowest strip.

“It is very important that Fritz Pratschke is honoured in this way. He has been doing the school exchanges since the very early days and he is now 81 years old.

“He has a love for Aberystwyth and he will hopefully be with us in September.”

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