Madam,

We were very upset to read the headline and letter in the Cambrian News about the proposed traveller site in Machynlleth.

Had the writer been familiar with the members of Machynlleth Golf Club, they would have realised that the vast majority of them have lived in Machynlleth and its surrounding area for many years, and in some cases, for many generations.

Our first loyalty is to the town and we are all trying to maintain the club for the benefit of present and future generations of local and visiting golfers.

Because of the current emphasis on health and fitness, we feel that golf can provide an important way of maintaining our physical and mental well-being and that these facilities should be preserved, especially as so many local amenities are closed or under threat. We wish that many more people would join us and take advantage of the beautiful picturesque course.

As locals, we have been opposed to setting up a permanent traveller site in the proposed area because of its proximity to the church cemetery and because of the perceived feeling of the local community – and we have informed the relevant authorities of these concerns.

We also feel that the proposed alternate site suggested to maintain the area of the common is not “like-for-like” and will not meet the needs of other common land users.

We also feel that there has been a lack of open public consultation, and insufficient consultation, as yet, with other interested parties, and we hope that this will soon be rectified.

Simply because we purchased the manorial rights many years ago to play and maintain the game of golf on the ‘common’ we have innocently been placed in this difficult situation.

We have now been threatened with compulsory purchase of the site should we refuse to sell.

We are therefore currently trying to negotiate a means of retaining some control of the site for everyone’s benefit.

Instead of ignorantly blaming us, we wish everyone would co-operate to find an acceptable alternate solution to meet the legal requirements that have initiated this problem.

I write on behalf of the management committee and members of Machynlleth Golf Club.

Yours etc,

Phil A Harris, secretary, Machynlleth Golf Club.

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