Bury Council has paid more than £55,000 to a firm hired to create a new skate park who subsequently went bust.
Construction of the £225,000 ‘wheeled sports’ park in Clarence Park, Bury, which would cater for skate boarding, BMX riding and scooters, began in June. The area had been largely cleared in readiness for ramps and other equipment to be installed.
However, last month, The Freestyle Collective, the firm in charge of the project, went into voluntary liquidation.
The Labour controlled council now say they are looking to appoint new contractors to pick up the remaining work on the project and seek recompense from administrators.
After questions were asked by Conservative councillors, it has emerged that Bury Council had already paid more than £55,000 to Freestyle Collective, with more than £40,000 handed over for ‘materials which have not appeared’.
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Conservative group leader Coun Russell Bernstein and deputy leader Jo Lancaster visited the abandoned skate park at Clarence Park. They said they were taken aback at the poor state the facility had been left following the company going into administration.
Coun Lancaster said “I am really concerned that the state the skate park has been left will become an area that will encourage anti social behaviour, particularly during the winter months There is a mountain of gravel, a skip left on the site, and rusting unsafe grinding rails.
“There is already evidence of anti-social behaviour, spray paint cans, nitrous oxide canisters and smashed bottles and cans left at the site.”
Coun Bernstein said: “I am particularly disappointed that the £15,000 which has been paid to do remedial work to clear the old skate park has clearly not been fully completed and with the £40,000 paid to the company for materials before they went into administration.
“This whole experience is obviously an excellent example of how councils need to be vigilant in who they procure to undertake work on such projects. I hope valuable lessons will be learned which will help such projects to be completed in a timely manner.”
Bury Council said their procurement section put the tender out for the skate park as per their rules and a contract was then awarded to Freestyle Collective after three firms replied with a bid.
They said financial and business checks were carried out at that time.
The council said £55,408.49 had been sent out to Freestyle of which £15,000 was used to remove the old skate park safely. £40,400 was for materials which had not appeared on site.
They said the council’s legal team are discussing the terms of the contract with the liquidators and if there will be any recompense.
The council has committed £150,000 to the project with a further £75,000 coming from an external grant.
Documents filed with Companies House show the company entered voluntary liquidation with a commencement of winding up date of September 15, 2022.
The company is now in the hands of Harrisons Business Recovery and Insolvency.
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