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4.13 (iii) The public use of the route was not "first called into question" in 1977. It was the sale of the Children's Assessment Centre in 1977 that necessitated a diversion of the previous pedestrian route, and led to the path through the grounds of Acrefield Bank becoming used as the best available alternative.
4.13 (iv) Even if there was, on some occasions, a chain across the link between Glenacres and Acrefield Bank (and subsequently Byron Court) this would have had had no effect on its use by pedestrians and cyclists.
4.13 (v) As already mentioned (and confirmed by Annex 20) the Merseyside Police have no record of an assault taking place before the wall was built. Furthermore none of the 56 local residents who completed User Evidence Forms has ever been challenged, or seen a notice stating that the path is not a Right of Way.
4.13 (vi) Woolton Mount does not offer anything like "the same level of public access" as Glenacres/Byron Court. The road surface of Woolton Mount is uneven and, at times, slippery, being constructed of sandstone blocks. The path from Mount Close is also poorly lit and poorly maintained. Woolton Mount is, we understand, an unadopted highway, not a "publicly maintained footpath".
4.13 (vii) The planning application referred to was No. 15F/1041, for landscaping works and additional car parking spaces at Glenacres. The consultation letters were sent out in May 2015, not 2014. As set out in Annexes 20-22, the Police have no evidence of significant criminal activity or anti social behaviour. If the Planning Officer's comments are accurately reported, then we believe them to have been ill-advised.
4.13 (viii) The alternative routes, since the building of the wall, involve detours of much more than 50 yards. Measuring the walking distances on Google Maps indicates that it was 0.2 miles, via Glenacres, from the Hollytree Road/Acrefield Road junction to the Woolton Park entrance to Reynolds Park. The distance via Woolton Hill Road is now 0.4 miles, and this involves an unpleasant walk alongside the busy Acrefield Road. The distance via Woolton Mount is 0.5 miles, and this involves a steep climb up an unevenly-paved roadway. The extra distance, for residents of the Gateacre area wishing to walk to Reynolds Park, is therefore at least 0.2 miles (or 350 yards) each way. The extra distance for residents of Glenacres is even greater, because they have to walk down to Acrefield Road first. To talk of "a small number of people" is also quite inaccurate.
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