MIKE Gittus is a man with a vision for Alcester.
The district councillor for Kinwarton is a driving force behind the market town’s ‘Green River Corrridor’ a generous sweep land along the banks of the River Arrow, which, he hopes, will part of the town for ever, writes Ross Crawford.
We meet at the School Road allotments and set off round Priory Meadow, a 13.7 acre flood plain field now owned by Alcester town council.
“The town is over there and it’s over there and running through the middle is this green corridor,” said Coun Gittus.
“And it’s the long term vision of Alcester town council to preserve and protect this green corridor for not only environment reasons but for the health and well being of local residents. It has a number of things to offer.
“It’s like a nature reserve but in some ways even better – apart from cutting the paths we don’t intend to manage any of this wild area.”
The town council recently failed in its efforts to buy from Stratford district council the neighbouring Abbey Field and North and South Fields which stretch north from Priory Meadow.
However, with these areas already designated a local authority nature reserve, this has run into complications.
Despite this Coun Gittus said work was progressing in ensuring the land would be for the benefit of local people for ever.
“We’ve been busy sealing this area up so that it is protected and preserved,” he said.
The corridor also includes the site of Alcester Abbey, which stood on an island in the middle of the flood plain.
Lumps in the ground are all that remain of the one time Benedictine Abbey but Coun Gittus is hopeful for a possible field study of the site in the future.
Meanwhile efforts to restore the land to some of its former glorious include re-planting ‘medieval’ hedgerows.
“We asked for advice on the typical make up of a medieval hedgerow and this is what we got,” said Mike.
