Members of the public will have a big say in how a proposed country park in Huddersfield is run.
That was the pledge from Farnley Estates, who last month unveiled plans for a huge park based on their land around Farnley Tyas.
They have confirmed they plan to set up a Foundation to help run the park.
Thousands of people have already had their say in a major consultation exercise about the park, with many concerned about plans for houses on part of the land.
Farnley Estates say the benefits of selling off land for homes would fund the £150m bill of developing the park.
The firm say the scheme could create up to 450 jobs and would rival country parks anywhere else in the UK.
The 6,000-acre site in the Farnley Tyas area would include walking, cycling, riding and an adventure playground.
Farnley Estates boss Paul Sykes said: “It would be one of the biggest country parks in the country.”
Now the firm has taken the first steps towards creating a Foundation for the Farnley Country Park proposal.
Local people who expressed an interest in helping to shape the development of the proposed Park were invited to a meeting to find out more about the proposal and how they can become involved.
Mr Sykes said: “We’ve taken a bottom-up approach to this proposal from the start. We spent 18 months asking people how they could benefit from greater access to the land, and their responses helped to inform and formulate the Farnley Country Park proposal. It’s an approach that we will continue.
“The Estate intends to create an organisational structure that will give local people a say in how Farnley Country Park is developed and run, and creating the Foundation is the first step.
“If we secure the support of other land owners to create Farnley Country Park, we propose to create an independent board. This body, would oversee key investment, and liaise with the land owners. Alongside the Board, would sit the landowners. The Foundation will act as the voice of local people, with the chair of the Foundation having a seat on the Board.
“We believe that this approach will make sure that Farnley Country Park is created by the people of Huddersfield, for the people of Huddersfield. The Foundation is the first step,” added Paul.
Anyone interested in becoming part of the Foundation should email info@farnleyestates.co.uk.
