THE council bid for £200,000 of lottery money to restore Happy Mount Park failed it emerged this week.

Members on the Heritage Lottery Fund argued Happy Mount Park did not constitute a place of historical importance so they could not grant the cash.

If they'd been given the green light council bosses would have spent the money on the paddling pool, bandstand, seating, garden, gates and fencing.

The total cost of the work would have been £265,825. The lottery application was for £199,370 and the rest would have been paid for by the tax-payer.

There is a second bid £67,700 to the lottery still outstanding for the park. If the council bosses were successful with that bid they would be able to fund a floodlit all-weather synthetic sports pitch and floodlighting for the bowling green. The total cost would be £100,000.

Since the Blobby fiasco five years ago - which cost the Lancaster and Morecambe tax-payer £2 million in legal damages - Happy Mount Park has been dilapidated. The District Auditor is investigating the actions of leading council officers and former leading councillors.

Leader of the Independent group Tricia Heath was disappointed. She said: "There's still the sports bid and we have to hope that we are more successful there. But, of course, we are very disappointed with this.

"Our group actually put forward a proposal that we do some work on the paddling pool to reinstate it this season. We are the biggest group but it was still knocked back because the other groups thought we should wait for the outcome of the bid.

"Now we will have to have the park restored even without the lottery money. It is very important to Morecambe."

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