OKEHAMPTON?s new skateboard ramp in Brayham Terrace has come under fire within a week of its official launch, with residents complaining about ?intolerable? noise until at least 9pm every night.

Carole Boxall wrote to the town council to draw attention to the problem.

She said:?When I went out into the garden the continuous loud banging was intolerable. We cannot relax or spend the time in our garden as we love to do.?

The letter continued: ?Although I applaud the council for endeavouring to provide these amenities for the children of Okehampton, it seems very little thought is given to the whole picture. This amenity should have been placed in Simmons Park where it would not have troubled anyone.?

Mrs Boxall said the new facility had ?devalued? the quality of life for people living nearby.

?It?s horrendous. I just don?t think it is good enough,? she said.

She said she had no problem with the BMX bike track at the park which did not create excessive noise, unlike the skateboard ramp.

Mrs Boxall said there appeared to have been no supervision or policing of the area and the first accident had already occurred as an ambulance arrived at the skateboard ramp at Brayhams Terrace two days after it opened. She said cars were also using the approach road as a racetrack.

Cllr Sheila Gregory told the town council?s parks committee last Monday that she had been approached by a number of residents concerned about noise from the skate ramp.

Cllr Gregory said she was told by one resident that young people had been seen using the facility at around 1am on a Saturday morning.

?Obviously in the summer, everyone expects children to be out until 9pm, but not after midnight,? she said.

She said some youngsters were using the facility as a hang-out and didn?t seem interested in using the skate ramp.

?It seems such a pity because these youngsters put so much into getting a skate park,? said Cllr Gregory.

Town clerk Don Bent said: ?It is a problem. The Police are saying they are keeping an eye on the skateboard park, but they cannot be everywhere.?

Parks Committee chairman Cllr Perry Vallance said the skate ramp had only just opened and some of the problems residents had encountered might settle down once work to reduce the noise was carried out and the novelty of the park wore off.

Councillors also agreed to purchase a sign to be put up at Brayham Terrace outlining the conditions of use for the new facility.

l Cllr Gregory is seeking re-election as a Liberal Democrat to Okehampton Town Council?s east ward. Also standing are Mark Barrett, Mike Davies, Joanna Harrison (Local Con), Antony Leech, Frances Luxton, Hyder Ali Pirwany (Local Con), Michael Roberts, Peter Stunnell (Con).