RESIDENTS of Okehampton have been told that if they do not support the lottery bid presently on the table for a sports hall and swimming pool on the edge of Simmons Park, they may lose out on funding.

Deputy chief executive of West Devon Borough Council David Inman said at a well-attended public meeting in the Charter Hall on Tuesday that the project agreed by the authority was the only option for Okehampton.

He said the council wished to get back to the lottery board as quickly as possible to stand a chance of securing 77 per cent funding for the £3-million project

Chairman of OCRA Peter Hammond suggested a cheaper alternative to site the new swimming pool within the Okehampton Community College complex and upgrade the existing facilities including the sports hall instead of building a new one.

This way the putting green, bowling club, park pavilion and tennis courts could stay where they were and not be moved around which was what could happen if the sports complex went ahead.

But Mr Inman said this alternative would involve extensive highway work which the lottery board would not fund.

'We are talking about a second-best solution,' he said. 'Putting a swimming pool next to a tired sports hall does not seem to be in the best interest of the town — the town needs to look forward to the next 20, 30 or 40 years.

'Why does Okehampton always have to have second best — can it not have facilities that not only this generation can be proud of but the next and the next after that.'

The meeting was told when the lottery board was putting so much money into a scheme it was a case of dancing to their tune.

Ninety per cent of sports applications on school sites failed because it was felt they hitted the school's agenda rather than the community's agenda.

Mr Inman assured residents that the development would not impinge on the grassy area of the park which was a major concern of residents. Manager of OCRA Stuart Lord said priority should have been given to such things as resurfacing the astro turf, which was a great asset to Okehampton and extended the amount of sports that could be played throughout the year.

Wet changing rooms and a social area were also mentioned as priorities, none of which had been included in the project.

Mr Inman said it could be that funding from an alternative source could be tapped into to provide additional facilities such as these.