Camposol gets a football pitch

After 17 years of campaigning, with 5 “false starts”, countless hours of cam- paigning, the children of Camposol finally get their football pitch!

As far back as 2003, Tracie Smith Rowley approached the “Masa” site manager “Miguel”, to see if there was any possibility of allocating a piece of land for a football pitch, as there were no facilities whatsoever for children on Camposol. As a gesture of goodwill, Miguel did allow temporary use of a piece of land on sector C4, but it was not official and was soon closed down following complaints from local resi-

dents and it was some time before the project was resurrected as there were changes in Council administration, and there was a recession on the way.

Around 2010, almost 7 years later, a parents meeting was held and sub- sequent fund-raising committee was formed. This became known as “Cam- posol Kids” or “Jovenes De Campo- sol”.

This was well supported for a good couple of years but as the children grew up, and `people gradually moved away, it became a campaign of 1, i.e., Tracie!

Further attempts were made to secure a site for the children, but all efforts were thwarted, as either the land was not suitable, residents were not happy or some identified possible sites had already been sold off as Masa assets.

It was not until the current Mayor, Gaspar Miras came to power, that it became clear that it was a priority for the children of Camposol to finally have somewhere to play. Suddenly all barriers previously faced seemed to disappear and the project was not

only approved but also funded by the Council. Representatives from the town hall, consulted both Tracie and Silvana, (our Councillor for For- eign Residents) at every stage of the process, and were incredibly helpful which was such a refreshing change.

Tracie was even consulted on the most suitable surface for the football pitch.

The money that was raised (approxi- mately €4,000) is still sitting securely in the bank and will be used at a later date to add more facilities such as new sports equipment, secure stor- age, seating etc. All to be agreed be- tween both Tracie and The Council. The facility cannot currently be used due to Covid 19 restrictions, but it is hopeful that come the Spring, we can finally watch a match! The new sports area runs along Calle Nogales on D sector.

The only last thing to add to this really is ironically the son of Tracie Smith Rowley, young Callum who was only 5 at the start of all this, is now going to be a father himself.

At least the “kids of the Camposol kids” will have somewhere to play at last!