AMBITIOUS plans to transform an “embarrassing” village park have taken a step forward.

Villagers in Houston are raising funds for the transformation of Helicopter Park, next to the Compass Centre, which they say is “not fit for purpose.”

The Houston Play Park Improvement Group hopes to follow in the footsteps of a successful campaign to improve Crosslee Swings Park, which was completed in 2015 after an £80,000 fundraising drive.

Sam Love, group chair, said: “We want to think outside of the box and make the park as attractive as we can for kids in the village.

READ MORE: Houston celebrates park’s transformation

“We would love to have exercise machines where they use their smartphones to record scores. We want to make it a park for everyone and that includes ensuring there is equipment for kids who might have impaired mobility.”

The group hopes to complete the work by the summer of 2021 and has kicked off a fundraising campaign, which has included setting up a JustGiving page.

But, before beginning their quest, one of the first problems Sam and the committee had to overcome was settling on a name for the park.

Some knew it as Helicopter Park, others as Hill Park, while Renfrewshire Council calls it South Street Park.

The Gazette:

Sam said: “My wife came up with the idea to get the children involved and use the General Election.

“We visited local schools on the day and held our own wee election with ballot boxes and, in the end, they decided to go for Helicopter Park.

“We’re not really sure why it is known as Helicopter Park but one of the women on the committee, who grew up in the village, says there used to be a helicopter-shaped frame there.

“Another theory is that an air ambulance had to land there one time.”

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