Geordie superstar Sting has thrown his support behind plans to bring a derelict open-air pool back to life.

The Friends of Tynemouth Outdoor Pool are spearheading a fundraising campaign to revive the rundown lido in North Tyneside.

They aim to raise around £5.5m to help realise their ambitions.

Now the group have received a major boost after the Wallsend-born music legend agreed to support the scheme.

The singer, who in 2010 was awarded the Freedom of the Borough of North Tyneside in recognition of his artistic and humanitarian work, has made a donation towards the cost of the pool’s revamp.

The amount of the contribution has not been revealed but the Friends say his support is a big boost and will help propel them towards their goal of achieving charitable status.

This will now allow the majority of donations received by the group from the community and other supporters to increase by a further 20% through Gift Aid.

Barry Bell, of Cullercoats, a founding member of the campaign, said they were thrilled to receive Sting’s help.

He added: “We have been trying to come up with fundraising ideas for the pool and we had a brainstorming session about celebrities from the North East who we could approach.

“Sting is originally from Wallsend, which is only five miles away from Tynemouth, so we decided to contact his management team. And he gave us his backing, which is absolutely amazing.

“He is one of the world’s biggest stars. His support is a real boost for us.”

The group was formed with the aim of keeping the pool site as an outdoor swimming facility.

They submitted their regeneration proposals to North Tyneside Council in January and the authority gave them an extra year to hone the plans further.

The proposals will explore methods of heating the pool and using renewable energy sources, such as geothermal heating.

As the campaign built momentum, the group received help for free from professionals in the fields of architecture, building, design, surveying, engineering, planning, landscaping and law.

Mr Bell added: “When you discover that Sting is passionate about backing a project like this, you know that it definitely has a future.

“Not only did Sting provide us with the initial donation we needed to gain charity status, but his support alone will help us raise the profile of this project immensely. And because our supporters, wherever they are in the world, also now have the chance to back the project financially, we’re hoping to increase the fantastic sense of ownership that the community already has when it comes to the pool.”

The outdoor lido, based at the southern end of Longsands Beach, was originally opened in 1925.

It quickly became a popular destination for locals and visitors, hosting events including Miss Tynemouth and Bonny Bairns.

In its heyday, bathers lined up to take a plunge in the water, with queues stretching along the Grand Parade.

However, the site’s popularity began to wane in the 1970s when cheap package holidays and indoor pools started to become available.

In 1996, attempts were made to restore the area by creating an artificial rockpool but it proved unsuccessful.

The site deteriorated and became a neglected eyesore.

The Friends of Tynemouth Outdoor Pool, which has more than 11,000 supporters on Facebook, is looking for a mixture of grant aid, private funding and public donations.

The group have opted to use JustGiving to raise cash to regenerate the lido. Supporters can make donations at http://justgiving.com/tynemouthpool

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By Claire Lieberman
Terry Sanford

A patch of dirt that students once walked on without a second thought is now a blooming bed of yellows, reds and purples.

The flowers are part of a beautification project at Westover High School that aims to bolster school pride. Principal Thomas Benson asked Willie Freeman, a teacher who has done similar work in the past, for ideas about upgrading the facility to increase students’ morale.

“I feel an obligation to enhance where I’m employed,” Freeman said.

Freeman used school funds to buy flowers and solicited donations from a local business to revamp landscaping around the school. The result, according to assistant principal John Green, is a “mini botanical garden.”

Westover students helped Freeman plant, distribute mulch and replace rotted wood around flower beds with bricks.

They planted roses, boxwoods, pansies, sunflowers and other long-lasting and low-maintenance greenery.

Stone benches provide an extra touch to the tranquil area near the high school’s main office entrance.

“When my students were asked by other students why they were doing this,” Freeman said, “they started to say, ‘This is our school, and we want to enhance our school.’ “

Green was involved in a similar project when he worked at Terry Sanford High School. He said that success can be repeated at Westover.

“I’m hoping we’ll see them being a little more conscientious,” Green said, noting that students are already leaving less trash around.

“When I put up the wood fence,” Freeman said, “I wasn’t sure it would still be there the next day, but it was.”

Freeman and his students will maintain the landscaping throughout the year to reinforce the school’s motto – “Powerful Beyond Measure: Wolverine Pride.”

Green, who graduated from Westover in 2002, plans to broaden the recycling program at the school this year. Also, the Wolverine paw prints at the school’s entrance will be repainted to honor notable faculty members and students.

“When I went to school here, we took the mind-set of, ‘It’s just Fayetteville; I’d rather be somewhere else,’ ” he said. “But as I grew up a little more, I realized home is what you make of it.”

Photo by Michelle Gross

The new parking lot and the removal of the town comfort station will make way for trucks to access the store. [More Photos]

Stop Shop representatives went head to head with the Martha’s Vineyard Commission (MVC) on Thursday in a continued public hearing that left commissioners with a collection of unresolved questions. The hearing began on July 11 when traffic was the main concern, but this week commissioners tackled several new issues, notably a reconfiguration of the proposed municipal parking lot, including the removal and replacement in the new market building of the town’s comfort station now at the western edge of the lot, between Main Street and Water Street.

Stop Shop’s proposal – to consolidate three abutting properties and remove the existing buildings to make room for a new, two-story, 23,800-square-foot market  also includes a parking lot for 42 vehicles in an enclosed area on the ground level and a loading area at the rear, fronting on the town lot.

MVC analyst and planner Paul Foley began Thursday’s hearing by presenting letters of concern and support. Among them,Steamship Authority (SSA) general manager Wayne Lampson said boatline operations would be affected by the store’s expansion.

“The Steamship Authority has reviewed the proposal for the expansion of Stop Shop on Water Street in Vineyard Haven and wants to make certain the MVC is aware that any increase in traffic in the Water Street/Five Corners area will have an adverse impact on the SSA’s operations and its customers without the implementation of appropriate mitigating measures, particularly in the summer months.”

Although the Tisbury planning board recognized in its letter the improvements the market’s expansion plan offered, “The proposed project would replace a worn out building, provide a larger range of consumer choices, and stimulate economic growth in the village,” the board added a list of issues that should be addressed as the process continues.

David Taglianetti, the Boston based planning, design, and engineering firm Vanasse Hangen Brustlin (VHB) representing Stop Shop, described key differences between the proposed parking lot arrangement and the existing lot. The new market, he said, would be pedestrian friendly, with better landscaping, an easier two-way traffic flow and the relocated comfort station.

“The removal of the comfort station is something that the town of Tisbury has been supporting,” Mr. Taglianetti told commissioners. “It is an expense for the town,anywhere from $30,000 per year to $50,000 per year.” Mr. Taglianetti said the removal of the restroom facility is necessary to provide adequate space for trucks to access the store.

In exchange for removing the existing public restrooms, Stop Shop would provide publicly accessible restrooms on the second level on the Water street side of the store. Commissioners were skeptical of the location of the new restrooms.

“I’m deeply concerned about accessibility,” West Tisbury commissioner Erik Hammarlund said. “There are people walking up and down Main Street. You make it so people walk down a hill, toward the ferry, through a parking lot to get into your store up an elevator with their strollers, with their bags of stuff, to use the bathroom. You’re making a huge mistake.”

Tisbury lawyer and former selectman Geoghan Coogan, counsel to the Stop Shop project, argued that the proposed move benefits the town. “The comfort station is open right now for about four months a year from about 9am to 5pm,” Mr. Coogan said. The Stop and Shop furnished restrooms would be open to the public all year-round.

“Yes, it’s only four or five months out of the year, but those are the months we have the most activity coming off the ferry, downtown is loaded with people,” said commissioner Fred Hancock of Oak Bluffs. “The fact that the comfort station is only open from 9am to 5pm, I don’t see as a detriment, I don’t think a tourist town can have too many restroom facilities.”

Audience members commented

Tony Peak, Tisbury planning board co-chairman, discussed the proposed new parking lot, as well as traffic issues on Cromwell Lane, which runs north and south behind the existing market building. “I would like to see this project go forward, if it’s beneficial to the town,” Mr. Peak said. “But I’d like to be sure, and I don’t see any reason why the project cannot go forward without foreclosing other options in regards to the parking lot.”

Mr. Peak also suggested to commissioners that it would be beneficial to change the direction of traffic on Union Street, to help with the traffic flow in and around the downtown Vineyard Haven area.

Tisbury selectman Tristan Israel spoke for the town selectmen. “We’re not monolithic, we’re trying to come to a consensus of ideas, and I believe that our administrator is trying to coalesce that and we hope to communicate that to you and to Stop Shop as we go forward,” Mr. Israel said. “But there’s been no votes taken or no overt decisions made.”

About the bathrooms, Mr. Israel said the planning board has been in talks with representatives from Stop Shop. “We will continue to do what’s right for the town and what’s right for Stop Shop,” he added.

Harold Chapdelaine, a general contractor, offered a long list of concerns and recommendations. “I was somebody who originally saw that application and did not want to support this effort, and I was going to be an old, cranky guy who didn’t want to support change,” Mr.Chapdelaine said. “But, I think that if you really think about this, if you really do think about what’s best for the town, we should be considering supporting this effort with a very unified and cooperative effort to facilitate the needs of the entire community.”

Vineyard Haven resident Judy Federowicz speaking on behalf of the Tisbury historic district commission. “The traffic is obviously of major concern” Ms. Federowicz said. If you change the direction of Union Street or even make it two-way, you’re going to lose parking spaces.” Ms. Federowicz also asked if it would be possible to lower the height of the building.

“It is the gateway,” Ms.Federowicz said. “We don’t want to increase the unattractiveness. If we reduce the height, I think that would be great.”

 “I can’t help but ask the question, when is this bowl of Jell-O we’ve been dealing with going to turn into an application?” Tisbury commissioner Ned Orleans, reacting to the collection of issues surrounding the project, most of them unresolved in the supermarket’s plans, asked  Stop Shop representatives and his fellow MVC members at the close of the hearing.

The hearing reconvenes on August 29, at 7pm.