Friends of Williamson's Tunnels

.....News added on 30th September 1999.....

· Latest newsletter out

Issue 8 of 'The Mole' was published and sent out to members on 28th September.

· Williamson Student Village open for business

Large numbers of students are now moving in to the newly-opened Williamson Student Village, pictured right. With workmen putting finishing touches to the grounds of the new development, we are in discussions with the site owners regarding securing a lease on the corner of the site where the recently discovered tunnels are located, adjacent to Paddington. In addition, we are about to have secure steel doors fitted to the entrance to our trench.

· FWT holds Annual General Meeting

We held our third Annual General Meeting in Liverpool on 6th September. Members heard statutory annual reports from the Treasurer and Membership Secretary as well as a summary of the year from acting chairman, Bill Douglas. This was followed by a long question and answer session, discussion of future moves and an opportunity to watch video footage of the recent discovery at Paddington.

· Grinfield St. development destroys tunnel

FWT has been saying for three years that once work began on the Grinfield Street development tunnels would be destroyed, but our claims have largely been met with apathy and weak reassurances . Sure enough, a few days after the announcement of funding for the project (below), we found that the tunnel pictured above had been destroyed by work on the land above. This was a widely known tunnel, with lots of potential for leading to other parts of the labyrinth. The incident was reported to the City Council and the County Archaeologist and the conclusion was that it was an 'accident'. Representatives of the developer have said that the tunnel will be 'reinstated' and we will be pressing hard for this onerous task to be carried out. In the meantime we fear greatly for other tunnels under the site.

· Funding announced for Grinfield St. development

A high-profile press announcement in late August saw much media coverage of the granting of £275,000 European Development funding for the Grinfield Street/Stables development at the opposite end of the tunnels site to the Paddington development. The media coverage suggested that the tunnels were now saved as a result. This, of course, is nothing like the case as the money and the project will only save two of the many tunnels under that plot of land. FWT has long protested that tunnels will be destroyed by this project and within a few days we were proven right (see above).