Its a nice field, big and square(ish) with trees & bushes.
Now this is not something I would ever have dreamt of doing - I have no yearnings to own land. But the need has arisen.
Some back ground ......
I bought a house in Stickford in Feb 2016 to have a place nearer to Evergreens Miniature Railway based in Stickney. At the time there was a rumour that the site would be coming up for sale and it seemed like an ideal retirement project.
Sadly it was not possible to buy the railway site due to the bungalow having an 'agricultural tie' on it, which meant I didn't qualify for it. There was a hope that the tie would be lifted but the site sold (although that sale fell through) and apart from that the price was a bit steep for me.
So EMR was looking for another home.
We did briefly think that we might move to a camp / caravan site near Ulceby Cross, about 10miles north of Stickney. But the site wasn't right for a railway and was actually a bit small in reality for the amount of track we had and the space we needed. And didn't give us any scope for future expansion.
So back to the present ......
We saw a field for sale. I say 'we' .... a couple of the club members and me. But it was way too much for the club to afford.
Talking to a couple of different people, they suggested I bought it and rented (hired/leased??) to the club. This is something I'd never thought of and had no previous hankerings to do.
But, having mulled it over for a day or two, I slowly came to realise that actually its not a bad plan. If the club can match the current bank interest rate, then I'm better off putting the money into land.
What have I got to lose ?
Well for one, the purchase price was a lot .... half the price of a small house. And if we didn't get the necessary planning permission, then I'd be stuck with 4.5 acres of sunny Lincolnshire.
Ok, there's other things you can do with a field .... I could pretend to be a farmer and rent it out for grazing or just let it produce hay for a local farmer (a real one) who (apparently) mows it and pays the owner for the privilege of doing it. i.e. he cuts it, rolls it in to 'bales' and takes them away, and pays for it - ok, its probably not much, but effectively the field would pay for its self.
Cue (queue?) a picture ....
And another ....
So you kind of get the idea. On the face of it, it seems like a good idea to take a punt at buying a field.
So how much is it worth ?? .... well, whats more to the point is, how much is it worth to me - or more importantly to the railway club?
It would make a massive difference to the club. Having (effectively) its own ground would secure its future and would be a dream come true for many members. Ok its not the clubs ground, its mine ! But the whole point of going through this exercise it to provide a permanent home for EMR.
More to come later ... and pictures.
