A lot has been written about Haxby Memorial Hall and a lot of it has been nonsense, but none more nonsense than Mr Howard's vision of the Ethel Ward playing field (Flatten The Hall, Letters, October 20).

I had the privilege of working with Mr Kenneth Ward for a number of years and he bequeathed the playing field as an area for the recreational pursuits of Haxby residents, young and old, not another green area to be earmarked for development.

His original concept included a rugby pitch, tennis courts, football pitch and a cricket pitch, a sport he was particularly passionate about.

Should Mr Howard's plan ever come to fruition there would be little left for what Kenneth Ward originally intended. Which brings me to Mr Howard's other "vision", of an outdoor market on the Memorial Hall site. Perhaps if he lived on the main village thoroughfare and experienced the volume of everyday traffic he would not be so keen to increase the traffic - which a market must generate. And, of course, there is the parking of said traffic, when parking is already a problem.

The Memorial Hall is one of the few remaining properties on the main street (many have been demolished or converted to commercial use in one form or another e.g. the original Haxby Hall), and is regarded with affection by those of us who went to school there.

It certainly has more architectural attributes than the glass monstrosity that had been suggested as its replacement.

So hands off Ethel Ward playing field and please come up with something more feasible for the Memorial Hall than an outdoor market - what's wrong with maintaining a bit of history anyway?

Pat Pallier,

The Village,

Haxby, York.

Updated: 10:32 Friday, October 28, 2005