Island Life Magazine Ltd August/September 2007 | Page 62

life FEATURE Phil Legge finally gets the go ahead to upgrade Brickfields Photo: Left Phil Legge, Matt Legge and Simon Legge with daughter Madeleine. It took four and a half years and a lot of negotiation with the local planning department. The outcome was going to be the deciding factor as to whether or not Phil Legge continued to run Brickfields. Luckily for the equestrian world on the island the planning department eventually saw the light. Phil Legge, owner of Brickfields Horsecountry, knows how his horses feel. He has spent the last four years jumping over ever more challenging hurdles in his battle to get planning consent to develop the centre. And finally, in the last week of July, the council has approved his application. He has won the jump-off. At last Phil has got his longsought chance to reinstate Brickfields as one of the Island’s top all-year attractions, for locals and tourists alike. “It is such a relief to be able to tell the staff, and my customers, that finally we’re going to do all the things that needed doing after having to curve their enthusiasm for all this time. I’ve had to be patient, it’s my business: but they didn’t. We lost some customers, but many have stuck by us. They’ve been fantastic.” What the planning department has finally, and unanimously, agreed to, is a complete facelift 62 for Brickfields. A smart new frontage will replace the current agricultural look, and a new side delivery entrance will mean the public do not have to come into contact with lorries. The arena will be made 60ft longer, making it international sized, which means equestrian events can be bigger and better. Two sessions of riding lessons will run simultaneously on busy Saturdays too. There will be tiered seating for spectators, enabling easy viewing during lecture demonstrations. The work will enable Phil to develop other sides to the business, which he built from scratch 25 years ago. Visitors will come into a smart reception area with gift shop, and above there will be eight en suite bed and breakfast rooms. “It will be ideal for people wanting an equestrian-based holiday, and will mean we will be able to accommodate judges and lecturers,” says Phil. He is also looking forward to building a new carriage museum. “I’ve been offered a unique carriage collection from the mainland – on loan too, so I don’t have to pay for it!” Phil says. a point of saying I’d made a great job of Brickfields. The planners were nervous about the issue of out-of-town retail outlets and didn’t want me to develop the retail side first. But every time we came back to them with the modification we thought they wanted, at the cost of £1,500 or so each time, they asked for something else.” This seems a bit of a drop in the ocean when you look at the costs involved with the ambitious plans for Brickfields. The constant delays since his first application means Phil has had to re-do his sums. “I’ll have to get my builder to quote all over again. I reckon it’ll be 8-9 per cent more. My original forward forecast could not have foreseen the huge hike in the price of steel and concrete. Interest rates have risen hugely too, and grants that were available three years ago have now dried up.” Although he is delighted now to be able to go ahead, the whole process has wearied him. “If I had known four years ago how arduous it was going to be, I wouldn’t have started. It’s knocked the stuffing out of me. “All this has made me understand why things just don’t get done in England. In France planning takes six to seven months, in Australia something can be up and running in no time. If you’re a bit of a risk-taker with a good idea you are going to lose the vision and the energy. Which is a shame.” Brickfields Horse Country, Newnham Road, Ryde. Tel: 01983 566801 “I was genuinely surprised when the application was first rejected: the council made Island Life - www.islandlife.tv