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Andrew Feinberg

White House Correspondent

A council in Devon have closed a popular golf course to protect a historic barn from being struck with stray balls.

The nine-hole Torre Abbey pitch and putt in Torquay will shut down in November after decades of use by tourists visiting the seaside town.

According to the council, the land will be “repurposed and returned to community use”.

The course is located in front of Torre Abbey, an Ancient Scheduled Monument, and the 800-year-old Spanish Barn – a Grade I-listed tithe barn that once housed taxes paid to the abbey in the form of farm produce and Spanish Armada prisoners.

A report from councillors in January said holes in the Spanish Barn’s roof had been caused by “wayward golf balls” after a freedom of information (FoI) request in 2022 revealed that 31 golf ball holes since 2017 would cost the council up to £20,000 to repair.

At the time, pitch and putt tenant Heath Parkin said that flipping the green at hole five to face away from the barn had “solved” the problem.

Since the closure was announced, over 800 people have signed a petition asking the council to “reconsider their plans”.

Petition founder Anthony Mills wrote: “I along with many others, locals and tourists alike have enjoyed the pleasure of using the facilities of the Torre Abbey Pitch and Putt. This amenity, open for over 60 years, is literally the last public amenity to enjoy in Torquay.

“It is a shared frustration that the local Council wants to deprive us of this gem for the second time, only to be dependent on Lottery funding for their plans. The Pitch and Putt has been lovingly maintained for many years and really gives something to the community. Its closure will leave no communal amenity for us to utilise, other than tennis courts, throughout the year.”

Mr Mills added that the “significant reduction in tourism facilities” could impact the revenue of local businesses.

One person supporting the petition said: “If the reason is damage to the Spanish Barn the Council should put up a larger fence. The Council are (supposedly) encouraging people to get out and exercise more. Closing this last public amenity won’t help that cause and it would be a travesty to lose it.”

In a review of tourism by Torbay Council in March, the council said that funding from The National Lottery Heritage Fund and Historic England could help to “restore the Spanish Barn, which would assist in helping Torre Abbey to become more financially stable”.

For more travel news and advice, listen to Simon Calder’s podcast

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