An “egotistical” Tory councillor has been slammed for naming a PARK after his young son – after claiming the eight-year-old had been part of the council’s “planning team.”
Andre Gonzalez De Savage erected a sign proudly displaying the green space as “Adam’s Park” when it opened in 2011.
But he was left red-faced after disgruntled council bosses discovered last week he had not sought any permission to rename the land in East Hunsbury, Northants.,
And over the Easter weekend council workers moved in to remove the sign displaying the parks unauthorised title and told the councillor to collect it from the town hall.
Angry locals and fellow politicians fiercely criticised the councillor’s decision to name it after his son in the first place.
Councillor John McGhee, Northamptonshire County Council Labour leader branded the decision “egotistical” and “arrogant”.
He fumed: ” I believe that for someone to have something named after them they should have done a long service to something.
“If he has just named it because he can when there’s so many volunteers who have gone unnoticed then it’s absolutely egotistical and I’m surprised at Councillor De Savage.
“It just shows you the arrogance of the Tories in Northamptonshire. I’m not surprised but I am disappointed. It’s arrogant as the Tories are in Northamptonshire and they have been for many years.
“It’s no wonder councillors get a bad name when they do things like this, we all get tarred with the same brush.
“He is quite a quiet man and very family orientated I would say.
“The way to go about doing it is what I did with a park in my ward, to put a local competition into the local schools and let them decide.
“No individual should be able to make that decision, it should be made by the local community.”
One resident, who lives near the park, added: “We were all a bit surprised when the name went up.
“I think it was just a case of a councillor who likes everyone to know who he is and what he as done.
“It’s pathetic really.”
But Cllr Gonzalez De Savage, who is a cabinet member for Northamptonshire County Council, yesterday defended his actions and said his son Adam was part of a local youth council who helped choose what play equipment should be bought for the run-down park.
The dad-of-three also said he donated £3,525 from his personal county council funding pot to buy play equipment for the park and the sign.
He said: “Originally, there was no play equipment in the park whatsoever, so the local youth council did some research on the equipment they wanted.
“My son was part of that planning team and the group decided to call it Adam’s Park after him. It was quite nice of them to do that and I said I would not object.
“I’m very annoyed they’ve been removed. I invested in that park when there was no play equipment there at all. I want the signs to go back up.”
A spokesman for borough council said: “There was an unauthorised sign put up in the park which has now been removed.
“We have got no record of consent ever being given for any such sign to be put up in this park.
“Since the sign has now been removed, Councillor Gonzalez De Savage is welcome to collect it if he wishes.”
Conservative Cllr Gonzalez De Savage was elected to Northamptonshire County Council in May 2005 and is the Cabinet Member for Public Protection.
