News that a £5million masterplan for the area has been prepared has created some concerns that the Racecourse is going to be changed without the public having a say.

And a one-day exhibition held at the University of Northampton to allow people to view the plans before they went ahead has been criticised as insufficient.

The Friends of the Racecourse say they are keen to get the public involved and have reassured people they will have their say, see panel below.

But for some there is still a feeling they have been left out of the process.

Lucy Smith, a resident of Semilong, feels the £46,000 arrow and spheres were 'suddenly dumped' on the park.

She said: "The Healthy Living Hub claim they have done extensive local consultation but I do not agree.

They seem to be acting with complete autonomy, impervious to people's concerns and all they can say is 'you don't appreciate art'.

"The arrow is not sympathetic to the landscape. The spheres are not going to be maintained and will be vandalised.

If the people of Northampton want it, then that is fine. But we don't want five people saying 'this is what you are going to get'."

Hazel Hiam, a Kingsley resident, is also unhappy and said: "I don't like the arrow, it doesn't mean anything.

And who is going to clean the spheres?

The dogs are already using them."

She called for more straightforward improvements to the Racecourse: "It (the masterplan) is not what people want.

They want maintenance, they want the litter and dog mess cleared and more wardens."

Paul Ledbrook, a resident in The Mounts, said the Racecourse was currently a 'total mess'.

He feels that ideas such as a cafe in the centre of the park would not be sustainable because it will not pick up any passing trade and it would be better placed inside the pavilion on Kettering Road.

But he says there has been little opportunity to share his views.

"The attitude seems to be 'this is the masterplan, it is not set in stone but we don't want any criticism."

Even Martin Taylor, husband of borough councillor Marianne Taylor, who represents Kingsley, said the spheres were a surprise to him.

"I consider myself well informed but this was a shock to me.

"I find, to my dismay, that there are not four but five balls in the relatively small area at the Barrack Road end where I live.

"Residents I have spoken to are not inspired and think it is another waste of money.

Footballers have used them to scrape their boots, dogs like to sniff and the grass is growing underneath at the base, illustrating a difficulty in maintenance.

New wooden posts have appeared close by, presumably for us to tie up our horses.

"Of more concern is the arrow.

From the Barrack Road end, it does not read at all as an arrow, it just looks clumsy, but is very evident."

Borough councillors have also been asking questions about how the project has been advanced.

Tim Hadland, leader of the Conservative opposition, said he did not want to see another fiasco like the widely criticised Needle proposal.

He said: "Whilst the Racecourse is a great concern to the local community, it is a facility for the whole town.

Everyone in Northampton is entitled to know about it and have a view. That just hasn't happened. I hope the message will start sinking in."

Meanwhile Andrew Simpson, (Lib Dem, Kingsley) agreed that there was an issue with a lack of consultation about the spheres and arrow.

"People are right to criticise Friends of the Racecourse and they have acknowledged that. They are not going to carry on not doing consultation.

"Now the masterplan is in with the borough council it is not a fringe group pushing things forward, it will be the council.

The council has resolved that there will be consultation and this will give people comfort."

"It is only a small part of the plan people are negative about. It is one or two aspects they may not like."

To get involved, the next public racecourse meeting will be held tomorrow at 7.30pm, in Leicester Terrace Community Rooms.

Consultations are promised
Despite the anxiety caused by the way the spheres and the arrow bench were introduced, the groups behind the plan are keen to reassure the public that they will have their say on the Racecourse masterplan.

Giles Willson, chair of Friends of the Racecourse, said in a letter to the Chron: "The spheres will provide useful information and historical facts for users of the Racecourse; the arrow bench will provide a focal point for students and others to congregate."

He added: "Readers should be reassured that the masterplan does not provide details of how the Racecourse will change, it identifies 20 key projects.

The next stages will be to project manage these, ensuring full consultation is undertaken."

Steve Summers, of the Healthy Living Hub group, said: "The masterplan is now in the hands of Northampton Borough Council.

They have got an officer reviewing it. They will also, quite rightly, be doing more consultation about it all over the summer."

Meanwhile, the Double H Residents' Association in The Mounts said it believed enough consultation had been undertaken.

Glenis Moss, secretary of the association, said: "We were all consulted last year at the big barbecue at the Racecourse.

Everyone had forms filled out."

But she admitted they did not know much about the spheres and arrow bench and added: "It seems a lot of money."