I do not accept the picture you paint of the Forest Hill Society 'green-lighting practically anything the council proposes'. We back the idea of consulting local people on the issue and want to see the best possible leisure facility for Forest Hill.

In speaking to people around Forest Hill and on this forum there are clearly two strands of thought on the issue.
1) Preserve the existing buildings at any cost
2) Demolish the existing buildings as proposed by the council
There are additionally shades of opinion between these two views. It has surprised me how vocal one side of the debate is, and how many people on the other side of the debate remain quiet, probably in fear of being branded council stooges / Philistines / in a minority of one - you can see this at it's best on the forums.

Both opinions are legitimate views of people in Forest Hill and should be heard and the Forest Hill Society and Sydenham Society should make sure they are presenting the full range of views in the local community (not an easy task to get the balance right).

The Sydenham Society have put forward a proposal for consideration by the council and I hope that by next week others are allowed to see this proposal and comment upon it. Having seen it myself I do not think it would gain the support of the majority of people in Forest Hill. However I still welcome this proposal as adding to the debate and providing the council with alternative options.

What the Forest Hill Society has tried to do is to make sure the local community is aware of the council plans, through articles in our newsletters, on our website, on this forum, and by bringing council officials in front of local residents. I note that by doing so we have reinvigorated the discussion by local people and I am pleased that we have done this.

Once the plans for the site are published by the council (before demolition) the Forest Hill Society may well take a view on the best proposal, or certainly on completely unsuitable proposals - it would be nice to think that the council are able to produce one option that would be acceptable to the majority of residents.

Of course the Sydenham Society are being consulted as well as the Forest Hill Society so in your final point you are either not aware of this or suggesting that the Forest Hill Society should be excluded from the consultation process. I wonder how people in Forest Hill would feel about their local civic society being excluded from this issue?