Residents of a suburb in Watford have been left bewildered after fencing was built across a path which provided access to local sports facilities.
Three Rivers District Council is making inquiries after the blockage was installed unexpectedly.
The fencing has been placed around a vacant pub in Oxhey, but has left locals cut off from a path between a car park and the northeast of South Oxhey Playing Fields.
A gate in the middle of the fencing is currently open meaning the public can still walk from the car park to the sports grounds, but a padlock on the wooden structure has sparked concerns that access could be cut off at any moment.
The playing fields contain tennis courts, a skatepark, and the Pavilion Bowls Club.
Bowls club captain Marc Grant told the Watford Observer: “This is going to make sure that no one is going to have any sort of access.”
He added: “That path has been used for at least 50 years.”
If the gate is shut, the only way for users of the car park to access the laying fields is to go back onto the road and walk around to another entrance of the facilities.
The Pavilion Pub has been vacant since closing for refurbishment in 2018
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Locals say the walk takes far longer than the current path and could be a challenge for those with walking difficulties or using a mobility scooter.
It is thought the fencing was installed by the owners of the vacant pub.
The Pavilion pub on Green Lane was first built in 1930 and shut in 2018 for refurbishment.
However, the local facility never reopened and has been vacant ever since.
So important is the building to local residents that in 2021 it was even listed as an asset of community value.
The designation means that is the Pavilion pub building is ever sold, local community groups will be given a six-month window to express interest in purchasing the property and acquiring the funds to do so.
A Three Rivers District Council spokesman said: “The council is aware of this matter and is conducting enquiries.”