Love Parks Week – Carlisle events
(Date of issue: Tuesday, 21 July 2009)
A grand re-opening of one of Carlisle’s parks will signal the
start of a week-long city celebration.
An exciting programme of free events to celebrate Carlisle’s
parks and green spaces will be held between Saturday, 25 July and
Sunday, 2 August.
Carlisle City Council has drawn together a series of activities
to coincide with national Love Parks Week starting with the
official re-opening of Eden Bridge Gardens by the Mayor of
Carlisle, Cllr William Graham this Saturday (25 July) at 11am.
There will be an opportunity to hear about the history and recent
restoration work as well as the chance to listen to some summer
music.
The Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF) awarded a grant of £50,000 to
help the City Council restore Eden Bridge Gardens, Stanwix, last
year.
The work has cost around £100,000, with the remaining funding
provided by Groundwork, an environmental charity working alongside
Marks & Spencer. The Eden Bridge Restoration Project in
Carlisle, is also one of the ‘Greener Living Spaces’ supported by
money raised from Marks & Spencer’s carrier bag charge.
Restoration work has been underway since last November and the
scheme has seen vital repairs made to the rose pergolas and lily
ponds. The rock garden has been cut back and invasive species and
weeds removed and the surrounding trees cut back to allow more
light into the garden and create sight lines through to the main
rose pergola. The steps, which connect the two raised terraces have
been re-laid and the crazy paving paths re-pointed.
Cllr Ray Bloxham, Portfolio holder for Environment and
Infrastructure, said:
“Our parks and green spaces are important parts
of our city’s heritage and environment. Love Parks Week provides a
focus to what is on offer on our residents’ doorsteps. The grand
re-opening of Eden Bridge Gardens is great way to start off the
celebrations and is an opportunity for local residents to see the
end result of months of restoration work.”
Love Parks Week is organised by parks charity GreenSpace to
raise awareness of the importance of parks, and this year the focus
will be on encouraging people to get into parks to join the
campaign for continued investment and support for these valuable
community assets.
Last year, around 300 park events took place across the country
to celebrate Love Parks Week, attracting over 200,000 people. This
year looks set to be even bigger, with even more fun and exciting
events taking place nationally. Carlisle is joining the campaign
for the first time and hopes to be able to develop the programme
further in future years.
Paul Bramhill, Chief Executive of GreenSpace, said:
“Love Parks Week is a great opportunity to
celebrate what parks and green space mean to communities. In the
current financial climate parks are more important than ever – they
are free to visit and provide opportunities to improve health,
relax and unwind, enjoy nature, play and have fun.
“This year we want as many people as possible to
show support for the campaign by attending an event and taking
advantage of what these fantastic places have to offer.”