Mayor’s picnic could help decide park future
THE Mayor of Macclesfield is planning a picnic to celebrate the centenary of a town park - with residents asked to have their say on the next 100 years.
Councillor Fiona Wilson, who became Mayor in May, is hosting her first civic event at South Park on Saturday, August 13 to mark the park’s 100th anniversary.
As well as a picnic, live music and games the event will also be used for the public to have their say on plans to rebuild the park’s pavilion.
Currently being used to house the park’s gardeners, the pavilion is to be knocked down and rebuilt with the aim of including a cafe at the biggest park in Macclesfield.
Cllr Wilson said: “When people turn up there’ll be games for kids to play, face painting and we’ve got people doing crafts. There’ll also be people making flower crowns with wildflowers grown in allotments.
“There’ll be live music, we’ve got local artists coming along to play in the bandstand. We have five different plans for the new pavilion and we want to ask the residents of Macclesfield about those plans.
“So apart from it being my first civic event involving the community, we’re going to be asking people what they think of the pavilion designs.”
The current pavilion is deemed not fit for purpose and is part-condemned.
Cllr Wilson, who regularly runs in the park as she lives nearby, added that the key aim for the pavilion redesign is to incorporate a cafe.
“It’s currently being used to house the gardeners and a store for sports equipment as well as toilets,” she said.
“At the moment it is a shadow of its former glory because there’s been a pavilion building there for as long as I can remember.
“But the key thing is to reinstate a cafe there so people can have refreshments in the park. At the moment there is nowhere to go and sit in the park and have a drink.”
As well as the cafe there are also plans to sell alcohol so the pavilion can host wedding and civil ceremonies while also housing a community room, storage facilities and accessible toilets.
The 44-acre park was gifted to the people of Macclesfield on August 16, 1922 by Alderman William Frost and has been a vital green space for residents ever since.
Cllr Wilson said: “If it wasn’t for the park being made a park by the owner of the land it would have houses on it now. I go running there every day. It’s just part of me. I live very close to the park and I love it.
“I’m really excited that my first civic event is in
South Park which I love very much and spend a lot of my time there. I’m really excited that the town council is going to be rebuilding the pavilion and very keen to hear from residents to say what they think about the designs.
“The key thing for me is people come to South Park on August 13 between 11am and 2pm and come and have a look at the designs so that the pavilion we build will be there in another 100 years’ time.”