There is work going on at the park but its hard to show much change from last week that can be seen in a picture. The lodge has now got scaffolding around it ready for the work to begin. As you can see we are starting to see the first flush of spring as the pansies come into flower.
The cafe you can just see the bricks on the front triangles but there is still so much scaffolding that its hard to see but once again the flowers brighten the place up
The work on the lodges is well under way and the rear of the lodge above has been knocked down all ready. Scaffolding is going up around the lodges so the roof etc can be done.
The second chimney on the bowls club is now visible and the roof is under way. The work done over a week doesn't show up well in a photo unless you look close at the weekly pictures to see the changes.
Our friend the Mandarin Duck has stayed with us over the winter and is looking very colourful at this time of year.
I caught site of this cheeky chappy having his dinner on one of the bird box's
At Morton road end the clean up continues and the Monkey hut is now free from rubbish and the area is clean. Hopefully it wont be long before we can get the paths done and get round that side.
By the lake at the golf coarse end a tree has suffered from the high winds and come down with a bump
Work has begun to restore the gatehouse lodges at Queens Park to their former glory.
While the work is under way, the adjoining main gates on Victoria Avenue will be closed. However, a temporary entrance has been created 50 yards along the road, for pedestrian access.
A total of £300,000 has been allocated for the refurbishment, which includes new roof cladding, replacement windows, porch repairs, demolition of extensions and structures that are not original, reinstatement of drainpipes and gutters to match originals and restoration of the garden and boundary walls to their original condition and location.
Both lodges will have new gas central heating boilers, new floor coverings and be completely redecorated.
The West Lodge will also get a disabled toilet, new kitchen, offices, new memorabilia room and a meeting room for school groups and other users.
The East Lodge will be completely rewired and have new toilets, showers and mess facilities for the gardening team, offices, a training/meeting room for horticultural students, storage for hand tools and an external cleaning area for equipment within the walled garden. The work is due to be completed by the end of May.
Councillor Andrew Knowles, Cabinet member with responsibility for health and wellbeing, said: “It is fantastic that these premises will be brought into park use and will benefit from the significant investment in the Queens Park restoration project.
“The Heritage Lottery Fund is extremely supportive to help bring the exteriors of the lodges back largely to their original condition – which is great news, as we think this particular view is probably one of the most photographed in Crewe.
“This is another example of our determination to be an excellent council and work with others to deliver for Cheshire East and enhance the environment.”
Crewe South Ward member Councillor Dorothy Flude said: “I am very pleased to see that the two lodges are being brought back to their former Victorian glory.
“The space within the West Lodge for use by school children is an excellent idea. It’s good that schools will be encouraged to use this facility so youngsters can enjoy learning about the history of the park and the wider Crewe area as well as taking part in environmental and conservation activities in their community.”
If you want to learn more about the project, come to the next meting with project officers and consultants at Marshfield Bank Community Centre, off West Street, Crewe, on Wednesday, March 9, at 5.30pm. Or, you can become a paper or email member by ringing Queen’s Park manager Elaine Dodd on 07825351808.
Queens Park was renowned as one of the finest parks in the North West. It is undergoing a £6.5m transformation to bring it back to its former glory. The Heritage Lottery Fund is providing a £2.7m support grant with the rest of the investment coming from Cheshire East Council.
Within the park’s 45 acres are walkways, trees, shrubs, planting, children’s play area, crown green bowling, putting, boating lake grassed areas, memorials and cafeteria.
For more information on the Queens Park restoration project visit the Queens Park web pages at: www.cheshireeast.gov.uk – then click ‘Leisure, Culture and Tourism’ and follow the links to the relevant pages.
The Bowling green now has a chimney sticking up clad in sandstone
The cafe mean while is going more and more pink as more roofing goes on in a nice pink colour
We have some new old pictures of the Queens Park park if that makes sense. It shows life in the park in the 1900 and the photos are courtesy of Rona MacKay. They are in very good condition considering they are over 100 years old
See the ducks were still there in those days
I am guessing this would be Burma Island in 1911
See we had snow in 1908
Another bridge not sure were this would be
Work on the two lodges is now getting under way as lots of workmen's cabins arrive ready to start work and the main gate is closed(it was open today Friday) Work is due to go on until June.
The cafe has pink lattes going on the roof this week and the weather has helped but there is not a lot to see.
The gardeners have been buzzy cleaning all the rubbish etc from the bushes along the railings and felling several trees over the other side of the lake. The area looks a lot better for a tidy up.
Using the new Finepix hs10 with 30* optical zoom I was able to get pictures of the band stand taken from the golf coarse. You have to admit its a good picture form that range and 30* comes into its own at times like this.
