mond2x: Tunstall Park revamp launched after �320k windfall

Thursday, May 19, 2011

Tunstall Park revamp launched after �320k windfall

RESIDENTS are spending a pot of gold on regenerating a public park.

The trustees for the late Reginald Johnson, who managed three pottery factories in the town until the late 1960s, released a lump sum of �320,000 to be spent on Victoria Park in Tunstall in 2009.

For the last two years, Stoke-on-Trent City Council officials have been in discussions with residents to decide how to put the donation to good use.

The legacy from the managing director of the Alfred Meakin factories in Tunstall is now being used to transform the park's facilities, and work has begun on the 16-week refurbishment programme.

Two state-of-the-art play areas are being built with a trampoline, junior play area, cable ride, giant swing, and picnic area.

A large multi-use games court will be created next to the floral hall, and fencing around the tennis courts is being upgraded.

As well as the Johnson family's donation, the scheme is benefiting from Section 106 funding; money which developers pay to the council as a condition of planning permission to be used for community improvements.

Father-of-two Ben Upson, aged 36, who lives opposite the park on Victoria Park Road, said: "The park is a fantastic facility for the community and we are very grateful for the money which has been left to it.

"I often come down here with my two young children, who are two and five years old, and we have two dogs as well who we bring down here for walks. The work which is being carried out is really going to improve the park for everyone who comes here."

Tunstall councillor Lee Wanger said: "It's taken a long time to get to this point. Getting match funding from the council is a slow process, but it's finally happening.

"The changes to the entrance of the park will have the biggest impact, transforming how people see the park as they arrive, especially those arriving in cars.

"It will make a big difference and hopefully bring more people into the park. "This is not just a one off. The park trust is working to identify more funding so this revitalisation can continue."

The Grade II-listed park boasts a boathouse, bowls pavilion, clock tower and lodge.

Its floral hall has been revamped as a community centre which helps local groups, including parents with young families. The park also has two crown green bowling greens, fishing facilities and a full sized football pitch.

Council leader Mohammed Pervez, pictured below, said: "We are thrilled that our partnership with the Tunstall Victoria Park Trust has been so successful and that this work is to bring fabulous new facilities to the park.

"It was a wonderful gesture by the Johnson family to give the money to the park and the new facilities will be a lasting tribute to their generosity.

"The scale of the project means that the work will take a number of weeks to complete. We ask visitors to have patience, because the end result will be well worth the wait."