tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-876862148358784705.post1072168147940428321..comments2024-03-11T19:40:23.089+00:00Comments on Views from the bike shed: In praise of parks and their keepersThe bike shedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05195882998271591934noreply@blogger.comBlogger12125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-876862148358784705.post-23890734194601864912013-01-30T17:55:11.087+00:002013-01-30T17:55:11.087+00:00The important thing about parks is to use them, or...The important thing about parks is to use them, or those less desirable elements will take them.<br /><br />I walk my dog in our local park most mornings before work, at that time I see maybe a dozen other dog walkers and a few people crossing through in a short cut, the dog and I enjoy it whatever the weather, its that moment before the day gets crazy, its fresh air, its once or maybe even twice around the cricket pitch and then home, coffee, and work.<br /><br />But on a summer saturday morning I've often seen hundreds using the facility and to the credit of our council (its a local town council so they actually care) they put on events, they use the bandstand for proper brass band concerts, there's a fair two or three times a year and when they're done its always litter free.<br /><br />A properly managed park is a delight. Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-876862148358784705.post-20182921908792475682013-01-16T16:43:13.007+00:002013-01-16T16:43:13.007+00:00Though I have almost always lived surrounded by op...Though I have almost always lived surrounded by open countryside I still love and value the parks I've experienced. In the Lancashire cotton town where I was born there was a super park called Bold Venture Park, which was created in the 1880s by a forward-thinking borough council from a derelict quarry:<br /><br />http://www.picturesofengland.com/England/Lancashire/Darwen/Bold_Venture_Park<br /><br />We had many happy days out there when I was a child and it is still very well used and much cherished.Perpetuahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01214396019726161983noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-876862148358784705.post-33715200122782828242013-01-16T09:12:48.846+00:002013-01-16T09:12:48.846+00:00I am a fan of parks, as I am of gardens, and in so...I am a fan of parks, as I am of gardens, and in some cases I find it hard to explain the differences between the two, at least in terms of their content if not perhaps their accessibility.<br /><br />Is Kew Gardens a park with paid access? How about Wisley? Both are described as gardens, but I think that if access was free, they'd be called parks.<br />Mark In Mayennehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14987723233401368368noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-876862148358784705.post-89930948631637168552013-01-14T15:23:05.968+00:002013-01-14T15:23:05.968+00:00They are a lifeline when you live somewhere like l...They are a lifeline when you live somewhere like london and have a garden the size of a postage stamp! We used to live near Victoria Park in the East End and the majority of our summers were spent there...picnics, going to hear a band play and, in the evening, they often held open air theatre or cinema. It was wonderful and always did me good to see so much green when normally we were surrounded by grey concrete! <br /><br />Happy New Year to you and yours. I have finally got over the lurgy and am only just getting round everyone so sorry it's late but better late than never!<br /><br />C xCarolhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12327016337976942530noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-876862148358784705.post-54791023622780764752013-01-14T08:36:27.521+00:002013-01-14T08:36:27.521+00:00My only memory and experience of parks is the one ...My only memory and experience of parks is the one where my class went to play tennis every Thursday afternoon in summer. It was too far from where I lived for me to use it for any recreational purposes, and in any case, as I lived across the road from the beach and sand dunes, who needed a park? Now I live on the edge of the Royal Estate of Sandringham with woods at the end of the road, so again, who needs a park? But it's lovely that you live so near one which is looked after, too often I have heard dark tales of local parks being used as drug dens and all sorts.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-876862148358784705.post-89631376633491856332013-01-13T19:25:37.980+00:002013-01-13T19:25:37.980+00:00I used to walk in Scotland with my father...those ...I used to walk in Scotland with my father...those were the wide open spaces days...but as work took over I found real pleasure in parks.<br />Here there are two large parks in San Jose, big enough to be patrolled by mounted police, with sports areas, playgrounds, little caffs and plenty of grass and trees, while the centre has more formal parks...miniature arboretae with seats in the shade and in one case a bandstand in stone.<br />But control is the key....the fly in the webhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04563871975125538755noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-876862148358784705.post-71363220408185568272013-01-13T17:39:49.089+00:002013-01-13T17:39:49.089+00:00PS I've been pondering the term wilderness - d...PS I've been pondering the term wilderness - do we actually have any in Britain? Hasn't every inch been affected by man in some way? I've been reading 'Fire Season' which is written by a guy who spent a summer as a fire warden up a watch tower in New Mexico. In it he considers his guardianship of the wilderness and concludes there's very little to speak of in the States! VPhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02732971362066784175noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-876862148358784705.post-8594050436498082542013-01-13T17:33:34.401+00:002013-01-13T17:33:34.401+00:00John Coles Park is one of the reasons why I feel s...John Coles Park is one of the reasons why I feel so strongly about public planting - it serves everyone, not just those who can escape to the country. As a child growing up in Brum, my local park and local areas of wasteland were the only places I could escape to - I had no access to the countryside and it was in these places where I found my love of open spaces. Therefore, we need the best open spaces we can get.<br /><br />It's ironic you've chosen to steal that particular picture. The Gazette and Herald did the very same last year. I'm extremely dischuffed with them about it, but don't mind that you did!VPhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02732971362066784175noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-876862148358784705.post-72101480785896470272013-01-13T16:19:13.290+00:002013-01-13T16:19:13.290+00:00How splendid, to have a park almost in your back y...How splendid, to have a park almost in your back yard, so to speak. There is the added bonus, no one is ever going to build a house there. You can borrow the landscape visually and enjoy it at leisure. In Canada we have a strong heritage of parkland and in Nova Scotia, large areas are being bequested and/or purchased to keep in perpetuity for the citizens. "It's a Good thing". <br /><br />Enjoyed your post very much Mark.Gardeningbrenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10709940044197929905noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-876862148358784705.post-10590035247347413732013-01-13T16:00:43.859+00:002013-01-13T16:00:43.859+00:00Parks are precisely what their communities make th...Parks are precisely what their communities make them... and I often wish that more families would reclaim from the beer yobs and the hoodies.Stevehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02133900289384226725noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-876862148358784705.post-46038415601636973022013-01-13T13:07:33.404+00:002013-01-13T13:07:33.404+00:00Hello Mark:
Public open spaces are so very importa...Hello Mark:<br />Public open spaces are so very important we feel, but, as you point out here, they do need to be closely managed if all members of the community which they serve are to feel comfortable in making the most of them.<br /><br />In Budapest there are many of such open spaces and they are heavily used by a very wide age range of people. The parks always contain a playground area for small children as well as a place for football and/or table tennis for teenagers. There are plenty of seats and very often there is a bandstand for outdoor concerts in good weather. As people in Budapest generally live in very cramped accommodation these parks are a lifeline for getting children out of the house and having some personal space. Perhaps in England as people are increasingly living in smaller spaces, the parks will become even more precious to everyone's daily life.Jane and Lance Hattatthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16831890261259302647noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-876862148358784705.post-50699412789819326412013-01-13T12:03:43.481+00:002013-01-13T12:03:43.481+00:00Lovely post. I'm lucky enough to live on the p...Lovely post. I'm lucky enough to live on the perimeter of a large town park, the entrance of which is about 100 yards from my house. It's ideal for walking the dog and cycling, and is well maintained but left to be fairly natural - it isn't a manicured park by any means. <br /><br />And yes, I went to Bourton on the Water recently when visiting a friend in the Cotswolds. It felt very much like a paint-by-numbers tourist village, very pretty but soulless.Jeanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00124374747737466986noreply@blogger.com