Campaigners urged to vote for City Park

Campaigners have been fighting to ‘save’ the city park after proposals were put forward to built a new Leisure Centre and Southern Regional College close to Craigavon Lakes.

Part of the park is earmarked for the two new state-of-the-art buildings however an online campaign to save the park has received substantial support.

Craigavon City park is one of 16 in Northern Ireland nominated for the Fields in Trust UK’s Best Park Award.

Founded in 1925 by King George V, the mission of the Fields Trust is the same now and as it was then: to ensure that everyone – young or old, able-bodied or disabled and wherever they live – should have access to free, local outdoor space for sport, play and recreation. These spaces are vital to building happy and healthy communities and sadly continue to be threatened by all kinds of development.

Nominations include small community gardens and large nature reserves, sports fields and playgrounds, each green space valued by its community and nominated by the regular park users who love to walk, run, cycle, relax, picnic and play with their children in the UK’s parks. The UK’s Best Park Award will see the park with the most votes in each of England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland shortlisted and nominators invited to attend the prestigious Fields in Trust Awards at Lord’s Cricket Ground in November where the UK’s Best Park, as voted by YOU! 2017 will be named.

The campaign group Save Craigavon City Park and Lakes urged locals to get voting:

On their Facebook page they said: “We need all of you to get voting for Craigavon City Park. Let’s put it on the map before Armagh, Banbridge and Craigavon Borough Council bulldoze it off.

“We already hold the “Most Desirable Place to Live” title. Let’s bag this one too!”

If you would like to vote for the park www.fieldsintrust.org/bestpark For more info www.fieldsintrust.org