Town green plan for Castle Park

Could Bristol's Castle Park gain town green status?

Bristolians are being asked whether historic Castle Park in the city centre should become a protected area.

A public inquiry is currently under way which could see any development blocked and the park kept as it is.

Mary Bannerman, from the Castle Park Users Group, is one of those campaigning for the area to become a "town green".

"It is a major central park and could be a beautiful park... every city worth its salt has a good park."

Plans for a £150m mixed-use development on the Bank of England site were due to be "reconsidered" following protests about the plan.

Ms Bannerman says the revamped plans would still see the development "nibbling" at the green space.

"The concern is that the derelict buildings at the Bristol Bridge end do need to be replaced but the council's own developers have a plan to redevelop that area but they do need to take some of the park.

"They say they are nibbling at the edge but they are probably not going to use very much, but they will take some."

Ms Bannerman said she will now push for the park to have protected status to prevent any new development in the park.

"Under the present arrangement, if the developers, who are the council in this case, want to build on Castle Park, they can [build] subject to planning permission. There is nothing to stop them.

"Whereas the town green status would ensure that the area that is green at the moment will stay green."

Car park

Councillor Helen Holland, the leader of Bristol City Council, says a proposed new development on the old Bank of England site would use less than 5% of current green area.

"That space becomes enhanced. It feels much safer, you'll be aware that there has been safety concerns about Castle Park in the past, and becomes a very much more used, usable and safe space right in the heart of the city.

"When I first came to Bristol in the 1970s we'll all remember it was a car park because it was when the Galleries were being built.

"It has been restored but if we're honest about it, particularly at the Old Market end, it's not really worked. The design hasn't worked and there are some spaces there that aren't very well overlooked and potentially are unsafe.

"We've got the development going ahead on the other side of the floating harbour on the old Courage's site and there's going to be a bridge which connects that development to Castle Park and we want to draw many more people through Castle Park to enjoy what is a fantastic green space."

Former glory

Cllr Holland was asked if reducing the green space in Castle Park would take the city centre below the standard set out in its Parks and Green Spaces Strategy she said it wasn't about the "amount of green space".

"It's about the usability and the quality of green space and we want Castle Park to be a really fantastic resource... and we've done that if you think about Queen Square restored to its former glory.

"And you think about how many more people use Queen Square now than when it was how it was before.

"We've got some fantastic green spaces in the city centre but we need to make sure that we do preserve them and that we do make them usable for as much as the day as we possibly can, and at the moment Castle Park isn't really used in that way."

The public inquiry is due to last for a week.

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A selection of your comments ...

I came to Bristol in 1980 and the old Co-op was still on the site of the now Galleries well into that decade. Our offices then were overlooking Bristol Bridge and I don't recall Castle Park being used as a car park. Was I inhabiting a parallel universe?
Gill, Bristol

Although we have many good parks in Bristol we do need more green areas in the city centre. Castle Park should be enlarged - not developed. Please do not use any more green areas in the city for development.
Tim, Bristol

There are still so many empty and derelict buildings in the city. Get these developed - don't take any part of the few remaining green areas left in the centre. Why can't the council take tough action on owners of long standing derelict sites instead of taking the 'easy' option of using public land.
Boris, Bristol

I love Castle Park just the way it is. A small piece of heaven in the middle of the city. Please don't spoil it, there are plenty of other areas more suitable for development if the Bank of England site appears too small! Don't 'nibble' at the edges of Castle Park, there are plenty of people who DO use the space and prefer to leave it as it is.
Lisa, Bristol

A lot of people use the park, but by no means do they actually like or embrace it in the same way nearby green spaces are such as Brandon hill or Queen Square. Perhaps Mary Bannerman should move out of the centre of a conurbation of half a million (with plenty of green space throughout) and live somewhere more rural instead? rather than treat Bristol as if it were a tiny hamlet on the edge of Dartmoor. I'm glad the St Mary Le Port area is being redeveloped it's now one of the most prominent eyesores in the city, it's a pity that people can't tell the difference between grotty post war buildings from green space, then again you had people complaining they shouldn't redevelop the Quaker's Friars area along with what is now Cabot Circus saying they should have kept it as a car park!
Thomas, Bristol

I think any major development on a green area such as castle park would be immense folly. On the other hand I understand this has become a haven for drug users in recent times and enhancement could halt this trend? If a 5% reduction in size would increase its usability then we should embrace change surely?
John, Bristol

As a mother who now loves to shop (post Cabot Circus) and a husband who doesn't - why oh why can't Castle Park become a beautiful playground with kiddie friendly gated areas, dog areas, cafes (like in St Andrews, our best bristol park). A place where bored men and sore footed women come to relax and socialise? Moving from London I have really noticed the lack of decent parks - I don't need millions of pounds spent on state of the art slides - just a few maintained swings, roundabouts and climbing frames will suffice. Pretty please.
Marilyn, Bristol

Looking at the plans it is clear the developers simply want to build yuppie flats along the river area to gain a good return and have simply agreed to keep Councillor Holland and Bristol City Council sweet by offering to pay for some plants in what is left of the park. The old church should be left as a memorial and the rest of this historic park left green for the benefit of the public and visitors.
John, Bristol

Come on - are the council trying to make Bristol a city of all work and no play? The importance of green areas in the centre - far out-weighs that of gray (un-eco friendly) buildings. Clearly we can not trust our council to keep Bristol's historical areas protected! It would be very sad for the next generation to grow up in a city whoms council had covered history with modern bricks and mortar!! In fact - it would be wrong!
Benjo, Bristol

No, Gill, you're not inhabiting a parallel universe - just a recent arrival (OK, fairly recent). The bombed area which is now Castle Park was a car park from the time it was cleared after WWII until the Co-op building was constructed. I arrived at the BMH in 1946, so my memory of Bristol goes back quite a bit further.
John, Bristol

Part of Castle Park was used as a car park for 18 months in 1988 when Fairfax House (the Co-op) and its multi-storey car park was knocked down. Ladbrokes were allowed to use Castle Park whilst The Galleries (with its replacement multi-storey car park) was being built. In return the developers paid the City Council about £1 million to later landscape the temporary car park into a "park of national distinction". Funnily enough, the fact that the city council worked with developers to pay for the current park is left out of discussions about protecting the park against developers and the city council - wonder why?
Tony, Bristol