Plans illustrating the future of Poole Park will be revealed at a public exhibition on Wednesday 2 July.
Local residents will be able to view maps and details of the proposed improvements in Poole Park Pavilion between 2pm and 7pm.
The proposals have been put together by Borough of Poole and the Friends of Poole Park following extensive public engagement earlier this year, in support of a £2.5 million bid to the Heritage Lottery Fund.
The plans show the improvements that the HLF bid could fund and are based on feedback from local people during the recent public consultation. Features could include:
- Heritage and Landscape: Restoring original features, enhancing their setting and ensuring Poole Park retains its original Victorian characteristics whilst improving the quality of the landscaping
- Lakes and water: Improving the condition of the park lakes for people and wildlife and allowing greater public interaction with them
- Traffic: Changing the perception of the road through Poole Park to make it a safer, more welcoming place for park users
- Play: Improving the existing play areas and introducing a play landscape throughout the park
- Geese and Wildfowl: Management and maintenance solutions to be explored in the round two development phase
The plans and supporting documents can also be viewed at www.pooleprojects.net.
As part of the bidding process it is important for the council and Friends of Poole Park to demonstrate that the local community can get involved in the project and that it offers opportunities to learn, volunteer and develop skills.
Councillor Xena Dion, cabinet portfolio holder for a prosperous and sustainable Poole, said: “We still have some way to go before we can submit our bid, but the plans drawn up from feedback from the local community are very exciting.The park is a wonderful facility which everyone can enjoy, so it’s really important that as many people as possible come and take a look at the plans and back our bid.
“The council and the Friends of Poole Park are doing a great job in providing evidence that Poole Park is well loved and valued within the local community.
We are doing everything possible to secure this money and deliver the enhancements that the majority of people have said they want.”
The first round bid will be made to the Heritage Lottery Fund in August and successful bids will be announced in December.
It will take at least a year for the second stage bid to be prepared, with full funding hopefully following in 2016.
