Park improvements to be unveiled
Archived press release
Date Published: 23/09/09
The green jewel in Aylesbury’s town centre, Vale Park, continues its restoration and renovation.
Major improvements, including a new entrance and central avenue, have just been completed as part of a project led by Aylesbury Vale District Council to regenerate the park.
Chairman of AVDC, Councillor Janet Blake, will officially unveil the latest improvements at a ceremony on 28 September.
The new entrance on the High Street has been created to provide a better link with the town centre and to make the park more welcoming.
The new avenue makes walking through the park more pleasant and creates special features with the historic drinking fountain and the Axis sculpture.
There will be more works taking place ahead of next summer including the planting of Liquidamber trees (a species which has particularly beautiful autumn colours) along the new avenue, improvement of the shrub beds and the creation of new herbaceous beds near to the new entrance.
As funding becomes available, the council also intends to install lighting along the main routes and renovate the railings and brick piers along the High Street.
AVDC has made a number of improvements to Vale Park over the past four years. In 2005, the council created a new children’s play area and a footpath onto Park Street.
The sports zone – tennis courts, bowling green and multi-sports area – were completed in 2006. Since then, the old tennis courts have been removed and replaced with a large open area of grass.
Vale Park has been awarded a Green Flag, the national standard for parks and green spaces, for the past two years. Winners are judged to be welcoming and well maintained, with the support and involvement of the local community.
Councillor David Thompson, Cabinet Member for Leisure, said: “This makeover will allow one of Aylesbury’s treasures to meet the needs of the 21st century. While the park will continue to be a green oasis in the town, the improvements have made it a more welcoming and attractive open space. We hope that all park users will enjoy the new entrance and footpath and will be encouraged to spend more time in Vale Park.”
Vale Park was created in the 1920s but its use actually dates back to the 1800s with elements of the earlier landscape, such as the rare black poplar trees, still there today.
For more details about the Vale Park project, visit the council’s website at www.aylesburyvaledc.gov.uk/valepark or call 01296 585210.