Concerns raised on antisocial behaviour, and the need for more security and lighting
Results from a public consultation in Belfast on 24 hour opening for some of its most popular parks have been revealed.
Officials at Belfast City Council, who run the parks, gave elected representatives consultation findings which show the public approves 24 hour opening in Botanic Park, Ormeau Park, and Belmont Park. The consultation gave a more nuanced picture for Falls Park, while the Woodvale Park consultation showed respondents did not want 24 hour opening.
Council officers ran an open survey on the council’s Your Say platform from February to April this year and held five drop-in engagement sessions, one at each of the park sites throughout March and April. The aim of the consultation was to capture residents’ views on extending opening hours of the Botanic, Ormeau, Belmont, Falls and Woodvale Parks.
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The consultation was also directed to a range of groups including local resident groups, environmental groups, community groups and elected members. Posters for the consultation were put up at community facilities, banners were put up at the entrance to the parks and a leaflet drop took place within residential areas in close proximity to each of the five parks.
The survey was also an opportunity to gauge concerns and barriers to supporting the proposal, and to air suggestions for programming, activities and further physical improvements required to facilitate any extended hours of use.
The five online surveys had a total of 1,678 responses. Botanic Gardens received 652, Ormeau Park received 593, Woodvale Park received 308, Belmont Park 51 and Falls Park 47. The combined number of responses for Falls Park across two consultation exercises – the 24 hour opening survey and another for 24 hour opening of the Forth Meadow Greenway gate – was 203.
Consultation feedback confirmed community support for extended park opening hours at Botanic Gardens, with 70 percent of responses in favour, and four percent undecided. It showed support at Ormeau Park, with 70 percent of responses in favour, and three percent undecided. The consultation for Belmont Park also showed support, with 71 percent in favour and six percent undecided.
Across these sites, the most favoured opening hours pattern was overwhelmingly 24 hours opening, however there were a number of concerns raised in relation safety and antisocial behaviour, and the need for more security to facilitate extended use.
The need for artificial lighting to ensure park safety was highlighted as the main physical barrier to extended opening hours across all park surveys. Concern over the impact of artificial lighting on wildlife was a theme across all park surveys, with the need for ecological assessments and use of wildlife and bat friendly lighting suggested by a number of respondents.
Although there was support for Fall Parks’ opening hours being extended, this was not in line with the views of the majority of overall respondents for both consultation exercises, including the more detailed Forthmeadow Greenway consultation. Overall, 58 percent of the 203 respondents for both consultation exercises were against changes to opening hours of specific gates and the park in general.
There was no clear support for extending the opening hours of Woodvale Park, 65 percent against, with the main reason being antisocial behaviour concerns.
The requirement for artificial lighting to facilitate extended park use and ensure safety during darker hours was raised a total of 956 times across all surveys.
The council officer report on the consultation, delivered at the August meeting of the council’s People and Communities Committee, states: “Members are reminded that the installation of any new lighting infrastructure would require significant capital investment, and that any requests for lighting schemes to be considered for any sites must be directed through to council’s Capital Programme for progression through standard stages.
“This will also be an opportunity for ecological assessments to be carried out in respect to potential gate/route options, and for wildlife friendly lighting options and any associated path improvements that may be required to be explored.”
Sinn Féin Councillor Micheal Donnelly said at the committee meeting: “I think trialling 24 hours is important. We see how popular our parks are – people want to get out, people are living longer, there is an active elderly.
“People want to walk their dogs, they want to address isolation and loneliness, improve their physical, emotional and mental health. All our parks are there to help them. They give opportunities for park runs, walk runs – there is massive potential.
“Investment and infrastructure is key. Falls Park, in my constituency, has lighting columns in half of the park. It would be great to eventually see the full park with lighting columns, that allows people to walk in it and feel safe.
“Our parks should be safe places. Some of these have static wardens. Pilots would not be set in stone, it is something we can look at and tease out. If it works, it is only going to work for the citizens of our city to improve their health and wellbeing.”
Sinn Féin proposed 24 hour opening trials for all five parks, and received support from the Green Party.
SDLP Councillor Gary McKeown said at the meeting: “At Ormeau Park, we have to recognise there is a new pedestrian and cycle bridge due to go in shortly, in the next two to three years, linking the park with the Gasworks. So I think Ormeau Park requires particular attention, to ensure when that bridge opens, it isn’t a bridge to nowhere.
“There is no point waiting until it is constructed to think about what we are going to do. People will need access to it, through the park, probably 24/7, for the bridge to meet its requirements and functionality.”
He proposed that the council immediately look at developing the appropriate lighting infrastructure at Ormeau, and make an application for funding to the Stormont Department for Infrastructure, who are responsible for the upcoming Lagan Pedestrian and Cycle Bridge.
DUP Councillor Nicola Verner said: “I take all the points about our parks being really valuable assets in our community, that enhance outdoor activity, health and wellbeing, socialisation, all of that. I support that.
“But the consultation is vital for us as a council, it features in all aspects of our decision making, and rightly so. It is about listening to people, and taking on their views.
“So when I look at returns from Woodvale Park, sitting at 65 percent against from general respondents, and 70 percent from residential respondents, I can’t ignore that. It would be arrogant to say to 70 percent of people that live beside Woodvale Park, actually, we are going to go the opposite way, and open it 24 hours a day.”
She asked for the parks to be “decoupled,” as opposed to collective trials for all five, with decisions to be made on each individually.
Alliance proposed receiving more information about costs for new lighting and animation before making any decisions on the five parks.
A council officer said: “We are suggesting, given some of the concerns of the resources and people we need, and the timeframe for that, that we defer this report and bring it back next month with those specific things addressed, with another separate report on the lighting.”
Councillor McKeown replied: “I don’t know about others, but I am starting to get quite frustrated. What was the point in doing these consultations, if there was no consideration as to what our likely ask was going to be on the back of it. These things have been talked about for years.”
Councillors agreed to defer decisions for an updated report with costs in September.
At the same meeting, Sinn Féin successfully proposed a 24 hour trial for the new Forth Meadow Greenway, which travels through North and West Belfast into the City Centre. The plan had to go to a vote, where the DUP opposed 24 hours opening across the whole stretch. The gates along the greenway currently follow a dawn to dusk schedule for opening.
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