THE full renovation of a popular children’s playground in disrepair is due to start next week.
A £100,000 contract has been awarded for new equipment to refurbish the Blacksnape Play Area in Darwen.
The cash comes as a developer contribution from an agreement with McDermott Homes that is developing a property on nearby Ellison Fold Way.
£100,000 refurbishment to begin at Blacksnape Playing Fields in #Darwen from next week ☀️
The park will have a completely new look & feel, with lots of modern equipment – including double zip-wire sports! 👏
Read more here👉 https://t.co/8YMMQJVlqJ pic.twitter.com/d3zsJmEF6n
The new Darwen play area will provide young children and families with hours of outdoor fun and games for years to come.
Occupying the same area as before, the building will have a new look and feel, with many modern features, including new swings and shopping malls. double zip-cord.
Construction and renovation of the stadium will begin the week of Monday, September 5, and is scheduled to take six to eight weeks to complete. eat.
The development is carried out by a model to ensure that the winning contractor, Kompan LTD, provides a special, modern and attractive place for all the local people to enjoy.
Funding has been secured for the renovation as part of a Section 106 agreement with McDermott Homes – the developer building nearby Ellison Fold Way.
Leader of Blackburn and Darwen Council, Councilor Phil Riley, who is also co-chairman of the Darwen Town Deal, said: “I am very pleased to be able to reveal plans to transform the playing field at Blacksnape.
“The next five years will see tens of millions of pounds being invested in transforming Darwen as part of the Town Hall which is truly amazing.
“During our discussion on how to spend that money, residents shared their pride for the city’s parks, but investing in playgrounds came up as a strong priority for Dawen.
“We have listened to the residents and although the rules of the Town Deal do not include investment in projects like this, the council has been able to put a total of £100,000 from the Section 106 contribution to Ellison Fold Way. a stadium wonderful new play on Blacksnape.”
As part of the Town Deal, plans are also being looked at to make use of Darwen’s extensive rolling terrain as part of a new ‘Destination Darwen’ scheme.
This includes improving connectivity to the city, residential areas, parks and freight.
The roads are intended to encourage more travel – especially walking and cycling – and outdoor exercise for residents as well as encouraging new visitors to help boost the local economy.
And, this month an extra £1.5m was announced as part of the 2022/2023 budget for the Council’s Environment and Road Services.
The extra funding focuses on what people say is important to them and will be used to create five new park ranger roles – including one each for Bold Venture Park and Whitehall Park in Darwen – an addition to the number of garbage collectors, an additional driver. to empty the trash, a new school office and more.
Cllr Riley added: “This is a very exciting time for Darwen and we are focusing on what we know is important to residents.
“We are very lucky to be surrounded by beautiful green, open spaces in the city and we want to do everything we can to make the most of it.
“We’d love to see a great playground in every park, but unfortunately we’ve had to deal with budget cuts over the last decade which has taken its toll.
“However, by using the funds as offered through the Section 106 agreement, we can continue to make improvements and I know that the playing field The new boat at Blacksnape will be very exciting.”
Section 106 agreements are agreements between councils and developers related to planning permission to fund major local needs such as playgrounds, schools and roads.
In Ellison Fold Way, McDermott Homes has built 343 new homes, including 67 affordable homes.
In total, the scheme will provide £1.5million in ongoing contributions, including playground upgrades and £640,000 for community improvements. highways and £740,000 for future secondary school extensions.
Now that the funding for the stadium has been secured, construction will begin on the stadium and work is expected to begin later this year.
The main theme of the project for Blacksnape to play is: