John’s Lane East is now hemmed in between the back of the cathedral and a high retaining wall at the edge of an underused greenspace behind the Civic Offices.
Rialto residents want more for their local green space, taken over by construction of the children’s hospital for years, than the council is now proposing.
Some suburbs have only a vast open field of grass, but these days there’s more demand for smaller, better-maintained parks, trees, allotments, and playgrounds.
Locals have several ideas for people it could be named after – Oliver Bond, Richie Taplin, Anne Devlin, Jimmy Holmes – but none of them might be allowed under council rules.
“My favourite thing is sharing stories,” says Molly Aylesbury, one of the organisers. “Sometimes people get really emotional when they talk about plants.”
Planning documents show that Bartra has been granted permission to give money instead of providing public space, but don’t give any specifics as to why.
In years past, the edges of verges and greens were often left untrimmed because the council didn’t want to pay contractors to do it. It’s a different story now, though.
