The recent plans to build a new green space in the region came as welcome news for some people living up and down Merseyside but it has left a bitter taste in the mouths of those living in South Sefton.
The plans to build a new park the size of Anfield and Goodison's pitches combined in the city's north docks is the latest announcement in the Liverpool Waters development. Developers Peel L&P hope to build the almost five-acre ‘Central Park’ south of Collingwood Dock near the Tobacco Warehouse and Titanic Hotel, with Everton’s new stadium at Bramley Moore situated just north of the proposed site.
If approved the new park would be one of the city’s largest and most significant additions of green space to Kirkdale and the adjoining city centre area. Despite this, just three miles up the road Rimrose Valley Country Park is currently at risk of being replaced with an access road.
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The plans, which are currently backed by the Department for Transport, would see the park dug up and a dual carriageway put in its place. These plans have been campaigned against by the Save Rimrose Valley group.
Stuart Bennett from the group told the ECHO: "The irony of Peel Ports ' sister company championing the benefits of parks and green space wasn't lost on us. In highlighting their importance to our physical and mental health and improving air quality, Chris Capes of Peel Land & Property put it better than we ever could.
"Rimrose Valley fulfils all of these roles and more for the people living in the shadow of the port's cranes, yet Peel Ports see no issue with bulldozing it for their port access road to be filled with HGVs. We know they lobbied government for this scheme, so their 'nothing to do with us, guv' stance is embarrassing.
"Whilst we obviously welcome the creation of any green spaces, we suggest that Mr Capes gives Peel Ports' new CEO, Claudio Veritiero, a call to check whether he got the same memo. You don't get to pick and choose which green spaces are and aren't important."
People living in the area have shared their opinions about the thought of losing the park. Paula Smart said: "Rimrose valley is already an established park. Not everyone wants to travel into town, some have no transport so the cost to get there would be a great hardship.
"Plus town is full of cars as it is without people using them to get there and pay and display. We love our Rimrose Valley just as it is. A little bit of escape from all the hustle and bustle of a busy town centre."
Joyce Connolly said: "Every park should be cherished and left for future generations. Just because it's easier and cheaper to build a road through a public park and definitely cheaper than compulsory purchase to widen existing roads or build a tunnel underneath the ground does not mean it is the best solution for all concerned. We have just come through a pandemic where our green open spaces were needed for the health of the nation.
"Leave our parks alone, once they have gone they can never be replaced and if we are given a chance for a new open public space in an urban area we should grab it with both hands and never let go."
Janet McNulty said: "While it is good to hear that a new park is being planned it is not in South Sefton. Rimrose Valley Country Park is our 'green lung'. It has an unbeatable, wild, natural beauty that supports a great abundance of flora and fauna. It is a place where we can go to breathe clean air and I feel a sense of peace and serenity when I go there.
"The park is also an important route connecting the communities that surround it. I go to Rimrose Valley most days and I see people walking, cycling, running, walking their dogs, meeting friends and commuting on foot or by cycle. Rimrose Valley is a place for all the communities of the area and it would be criminal if it was lost."
A Peel Ports spokesperson said: “The A5036 Princess Way is a proposed National Highways initiative to upgrade the local road infrastructure in Sefton and improve connections to the wider Liverpool City region for all road users. It is not and never has been, a Peel Ports project.”
