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21/09/2011
Children celebrate Peace Gate opening, Alexandra Park, North Belfast
Here's how the BBC told the story.
A peace wall erected across a park in 1994 has been opened up by a gate so residents from communities on both sides of the divide can use the whole park. Minister for Justice David Ford and members of the Alexandra Park Steering Group officially opened the peace gate on Friday 16th September.
The park was divided in two by a peace wall in 1994 in order to limit the frequent sectarian rioting between the communities of Newington (Nationalist) and Tigers Bay (Loyalist) in North Belfast.
For the local residents of North Belfast the peace line that runs through Alexandra Park has been a constant feature in their daily lives. The iconic Victorian public park situated in North Belfast opened in 1881 in and is the only public park in Western Europe with a wall dividing the park into two separate entities.
Sylvia Gordon, Director of Groundwork NI said:
“Groundwork NI has been working closely the steering group over the past two years and with local residents and community groups from both sides of the communities surrounding Alexandra Park to move the regeneration plans forward. The opening of the peace gate is a first step towards bringing both communities together through a recreational space and we would hope this will have a direct and positive impact on the daily lives of people who live within the area of the park”
The opening of the new peace gate in Alexandra Park will be operated on pilot basis for a period of three-months. The times for opening will be 9.00am-3.00pm daily (Monday-Friday) which has been agreed by Belfast City Council Parks & Leisure Department staff who will has responsibility for its operation.
Sam Cochrane, from North Belfast Community Development and Transition Group said:
“We are delighted to see the peace gate open in the park and this will hopefully represent a new era for both communities who live and work in the surrounding areas. The friendships and working relationships that have been forged through the cross community steering group over the past three years has enabled this work to materialise, we are hopeful that the regeneration plans within the park will bring about further developments in terms of community relations within both communities on this interface area”
Groundwork NI, through the Reconciling Communities Through Regeneration (RCTR) Programme, began a process of community engagement in 2009 with a view to building relationships at the local level within and between fractured communities and facilitating the regeneration of the interface. Reconciling Communities Through Regeneration (RCTR) is a three year, £988,000 EU-funded regional programme, funded through the PEACE III Programme, Priority 1.1 Building Positive Relations at the Local Level, under the European Regional Development Fund.
