It has been 30 years and almost £10 million in the making. Now it is hoped a long-abandoned garden could bring a little levelling up to a northern village and the surrounding areas.
Historic Kirkleatham Walled Garden on the outskirts of Redcar has been left derelict and shut to public view for three decades.
Now, on Wednesday, the Grade II listed facility was reopened following a £9.8 million restoration, which local council bosses hope will bring 30,000 visitors a year in to the area.
The 1.5-hectare site is just the latest example of local authorities going green in an apparent attempt to both meet the ongoing climate crisis and attract people – and their spending money – to help rejuvenate deprived areas.
Down the road in Stockton-on-Tees, there are even larger plans afoot to knock down an entire shopping centre and build one of the north’s biggest parks in its place.
The new facility in Kirkleatham – a village mentioned in the Domesday Book – features gardens, café, shop and a 350-seat pavilion for events.
Its development is part of a wider scheme by Redcar and Cleveland Borough Council to transform the historic village, which is home to 24 listed buildings, into an eco-friendly heritage honeypot.
Council leader Mary Lanigan, an independent, said: “It will bring huge economic and cultural benefits to our region and, most importantly, it will provide local jobs for local people and give them the opportunity to train for a career which will, in turn, bring prosperity and better lives for families in the future.”
Future proposals are for a catering and horticultural academy, offering some 160 trainee places and apprenticeships.
The current project was funded by the Tees Valley Combined Authority, the National Lottery Heritage Fund, the Coastal Communities Fund and Redcar and Cleveland Borough Council itself.
Wednesday’s reopening had originally been scheduled for Spring last year but bosses said the development had been delayed by the Covid-19 pandemic.
