Arboretum and Annesley Gardens could be restored to former glory

Arboretum and Annesley Gardens could be restored to former glory

17 October 2018

AMBITIOUS plans to restore Castlewellan Forest Park to its former glory could begin in just over 14 months’ time, local council officials have revealed.

Newry, Mourne and Down Council is keen to see the park’s Arboretum, Annesley Garden and Grange Buildings redeveloped to help increase the number of visitors and provide the area with an economic boost.

Council officials are working alongside the Forest Service and it is hoped a design team will be appointed to take forward ambitious redevelopment plans which could exceed the £1m mark.

In December, the local authority will be told if its bid for financial support to the Heritage Lottery Fund has been successful, with work currently underway on a second funding application — in the region of £430,000 — that will be lodged with the Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs.

The local authority is also planning to make a significant financial contribution of its own to help finance the improvement work which it hopes can transform the park’s fortunes and make it even more popular.

An update on the plans will be outlined at tonight’s meeting of the local authority’s Enterprise, Regeneration and Tourism Committee.

The Arboretum, Annesley Garden and Grange buildings have been examined to ascertain the extent of the work that they require, with the Arboretum also of national significance.

Work has already been carried out to restore the Arboretum’s iconic glasshouses, with the work involving the removal and renewal of of rotten timber, removing ivy, vegetation and planting. A number of openings in the glasshouses were also repaired with broken panes replaced.

Consultants have been appointed to conduct a series of studies at the forest park and in addition to the Arboretum and Annesley Garden, have been focusing on the park’s biodiversity and built heritage, traffic and car parking as part of the funding application process.

Earlier this year, a study highlighted a wider entrance to the sprawling forest park and the development of an interpretative centre beside the Walled Garden.

Council officials say that while they recognise the park’s undoubted heritage significance, parts of it require investment to preserve and help promote an area which has “exceptional tourism and recreational potential.”

Initial restoration work will focus on the 12-acre walled garden which is at the centre of the acclaimed arboretum, Bothy Yard and pathways which wind their way through the Rhododendron Wood.