Work set to start on planned new Mansfield town centre memorial garden

Mansfield Council is planning to replace the Queen Street car park at the rear of the Grade II*-listed building with a pocket park, featuring terraced grassed areas, trees and plants – as well as a memorial sculpture.

The 2.4-metre, upright sculpture, ‘with a smooth pebble-like surface’ will be the focal point of the park.

A council spokeswoman said: “A carved hole near the top of the stone has been designed to represent the future or ‘something beyond’, referring to the positive changes visitors will soon see in the town centre.”

Originally proposed as a Covid memorial sculpture, now instead it ‘will celebrate Mansfield and its community, fortitude and resilience as the district looks to the future and will act as a focus for remembrance, gathering and thought’, rather than marking any particular event.

The spokeswoman said: “Inspirational words will be engraved around the base of the sculpture and within the seating walls of the garden.”

“The calm, reflective space, which aims to provide a pleasant space for visitors to spend time, will feature trees, plants and uplighting.”

The car park will close from the early hours of Sunday, April 3, ahead of the site being secured later that day ready for building work to start.

Pocket park

A further pocket park, with a slide for youngsters, will be created on the grassy slope on the corner of Walkden Street and Quaker Way, while smaller projects will see improved lighting of the road bridge on Stockwell Gate, planting on Quaker Way in front of the entrance ramp to the Four Seasons car park and planters, street furniture and lighting on the concourse area of the old bus station.Coun Stuart Richardson, council portfolio holder for regeneration and growth, said: "We're excited to see the difference these projects will make to the town centre.

“It's not just about improving the appearance of our town, but also making it cleaner, greener and healthier.

“All these improvements will help make Mansfield more attractive and encourage people to spend more time and therefore money in the town centre for the benefit of the local economy, our residents and visitors.”

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