Cathedral Gardens
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Cathedral Gardens is an open space in Manchester, UK. It is bounded by Victoria Station to the north, Chethams School of Music to the west, the perimeter of Manchester Cathedral and The Triangle on Fennel Street to the south and Urbis to the east.
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[edit] Earliest History
Until the industrial revolution, Manchester was little more than a small market town, and the town centre centred on the cathedral. The area where Cathedral Gardens now stands was enclosed by small cottages. After the industrial revolution Manchester quickly built up, and the centre of Manchester, shifted further south.
After the Victoria railway station was built in the 1860s, the site housed travellers hotels and shops, and this was the situation until urban planning of the 1980s, demolished the now derelict hotel and the Pips nightclub which faced south along Fennel Street looking directly at the Corn Exchange, now The Triangle shopping precinct.
The site remained empty, used as a car park until the regeneration of Manchester city centre.
[edit] The Manchester IRA Bombing
The Provisional IRA carried out various phases of bombings of mainland British Cities, for thirty years. Manchester was variously targeted in the 1990s, which culminated in the Manchester IRA bombing on June 11th, 1996.
The bombing, which happened on a warm Saturday morning, whilst Manchester was hosting a European football event (Uefa 1996) was the largest bombing on British soil. It created devastation up to in a radius of half a mile of the impact site. The Marks and Spencer store was damaged beyond useful repair.
[edit] Regeneration of Manchester
After the bombing, the British government, awarded Manchester City Council an award of several million pounds, to redevelop the most damaged sites in the city. After an International competition, several architects were charged with creating an accessible open space linking St. Anne’s Square to the Cathedral. After the completion of the new Marks and Spenser flagship store (then the largest in the world) and the Urbis gallery, Cathedral Gardens was opened up to the public.
[edit] Layout
Cathedral Gardens comprises wide areas of grassy plots, surrounded by paved walking areas and stylised concrete sitting areas. On the west side, runs a short water feature.
With Exchange Square, it provides a haven for commuters, shoppers, residents and workers, from Manchester’s busy and overcrowded streets.
[edit] Youths
This section is also discussed in the article Manchester Cathedral Gardens Subculture’’
The open paved areas quickly became popular with Skateboarders and this attracted large numbers of ‘alternative youth’. The ‘alterative youth’ have been charged with misdemeanours such as spitting, swearing, dropping litter and skateboarding. Manchester City Council is currently in the process of drawing up a Dispersal Order, to abate large number of youths congregating in the vicinity.