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The Government will be asking members of the public for their opinion on how their two thirds of the newly gifted Millbrook field should be turned into a landscaped extension of the park.
Approximately two thirds of the field have been gifted to the public by a mystery benefactor after they bought it for £700,000, with the other third in the north-east of the site being gifted to the Glass Church.
As first reported by Express on Saturday, the transaction between Havilland (Jersey) Holdings Ltd and the Church and Government - acting on behalf of the public - passed through the Royal Court on Friday. This morning, the Government officially announced the change in ownership.
According to the Chief Minister, as part of the arrangement with the benefactor, the land will not be built on, with the aim being to “preserve” it with the current idea being for “soft landscaping” on the site.
He said he expects a public consultation on what the precise design will be to start within the next six to eight weeks, with the process then expected to take around four to eight weeks.
Pictured: The transaction from the mysterious benefactor went through at the Royal Court last week.
“The main understanding was it was transferring it to the Church and the island, [and] really about trying to preserve it roughly in the same spirit as where it’s been used all of my lifetime and making sure it’s not significantly built on and it’s used for the community,” he said.
He added in a statement: “On behalf of the people of Jersey, I am delighted to accept this generous gift and give our thanks to the previous owner. It presents us with a wonderful opportunity to create an enlarged park area, connecting with the existing Coronation Park, for all Islanders to enjoy.”
Reverend Phil Warren called the donation of an approximate third of land to St. Matthew’s Glass Church a “wonderful blessing."
On ideas for the Church's part of the land, he said: “The plan is it’s an additional outdoor space for us to use for our children and youth groups, our family groups, our wider community to use it as a space for people to enjoy,” as well as some landscaping."
He mentioned that there will be a fence or a wall put up to mark the boundaries between the church’s land and the public’s, but added that this would need to be “sensitive, not effect the view and just [be] in keeping with the space.”
Pictured: Senator Lyndon Farnham and the Chief Minister were first contacted about the field in mid-summer last year.
He explained he had first been in contact with the benefactor, who bought it from the descendants of Florence Boot in November, around nine months ago.
“I think it is one of those sometimes unique occasions where someone genuinely is a philanthropist and wants to bless the island and our community… it really is as simple as that,” he said.
Deputy Chief Minister Senator Lyndon Farnham commented: “This is a prominent green space in Jersey, and to hand its ownership over to the public not only guarantees its future as a place for all Islanders, but is a real example of the philanthropic spirit which exists in our community and how people who put down roots in the Island can contribute in ways which benefit us all, and I would like to add my thanks for such a generous gift to the Island.”
Infrastructure Minister Deputy Kevin Lewis added: “I can assure everyone that its use will be as a public park, subject to the relevant planning processes. We’ll be asking Islanders for their thoughts which will then feed into the design process.
“Work is already underway on the neighbouring Coronation Park Water Play Area, which was designed after asking children and parents, in particular, what they wanted it to include.
“I’m delighted this area at Millbrook has been gifted to the people of Jersey and I look forward to seeing the area become a wonderful space in which Islanders can enjoy their leisure time.”
Upon hearing of Havilland Holdings' intention to gift the land to the public in December, Emma Houston, one of the 11 cousins related to the Boots family who originally owned the field, told Express it was "excellent news" that the buyer was gifting the land – "and one that my great grandparents would have hugely approved of!"
Millbrook playing field officially gifted to public
Mystery individual to 'gift' Millbrook field after £700k purchase
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