| Good morning. |
| I'm very pleased to have this opportunity to say a little about two exciting new developments in the city: |
| the Brackenside Open-Air Swimming Pool |
| and the children's Adventure Playground in Central Park. |
| As many of you may know, |
| the idea for these initiatives came from you, the public, |
| in the extensive consultation exercise which the City Council conducted last year. |
| And they have been realised using money from the SWRDC - |
| the South West Regional Development Commission. |
| First of all, Brackenside Pool. |
| As many of the older members of the audience will remember, |
| there used to be a wonderful open-air pool on the sea front 30 years ago |
| but it had to close when it was judged to be unsafe. |
| For the design of this new heated pool, |
| we were very happy to secure the talents of internationally renowned architect Ellen Wendon, |
| who has managed to combine a charming 1930s design, which fits in so well with many of the other buildings in the area, |
| with up-to-the-minute features such as a recycling system - |
| the only one of its kind in the world - which enables seawater to be used in the pool. |
| Now, there has been quite a bit of discussion in the local press |
| about whether there would be enough room for the number of visitors we're hoping to attract, |
| but the design is deceptive and there have been rigorous checks about capacity. |
| Also, just in case you were wondering, |
| we're on schedule for a June 15th opening date and well within budget: |
| a testimony to the excellent work of local contractors Hickman's. |
| We hope that as many people as possible will be there on June 15th. |
| We have engaged award-winning actress Coral White to declare the pool open |
| and there'll be drinks and snacks available at the pool side. |
| There'll also be a competition for the public to decide on the sculpture we plan to have at the entrance: |
| you will decide which famous historical figure from the city we should have. |
| And now, moving on to the Central Park Playground, |
| which we're pleased to announce has just won the Douglas Award for safety: |
| the news came through only last week. |
| The unique design is based on the concept of the Global Village, |
| with the playground being divided into 6 areas showing different parts of the world - |
| each with a representative feature. |
| For example, there is a section on Asia, |
| and this is represented by rides and equipment in the shape of snakes, orang-utans, tigers and so on - |
| fauna native to the forests of the region. |
| Moving south to the Antarctic - |
| we couldn't run to an ice rink I'm afraid |
| but opted instead for climbing blocks in the shape of mountains - |
| I thought they could have had slides for the glaciers but the designers did want to avoid being too literal! |
| Then on to South America - |
| and here the theme is El Dorado - |
| games replicating the search for mines full of precious stones. |
| And then moving up to North America, |
| here there was considerable debate - |
| I know the contribution of cinema and jazz was considered |
| but the designers finally opted for rockets and the international Space Station. |
| Eastwards to Europe then, and perhaps the most traditional choice of all the areas: |
| medieval castles and other fortifications. |
| Then last, but not least, moving south to Africa |
| and a whole set of wonderful mosaics and trails to represent the great rivers of this fascinating and varied continent. |
| Now, the opening date for our Global Playground is the 10th of July. |
| And again we'd love to see you there - |
| so make a date and come and see this magnificent, original new amenity right in the heart of the city. |