The Mayor of Cambridge, Councillor Sheila Stuart, joined independent timber and builders merchant Ridgeons and over 30 VIP guests on Tuesday to open a Pocket Park showcasing Ridgeons specially commissioned art, located at the heart of Brookgate’s CB1 redevelopment project in Cambridge.
To mark the official opening of the Park, the Mayor was invited to cut a ribbon at the event and then join Ridgeons director, Gordon Ridgeon, on a tour of the site.
Featuring a variety of Ridgeons’ orientated public art commissions, the park was designed by Landscape Architect Robert Myers Associates and constructed by Wates. It will include a bench and bike rack showcasing Ridgeons’ hundred year history, designed and crafted by Jim Partridge and Liz Walmsley that will be installed in early 2013. Along with specially designed curved kerbing, and a sunken carved roundel marking where the Ridgeons time capsule is buried, both of which were crafted by professional lettering artist, Tom Perkins and are already installed.
Commenting at the opening the Mayor said: “This is a wonderful celebration of a highly-respected local company giving something back to the local community by creating a lovely outdoor area in the heart of our City that people can enjoy in the years to come.”
Gordon Ridgeon added: “We hope that the Pocket Park will become a sanctuary in the hub of this vibrant, bustling redevelopment and that people will use and enjoy this space for many years.”
Ridgeons decided on the location of the pocket park due to its close proximity to Tenison Road, the site where Cyril Ridgeon, the company’s founder, first started the business in 1911.
