Emancipation Park with its gushing fountain at right had a visit from World Heavyweight boxing champion, Lennox Lewis (foreground, right) on August 9. He was taken on tour by Kingsley Thomas, National Housing Trust chairman. Vitruvius, Contributor
EMANCIPATION PARK was officially opened with all the appropriate grandeur it deserves. After years of indecision and close calls that would have resulted in more concrete jungle, new life has been breathed into a key part of Kingston.
I walked among the crowd on the opening night feeling proud and happy to be there as part of history. The park is well laid out, and though obviously not yet 100 per cent complete, based on the faithfulness to the competition designs - which I understand is the combination of the winning entries to produce the final design - bodes well for the future of the park.
The project architect, Heather Pinnock, must be commended for her passion and determination to ensure all went well. The water features, as spectacular as they are, may turn out to be maintenance nightmares. Jamaica's track record with fountains has been at best, embarrassing with all public fountains ending up as 'madman jacuzzis' or plain stagnant pools.
The design of this particular fountain brings to mind the ceremonial fountains below the Trocadaro Plaza overlooking the Eiffel Tower in Paris. Without the sculptural elements to offset when the fountain is not on, one just has a dead undecorated pool that collects tossed and blown debris.
My personal solution is to toss money into the fountain. Hopefully others will follow suit and this will in some small way help finance it.
The pools and waterfalls along the path from the main entrance is comforting but will be served well with trees lining them to enhance the potential cooling properties.
The bottom of these pools will also be a problem. The finish will strip and will look bad in a short time. I suggest lining them with flat river stones.
The Paving blocks used for the walkways are notorious for settling in their sand base, which has begun already, and ending up as a very uneven surface. Worse when the work may have been hurried and when it rains. But this can be corrected with regular maintenance.
Harping back to the removal of the existing trees, which was not entirely necessary, some of the paved areas will need some spreading trees so that these spaces can be fully enjoyed. The buildings at the NHT end present too much of a wall and admittedly I am not fully aware of their purposes but I hope they will help to activate the park during extended hours. Possibly with a cafe and tourist shop.
The main statue remains a bit of a mystery, but more on that another time.
All said, I have driven past the park several times just enjoying the view. Thank you NHT.
E-mail: vitsangle@yahoo.com.
