An open space of fountains, broad paths, busy Mancunians – and a controversy over a wall.
Piccadilly Gardens, the city's main central square, has long been an awkward space in the middle of Manchester's busy thoroughfares. Now home to an elegant ellipse of fountains – and wide green expanses of lawn – over the last 250 years, it has been an ornamental pond, a lunatic asylum, a rose garden, and (originally) just a collection of water-filled holes. For many years, the space was neglected, with traffic running all around it, and its gardens somewhat unloved.But since the redesign of 2001 – which saw most of the area pedestrianized, fountains installed, and long walkways laid out – Piccadilly Gardens has regained a buzz. On sunnier days, it is often filled with lunching Mancunians and visitors coming to admire its playful, ever-changing rows of fountains. This being Manchester, however, an air of controversy still hangs over some parts of the design.Lying close to the major shopping districts, between two railway stations – and fronting Manchester's main tram and bus station – Piccadilly Gardens has had to balance the needs of commuters, shoppers, tourists and guests, staying at the many hotels around the square. The overall redesign by landscape architects EDAW has been widely praised, especially for the central part of the new Gardens. But the installation of a curving concrete pavilion along the southern side – to shield the Gardens from the busy tram station – is not so well loved.Designed as a minimalist wall, and studded with holes, it has been likened to the Berlin Wall, its concrete grey sitting rather badly with Manchester's notoriously grim skies. Plans are afoot to breathe new life into the structure, by turning it into a 'living wall' of greenery and shrubs. Whatever the fate of the 'Wall', though, Piccadilly Gardens remains a vibrant symbol of a city caught half-way between Victorian grandeur and a modern redesign. And an energetic space to walk through on your sightseeing travels, or to idle in on those cherished days of Mancunian sunshine.
