There have been numerous schemes devised over the years to improve Harrogate. Some come to fruition, such as the 19th-century plan to develop a wedge of land called the Crookisnab between the villages of High and Low Harrogate, which resulted in our town centre. Others are not so successful, like the 1970 traffic management plan that included a flyover passing close to the Majestic Hotel.
But one that keeps cropping up time and again is the dream of creating a grand water feature somewhere in the town centre.
In 1946, the town council spent £100 on erecting a fountain to emphasise the importance of water to Harrogate, but it was soon turned off to save power and eventually scrapped.
A few years later, the council re-introduced a water feature as part of its reconstruction of Station Square, but that was eventually filled in.
Photo taken circa 1950 of Station Square, showing the water feature that was later filled in. Photo: Vik Lokie/Walker-Neesam Archive.
Then in 1992, when the area outside the Victoria Quarter remodelled, developer Speyhawk incorporated pools and fountains, but these too were later removed.
Just over a decade ago, developer Lateral unveiled a scheme to pedestrianise Parliament Street and reroute through-traffic via a hairpin bend round the Pump Room. That scheme – which failed to find much support – also included water features at various places around town.
Most recently, the original Harrogate Station Gateway plans envisaged water jets shooting vertically out of a plaza on Station Parade, but that part of the plan was also dropped.
The fountains that were part of the original Victoria Shopping Centre design in 1992 were removed a few years later. Photo: Walker-Neesam Archive.
But why the recurring interest in something so apparently inessential? A nice-to-have, rather than a need-to-have?
Well, it all comes down to identity. Look around most towns and cities and the reason for their location is usually fairly obvious. Some are on a defensible hill or a navigable inlet, and go to the heart of almost any large settlement and you’ll see a river running through it.
But spa towns are different. Towns like Harrogate have no castle, harbour or river, and their origin or purpose is not immediately obvious. A water feature, it has been argued, could remedy that, acting as a focus for Harrogate’s identity and embodying its Latin motto – arx celebris fontibus – a citadel famous for its springs.
The late Malcolm Neesam, Harrogate’s historian par excellence, clearly gave the matter a lot of thought. When asked by the Stray Ferret in 2021 how he would improve Harrogate, he included prominent fountains on his wish-list.
He said:
“The time is well overdue to provide Harrogate with some magnificent water features to celebrate its Spa past.”
He described his vision:
“Given unlimited funding, I would add something so spectacular as to make visitors arriving at the town’s centre gasp with wonderment.”
Of the gardens on Prospect Place, in front of the Yorkshire Hotel and Hotel du Vin, he said:
“I would introduce at least four multi-bowled cascade fountains to advertise Harrogate as the original Spadacrene Anglica – the English spa fountain – which would be illuminated at night, and of such a design as to ensure the minimum side-effects from wind. Along the low row of boundary stones, which separate the gardens from the footpath, I would add a long ornamental railing, which would be attractive to the eye and useful in emphasising that pedestrians should remain on the path.”
The intention would be to announce to people coming into the town from the south: “This is a spa town. Water is why it exists”.
At the last attempt, the general idea gained a fair amount of public support. In the second round of public consultation on Harrogate Station Gateway Public in 2021, comments mentioning the water feature element of the proposals were largely positive. A typical comment read:
“There should be a public fountain like in European cities. Water features are great for well-being.”
Another said:
“These are fantastic and interactive. They have been very successful in places like Kings Cross, Manchester and Bradford. Please include this in the final scheme.”
The fountains in City Park, Bradford. Photo: Creative Commons/Phil Champion.
But some were less enthusiastic, for example:
“Water features especially usually attract litter and anti-social behaviour (see Bradford and its lake, for example). Too many of schemes like this just produce what looks like clutter in reality, as opposed to pretty impressions.”
Another gave it a firm “no”, adding:
“It would be very difficult to prevent children getting wet and Harrogate is a windy town, so spray would blow all over.”
Andrew Brown, interim chair of Harrogate Civic Society, is inclined to agree. Speaking to the Stray Ferret in a personal capacity, he said:
“I was not a fan of that proposal. I quite like the idea of waterjets in public places, but Station Square was not the right location. It’s a relatively small space and fairly shadowed, even in the summer.”
But he does like the broader idea. He said:
“It would be very appropriate for Harrogate to have one or more water features, but it would very much depend on what form it would take. It could take many forms in different locations, and its form might also be influenced by its location.”
Sites other than Station Square and Prospect Gardens could feasibly include the area around the Cenotaph, Montpellier Gardens, Crescent Gardens (in front of the old council offices) and the heart of the shopping district, where Cambridge Street opens up into Market Place.
For Matthew Chapman, manager of Harrogate BID (business improvement district), the idea could provide a welcome – and Continental – boost to Harrogate’s social and cultural life. He said:
“We’d be fully in support of such a proposal that celebrates the heritage and traditions of Harrogate.
“If we look at some of the highest-performing European cities, they all have an excellent public realm offer. Cities like Rome, Krakow and Paris all have main squares where people can congregate, and where different partners – policing, the council, street cleansing – all work together towards a shared vision. Harrogate needs that too.”
Cllr Sam Gibbs, who represents the Valley Gardens & Central Harrogate Division on North Yorkshire Council, is more measured in his enthusiasm for the notion, but ultimately open to suggestions. He said:
“It’s not a terrible idea, but it would really depend on where it was, how much it would cost, and who would be responsible for it.
“I supported the original plans for the Station Gateway, and a key part of that was improvements like these to the public realm.
“I’m all for things that smarten up the town centre. If we can attract more footfall and encourage people to stay here, that can only be a good thing.”
He added:
“If it’s part of a wider conversation about how we encourage people into the town, as far as I’m concerned, nothing’s off the table.”
Read more:
- Harrogate Station Gateway plans now not set to be released until summer
- Harrogate set for colourful fountains and WiFi-charging benches
- Malcolm Neesam: How I’d unlock the potential of Crescent Gardens
Harrogate Library hosts art exhibition dedicated to Malcolm Neesam
An exhibition dedicated to local historian Malcom Neesam is currently on display at Harrogate Library.
The Public Library, The People’s University exhibition features about 40 works by local artist Matt Wyatt – including a portrait of Malcom Neesam and a written tribute to him.
Mr Neesam, who was regarded Harrogate‘s foremost historian, died last year on his 76th birthday.
He grew up in Harrogate and spent most of his life working as a librarian and archivist, with a passion for writing about the town’s rich history.
Mr Wyatt said:
“The show is dedicated to Malcom Neesam with his portrait and written tribute on display.
“Visitors are invited to make art to add to the display and write reviews giving feedback and critiques. This encourages creativity from the viewers should they wish to explore this.”
The title of the exhibition draws on a conversation between Mr Wyatt and Mr Neesam, he added.
The artwork is in a variety of mediums – including oil and acrylic paintings, collages, photographs and writings – and aims to celebrate how the library serves our community.
Some of the works on display, including a portrait of local writer Joel Dean and the Odeon Harrogate.
Various community groups, including Harrogate Writers Collective and Harrogate Film Society, are also signposted throughout the exhibition.
In addition, there are more than 100 pieces of work by local people and school pupils to enjoy. Visitors are invited to create and add their own artwork to the display to “encourage creativity”.
Mr Wyatt told the Stray Ferret:
“It aims to build community, local culture and bring more people to enjoy the library.”
The library exhibition is free to enter and is located on Victoria Avenue.
The exhibition is on display now and runs until Saturday, November 4.
Read more:
Plans for more Stray protection ‘not needed’ says defence group
The organisation set up to protect Harrogate’s Stray has said a move to make it common land is “not needed”.
The Stray Defence Association said it was approached by the Open Spaces Society for a number of years about the possibility of changing its official status.
However, SDA chairman Judy d’Arcy Thomson told the Stray Ferret the existing protections for the Stray were adequate and she had not been persuaded that common land status would bring any benefit.
She said:
“There really didn’t seem a great deal of point in what they were trying to do. The whole thing about this is that the Stray is common land in all but name.
“Because it belongs to the people of Harrogate, it’s a sledgehammer to crack a walnut job.
“I’m absolutely behind protecting the Stray but there didn’t seem any point in doing this. We were going round and round in circles. It’s very hard to work out what they are trying to achieve.
“I’m sure they are very well-meaning and what they are do throughout the country, registering common land, is great. It’s laudable, but we don’t need it here.”
Read more:
- Bid to protect Harrogate’s Stray with common land status
- Work starts to reseed the Stray as part of £130,000 repairs
The Stray Act 1985 restricts the number of days on which events can be held on the Stray, as well as the amount of space they can use.
In recent years, special permission has been sought from the government to hold additional events, such as the UCI Road World Championships in 2019.
Heavy rain and large crowds during that event led to the grass on West Park Stray being extensively damaged, causing long periods of closure for repairs and a bill of almost £130,000.
The OSS said being made common land would add an “extra layer” of protection and require additional consent to hold similar events in the future. It also said the move would help to clear up discrepancies in maps of the Stray.
Ms d’Arcy-Thompson said she had worked with the late historian Malcolm Neesam, who had reviewed his maps and plans of the Stray over the last few years. He believed the OSS was working from inaccurate and out-of-date maps.
Before his death last year, he wrote:
“I think the Open Spaces Society is simply trying to find something to keep itself occupied.”
The Stray Defence Association has spoken to the Duchy of Lancaster, which owns the land, and Mrs d’Arcy-Thompson said it too was of the view that the change in status was not necessary.
Consultation period
North Yorkshire County Council’s assistant director for highways and transportation, Barrie Mason, said:
“We can confirm we have received an application from the Open Spaces Society to register the Stray in Harrogate as common land. In the first instance, the application will be considered by the commons registration officer to ensure that it has been made correctly and with the relevant supporting documentation.
“If so, then it will be processed in line with our policy. This will include a formal consultation period in accordance with the Commons Act 2006 requiring notices to be posted around The Stray and on the council’s website for a period of at least 42 days.
“At this early stage, we cannot put a timeframe on the determination of the application.”