CRAIGAVON

green/landscape & lakes

Early Proposals and Developments

Craigavon  was  originally  built  on  a  rural  area  comprising  farmland  and  countryside  situated  between  Portadown  and  Lurgan.  The  drawing  below  shows  the  original  field  pattern  pre-­  Craigavon,  highlighting  the  small  scale  sub  divisions  of  farms  of  approximately  15  acres.  The  original  area  was  dense  with  hedgerows  and  trees.

Many  of  the  owners  of  these  farms  were  forced  oMany  of  the  owners  of  these  farms  were  forced  off  their  land  to  make  way  for  the  New  Town  of  Craigavon.  100’s  of  farmers  were  sent  letters  informing  them  that  their  land  and  houses  would  be  vested  at  market  prices.  In  total,  6,000  acres  of  land  were  attained  at  a  price  of  £250  per  acre.

“...there  was  no  sympathy  whatsoever  for  the  property  owners  of  Craigavon.”                           Cyril  McLoughlin,  local  farmer

Pre-­  Craigavon  Field  Pattern           scale  1:25000

Pre-­  Craigavon  Field  Pattern           scale  1:25000

scale  1:25000

KEY

Existing  Open  Space

Green  Belt

South  Lake  Zone

Land  zoned  for  Open  

Space

Conceptual  Drawing  showing  the  Craigavon  in  Relation  to  surrounding  Open  Space  and  Recreation  Areas

M1

To  LurganTo  Portadown

BrownlowMandeville

Lough  Neagh

1  Lough  Neagh  ountry  Park2  Golf  Centre3  City  Park4  Halfpenny  Valley5  Sports  Centre6  Recreation  Forum

Conceptual  Drawing  showing  Proposed  Green  Space  and  Zoning  of  Residential  and  Industrial  Areas

M1

Sector  3

Sector  4

Sector  2

Brownlow

Lurgan

Portadown

Lough  Neagh

Proposed  Green  SpaceIndustrial  AreasResidential  AreasIncompleted  SectorsRailway  Line

Animal  Park Rail  Station Bog  Gardens Hotel Tannaghmore  Gardens BBQ  Area Picnic  Area

Shopping  Centre  and  Offices Recreation  Forum Lakeside  Gardens  and  Funfair Harbour Lakeside  Housing

Sketch  Drawing  Highlighting  the  Provision  of  Open  Space  for  the  New  Town  of  Craigavon

Images  of  Craigavon  in  the  early  stages  of  development,  showing  the  South  Lake  and  surrounding  context

Current Provisions of Green Space

scale  1:25000

KEY

Existing  Open  Space

Green  Belt

South  Lake  Zone

Land  zoned  for  Open  

Space

scale  1:25000

KEY

Existing  Open  Space

Green  Belt

South  Lake  Zone

Land  zoned  for  Open  

Space

scale  1:25000

KEY

Existing  Open  Space

Green  Belt

South  Lake  Zone

Land  zoned  for  Open  

Space

City Park and the Balancing Lakes

‘Water,  water  everywhere...  for  drainage  drinking  and  playing.’

One  of  the  major  attractions  of  Craigavon  is  the  balancing  lakes  

situated  either  side  of  the  railway  line  in  Craigavon  City  Park.  Providing  

a  prime  location  for  water  sports  and  leisure  facilities  the  lakes  also  

balance  the  water  table  and  reduce  the  frequency  of  flooding.

Lough  Neagh  acts  as  the  back  bone  of  this  system,  providing  drinking

water  from  Castor  Bawater  from  Castor  Bay,  on  the  South  East  Shore  of  Lough  Neagh.  

The  North  Lake  measures  21.8  ha  and  the  larger  South  Lake  

measures  42.2  ha.  Rainwater  runs  through  a  network  of  streams  and  

underground  pipes  into  a  circular  lagoon.  The  lagoon  acts  to  prevent

pollution  and  by  controlling  the  velocity,  reduces  silting  of  the  lakes.  

A  floating  boom  across  the  lagoon  helps  to  filter  pollution  such  as  bottles,  plastic  bags,  sticks  and  oil.  The  lakes  are

joined  with  a  tunnel  under  the  railway  line  allowing  boats,  pedestrians  and  cyclists  to  pass.  

Craigavon  City  Park  is  an  extensive  area  of  parkland  which  encompasses  the  North  and  South  Lakes.  The  natural  beauty  of  Craigavon  Lakes  has  a  fascinating  wildlife  and  the  area  around  the  North  Lake  has  recently  been  designated  as  a  Local  Nature  Reserve.  The  Park  is  an  ideal  location  for  walking,  fishing  and  cycling.  Within  the  perimeter  of  the  park  is  the  Civic  and  Conference  Centre.

Craigavon  is  characterised  by  vast  expanses  of  open  space  and  

scrubland.  The  neighboorhood  greenways  flow  into  open  space  and

merge  with  Craigavon  City  Park.  The  idea  was  that  every  house  should

be  no  more  than  0.5  miles  from  the  countryside  and  pedestrians  should

be  seperated  from  traffic  routes.

The  photographs  show  a  richly  landscaped  environment  within  the  

locality  of  the  ‘city  centrelocality  of  the  ‘city  centre’  with  the  bottom  image  showing  Rushmere  

Shopping  Centre  in  the  background.

The  main  public  green  space  is  Craigavon  City  Park  along  with  the

Balancing  Lakes.  This  space  is  heavily  used  by  cyclists,  pedestrians  and

fans  of  watersports.  Other  leisure  facilities  and  green  spaces  include

Tannaghmore  Gardens,  Legahory,  Drumgask  and  Tullygally  Playing  fields  and  Coney  Island.  

Tannaghmore Gardens

Tannaghmore  Gardens  were  created  to  the  North  of  the  City,  allowing  visitors  to  interact  with  farmland  animals.visitors  to  interact  with  farmland  animals.  The  irony  of  this  ‘fake’  farm  as  quoted  by  Newton  Emerson,  is  that  hundreds  of  farms  were  destroyed  to  make  space  for  the  development  of  Craigavon.  Emerson  suggests  that  the  planners  of  Craigavon  had  believed  that  the  New  Town  would  be  so  heavily  developed  and  urbanised  by  this  stage  that  children  would  have  never  been  in  contact  with  farmyard  animals  or  their  environments.