BOATHOUSE BACK BY POPULAR DEMAND; Park revamp will be finished by spring.

Byline: LAURA SHARPE

WORK has started on rebuilding Sefton Park's historic boathouse and finishing the Eros fountain.

Visitors to the park will be able to see the emerging roof of the new boathouse currently being restored at the southern end of the lake.

Plagued by vandalism and arson attacks, the boathouse is to be given a new lease of life and will re-open next spring offering a refreshment kiosk and boats for hire if it gets the go-ahead.

A new jetty is also being built nearby as the restoration of the whole park enters its final phase.

Over the coming months, work will continue on the buildings across the park, from the boathouse to the revamping of the cafe and the introduction of new toilets. The stylish makeover to the Aviary Cafe will be extensive, creating a re-planned terrace over-looking the water to the Shaftesbury Memorial.

A multi-purpose community room and a Park Ranger station will also be built for educational use and as a base for Junior Ranger meetings.

The third phase of work also involves the Shaftesbury memorial fountain, which saw the return of Eros last August.

A replica of the aluminum Greek god of love, made of more weatherproof material, was placed at the top of the fountain.

Now work has turned to re-waxing the memorial and finishing the bronze base, work is due to be finished by Christmas so the fountain can be turned on.

Previous phases of the park's make-over have seen the restoration of monuments, landscaping and the clearing of watercourses so water flows into the lake.

It all forms part of a pounds 6m project to restore the Grade ll listed park to its former glory while meeting the needs of today's users.

The project has been funded by the Heritage Lottery Fund, who provided pounds 4.8m, with Liverpool City Council paying the rest.

Cllr Berni Turner, the city council's executive member for the environment, said: "The restoration of Sefton Park is a huge initiative and the improvements can already be seen throughout the park and are fantastic.

"Throughout the whole process of planning and carrying out the work, we've made sure the community is involved, making sure they're aware of all the work to be carried out and giving them the chance to have their say on what they'd like to see in the park.

"Restoring the boathouse was a popular request so it was important this was included in the plans.

"You can already see the new building taking shape which is really exciting and when the park is completed, I'm sure even more people will spend time in this beautiful green haven."

CAPTION(S):

WEATHER-PROOF: Eros on the fountain ALMOST SHIPSHAPE: The new boathouse under construction