A NEW community park in the Divis area is to be named Páirc an Lonnáin.
A Belfast City Council committee approved the name for the new park and sports zone at Divis Back Path.
The park is situated between the rear of Cullingtree Road and the Westlink. It stretches from Devonshire Place, near Grosvenor Road to land adjacent to the Frank Gillen Centre, near Divis Street.
You've got until Tue 15 Feb to cast your vote to name the new park & sports zone at Divis. Local community, sports & youth groups have selected two options to choose from - will it be Divis Back Path or Páirc an Lonnáin (Loney Park)? Have your say at https://t.co/BTbcMyjfmL pic.twitter.com/btOPkrueta
— Belfast City Council (@belfastcc) February 13, 2022
The area was previously known as a hotspot for antisocial behaviour and had been used to store wood for the local anti-internment bonfire.
The new facility opened last summer and is a result of a £951,000 investment by the Stormont Department for Communities through the Building Successful Communities initiative.
It includes a running track, gym, a multi-use games area, play equipment, a seating area and a community garden. An improved access ramp to the nearby Westlink footbridge was also built.
Last December, Belfast City Council’s People and Communities Committee agreed to consult on two options for the name of the new park. The options agreed were Divis Back Path Park and Páirc an Lonnáin.
A full public consultation was undertaken using the council’s Your Say webpage between January 11 and February 15 this year. A total of 495 responses were received.
Divis Back Path Park had 80 in favour, amounting to 16 percent of the vote, while Páirc an Lonnáin received 415 in favour – 84 percent of the vote.
