Cherrywood Public Realm – Beckett Park

Irish Landscape Institute Awards 2020: Winner in Design (Public Park Category), President’s Choice Award and People’s Choice Award.

Murray & Associates were engaged by the largest land-owner in the SDZ area to design three of the largest public parks in the open space network: Tully Park, Ticknick Park and Beckett Park. Each of the parks was designed to provide different facilities, spaces and experiences for the future residents, creating a different atmosphere in each park to respond to their context and function in the new settlement.

In general terms, Beckett Park’s design concept aims to exceed the brief and create a high quality space with a range of facilities appropriate to the spaces that will aspire to foster community spirit; respond to the anticipated needs of the future community in an inclusive and accessible manner; provide sporting facilities of various kinds; enhance habitat values and biodiversity; address SuDS issues; create inviting, well-designed spaces that afford an opportunity to simply relax and enjoy their environs.

Beckett Park is primarily intended to provide a wide range of local active recreational facilities for the people of Cherrywood, and a high quality open space for passive enjoyment. The park includes a large all-weather synthetic pitch, tennis courts, a Multi-Use Games Area (MUGA), an outdoor gym and play area, as well as passive spaces for sitting, walking, relaxation, etc. The adjacent schools will benefit from many of these facilities, and the use of native vegetation and a range of landscape typologies including grassland, woodland copse, hedgerow habitats, with interpretative signage, will also be beneficial.