'Tax payers won't carry costs' of grass repairs at historic Harrogate site - says North Yorkshire Council

The comments follow concerns raised by readers over a large stretch of grass at Crescent Gardens facing The Royal Baths whose green has turned a muddy brown since the festive season.

North Yorkshire Council’s head of parks and grounds, Jonathan Clubb, said the council was ready to restore the site, once the weather improved.

“Matting protecting the ground at Crescent Gardens during the Christmas event has just been removed to allow our parks team to work on the area to tidy and reseed where necessary once the weather permits," said Mr Clubb.

The ice rink was located for all of December 2023 on the green between three of the town's most historic buildings - the Royal Baths, the former Harrogate Borough Council offices and the Royal Hall - as part of the town's Christmas attractions to boost businesses in the town centre.

But the month saw a series of storms and heavy rainfall hit Harrogate for days on end.

After the dreadful weather forced the ice rink's temporary closure on numerous occasions, its operators, Events by Cynosure, which is based in York, said it now had no to return in Christmas 2024 because of the losses sustained from the weather and lack of footfall.

But North Yorkshire Council says the cost of repairing the grass at Crescent Gardens will not be met by taxpayers.

Mr Clubb said: "The operator of the ice rink attraction will be covering the full cost of any reinstatement or repair work on this site.”

Crescent Gardens was first developed in the 1890s on the site of the old Crescent Inn.

Its origins lie in the discovery of a spring in the pub’s garden in 1783.

The Victorian era gardens were designed to provide visitors with an area to stroll in after taking the waters at the height of the town’s spa reputation.