Backhouse Nurseries project suffers setback
Fire causes prroblems
Plans to create a heritage centre in York dedicated to Quaker botanist and philanthropist James Backhouse are in jeopardy following an arson attack.
Local resident Jane Cullen is leading a campaign to transform a disused park-keeper’s lodge in West Bank Park into a café and heritage centre, as reported in the Friend (21 August 2015).
The park is on the site of both the James Backhouse Plant Nurseries, once known around the world as ‘the Kew of the North’, and of West Bank House, Backhouse’s home.
Earlier this month a fire, which the local fire department has confirmed was started deliberately, gutted the lodge. Fire fighters from York, Huntington and Acomb fire stations were called out to the blaze just after 6pm on Tuesday 8 November. There are concerns that the building may have to be demolished.
The West Bank Park Heritage Project team said in a statement: ‘We are shocked and upset by what has happened. The building was a link to the park’s famous past and an important landmark at the heart of our community. This project, however, has always been about much more than bricks and mortar and we feel it is now more important than ever.’
Jane Cullen told the Friend: ‘We have a great deal of community support and we feel that the project will continue in some way.’
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