Public Voice: Common Ground is partnering with Romerils to create more public space in St Helier.
A pop up perch has been built out of recycled pallet boards based on designs by Heather Lamy at Antony Gibb, and Bruce Labey, Parks and Gardens.
The perch reclaims 5 company car parking spaces and turns these into flexible seating for around 30. The site is designed for wheelchair users and utilises existing Romerils planters, structural planting by partners Ransoms Garden Centre and recycled vegetable planters by Acorn Industries.
Public Voice: Common Ground is a pilot based on community research for a Public Realm Partnership. This was part-sponsored by Government Economy Department last year and supported by the Arts and Culture Team. It is a social enterprise to improve St Helier for its people and is a partnership between government, business and community.
Led by the needs of islanders, nearly 2,000 islanders have already used their voice to enable relevant change. Key concerns are a lack of green space in St Helier, too many cars, too many new buildings and not enough places to ‘hang out with no agenda’. The pop-up perch is a temporary intervention showing what’s possible and offering a place to come together, read a book or just take a break in the heart of old St Helier.
Mark Syvret, Romerils Chairman said: “Romerils are delighted to be involved in the discussion about the future of our land and how we live and work together. As a business in St Helier, we recognise that we must challenge our thinking of how we do this. Building the pop-up perch and working with Public Voice: Common Ground is the first step in considering these important issues for our society.”
Public Voice: Common Ground founder Sasha Gibb added: “Mark Syvret and the team at Romerils have been enormously supportive from the start of the partnership, the pilot and our mission to improve our public spaces for people. Their investment and vision have enabled other partners to see the value of working together across sectors to enable change. The pilot is the result of many partners working together across business, charitable and government sectors.”
The pilot illustrates what’s possible through temporary pop-up sites in St Helier this summer, such as the Pop-up Perch and the Pop-up Park at the Pétanque, Weighbridge Pl.
Public Voice: Common Ground would like to hear from 10% of the Jersey community regarding the aspirations and challenges facing public space in St Helier. This can be done through the 3-minute survey, or through the blackboards at both sites. At the end of the year, a commission will be created based on the voice of the Jersey people and financed by partners of government, business and third sector.
