LOCALS are up in arms about their town square which has been turned into a mud bath, leaving it a complete eyesore.
Piccadilly Gardens in the centre of Manchester have been compared to looking like something from the Battle of the Somme after the grass was churned up following a number of events there.
Recently the central location has been the site of a Euro cup fan zone, Christmas markets and the countdown event to usher in the New Year.
Some parts of the gardens remain blocked off with temporary railings.
The council is said to be working on plans for the turf to be replaced “as soon as possible” so the gardens are no longer an eyesore.
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Councillor Pat Karney said the disruption was “unavoidable” due to the huge crowds drawn to the site over the Christmas and New Year period.
A number of people have taken to Twitter to complain about the gardens.
One person wrote on the social media site: “Piccadilly Gardens is an absolute f**king disgrace, boils my blood. Can’t begin to imagine Covent Garden or Piccadilly Circus or any other iconic London area being like Piccadilly Gardens. Mud, concrete, drug-dealers and nutjobs shouting into megaphones about Jesus. Embarrassing.”
One user shared an image of the muddy state of the gardens and wrote: "Piccadilly Gardens post Xmas markets. Just a mud bath and eyesore wooden/metal structures. The gardens are no more."
Another compared it to the trenches in World War 1, writing: "COMING SOON TO MANCHESTER'S WORLD CLASS PICCADILLY GARDENS. The Somme Experience - recreate the thrills and spills of trench warfare at Manchester’s newest tourist attraction."
Someone else said: “Piccadilly Gardens has been a s**t tip for most of the last 30 years. The Council just update it periodically, so it's a contemporary s**t tip.”
Councillor and city centre spokesperson Pat Karney told the Manchester Evening News that the turf would be replaced “as soon as possible”.
He said: "As you can see, Piccadilly Gardens is in its post-Christmas conditions. It's an unavoidable mess after thousands attended the Christmas celebrations. It is all temporary until we get Albert Square back in use for the markets.
"We will be re-turfing it as soon as possible before it is used for St Patrick's and St George's day celebrations next."
In a Twitter message he wrote: “Piccadilly Gardens will be returfed soon. We will soon be choosing the design for the new regeneration of the area. 2023. An important year for the Gardens.”
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Responding to the post, one commentator wrote: “Let’s do this quick, the whole design is the shame of Manchester currently.”
Another added: “A beautiful green space that people can enjoy in the city centre. Good for mental health and a way to reintroduce nature with flowers. There’s some fantastic examples of urban green spaces around the world. Bring colour back, not the sad grey that is there now.”
While a third person chipped in with: “Even before refurbishment there cannot be any excuse for the state you allowed Piccadilly Gardens to be in.”
