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End for water gardens feature?
THE Palms Tropical Oasis (above), a feature of
Stapeley Water Gardens, will be closing on September 5, according to the
Nantwich Chronicle (May 19).
The Stapeley site is a strange
mixture of water gardens, garden centre and zoo. 
The garden centre was
originally going to be relocated around the Palms which houses
tropical animals, fish, etc. This was to free up land off London Road
for housing and business accommodation. But now the garden centre will be moved to a
location by an entrance off Peter Destapleigh Way.
See the original letter for a picture of the junction of Peter
Destapleigh
Way and Pear Tree Field showing a previously unused road entrance to the
water gardens site. (When I was taking that picture, I saw people going
on to the site at that point, some with their pets.)
The Chronicle reports that
falling trade has meant that land around the Palms has been sold and the
garden centre will be built on the Palms land instead. The animals will
be rehoused and the staff will be entering talks about their jobs.
Not only will the Palms be
going, but a well-known name in the leisure industry will be lost. The
attraction will not be called Stapeley Water Gardens once the changes
have been made.
The plan is still for 150 homes
to be built on the other end of the site off London Road.
Closure delayed
OCTOBER 2010
THERE has been
an eight to 12-month delay in the plans to redevelop the Palms Tropical Oasis
building at Stapeley Water Gardens. This means that the tourist
attraction, which had closed in September, was able to re-open
"with an exciting
range of exhibits plus a few old favourites, including the popular meerkat
family" (left). Some of the animals, it must be said, went to new
homes when the venue closed. But there is still much to see - especially
bugs and creepy crawlies - in the attraction which has been renamed Bugs
of Fun Experience. There is reduced admission, "making it value for money
for all the
family".
Meerkats picture from the Stapeley Water
Gardens website.
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