Construction in the Salt Lake Park

When our sons were younger, we liked the Salt Lake Park for safe bike-riding, though we didn't go all that often. When visitors came with young children, we would sometimes go, too; there was a nice little playground. However, that was demolished many years ago and now the park mostly seems to be used by dog-walkers. 

On early morning walks with my friend Sheila, we take different routes to the Salt Lake trail, depending on where we meet in between our houses. And, fairly regularly, we go through the park - also known as Patticheo Park - as it has a path that takes us to the trail. 

Construction in the Salt Lake Park

It's more than two years, now, since we were aware of something happening in the Salt Lake Park. I took this photo early January 2024:

Evidently something was about to happen. I found an online article which talked about a huge development, with a nature centre and a park and a restaurant. Here's the official announcement about it: redevelopment of the Pattichio Park area. Spelling of names in Cyprus can be somewhat variable, which is why this article calls it Pattichio. I've seen Pattichion, too, as well as Patticheo. 

I don't know when that article was published, and note that it doesn't give any details about the expected completion. Online newspaper articles seem rather difficult to find, but I had seen one which mentioned early 2025 for completion, and another which said the end of 2025. There was a haiatus, when environmentalists pointed out some problems with the potential plans; I'm not sure if that was before or after the article above was posted. In any case, construction paused for a while, and then resumed.

At least, something started happening. This is what we saw in May 2024: 

Gradually, more paths started to emerge, mostly quite attractively edged with stones. Some of them are quite steep, and seem to wander in random directions, but clearly something was being done. Slowly, and somewhat unpredictably, but there was progress.

In December last year we were startled to see this odd-looking metal construction near the entrance:

It went up over the course of a few days, and we discussed what it might be. There's a similar one near the other main entrance. 

It's clear that things are happening, although they all seem a bit random.  Early in February, we took a detour before joining the Salt Lake trail.  Here, for instance, is a pile of gravel:

Here are some new paths, currently fenced off:

This is evidently going to be a new restaurant... eventually:

Here are some steps going to a stone plinth:

No idea what this might be:

A view of the bridge, which was started well over a year ago, and which has at least some planks to stand on, but no way to get to it. We're not sure where it's going, or what it might be joining:

Back to one of the side trails... evidently more construction is happening here:

And here's a deeper hole, fenced off, and stopping access to the path:

We wondered whether there is an overall plan - we assume there must have been.  But are all the contractors working to the plan?  Are the measurements exact?  It seems that so many parts of the park have the beginnings of something, but nothing is finished.  If it all works as it should, then eventually it will all join up, and make an interesting place to walk.  But at present it all seems very confusing, with only random progress, some of the time, on one or two areas.

On February 19th, it appeared that the strange metallic structures were going to be painted grey. But we were puzzled as to why they were only partially painted:

A few days later, we saw a truck nearby, with a young man evidently about to start painting some more. We asked what the metallic structure was, but he had no idea. 

And his paint was brown. So the next time we went to the park, it was back as it was when we first saw it: