Landmarks
Apart from Baldwin Street, North East Valley has several noted landmarks. Two university halls of residence, Knox College and Salmond College lie on the lower slopes to the east of the Gardens Corner, and another, Aquinas College lies on the lower slopes of Pine Hill immediately to the west. Close to this stands another prominent building, the former Santa Sabina Convent, which is visible from much of the northern central city. Another prominent building in the valley is Ross Home, one of the city's major retirement homes, which is located in North Road.
The suburb has several notable parks and gardens, among them Chingford Park, the Quarry Gardens, Forrester Park, and Bethune's Gully.
Chingford Park is a recreational reserve containing historic stone stables, located towards the northern end of North Road. It surrounded the no-longer extant Chingford House, which had been built in 1862. The property was built and landscaped in the 1870s and 1880s by businessman P.C. Neill (one of whose descendants is actor Sam Neill). Among improvements made by Neill to the property include the historic bluestone stables, built in 1880, which still stand as a centre for the park. Chingford Park is popular with walkers, and also contains soccer and cricket grounds, and the city's main archery club.Other notable features of the Park include several giant Macrocarpa trees which stand close to the banks of Lindsay Creek.
The Quarry Gardens are a park created from the former Palmer's Quarry, and is located on North Road directly opposite the bottom of Baldwin Street. The quarry was closed in 1980, and was thoroughly landscaped from 1989 into a terraced garden area. The amphitheatre of the old quarry pit has in the past been used as an outdoor music venue, especially during the late 1990s. Several walking tracks climb to the terraces of the former quarry, which have been extensively planted with many species, notably rhododendrons, and other walking paths follow the banks of the Lindsay Creek, connecting with Selwyn Street to the south and Watts road to the north. The gardens are privately owned, but are open to the public year-round.
Forrester Park is a sports ground at the end of Norwood Street. It contains football and rugby pitches and the city's BMX circuit, as well as a dog park and kennel club. Bethune's Gully is also accessed from Norwood Street. It is a secluded 86 hectares (210 acres) reserve which lies at the southernmost foothills of Mount Cargill, and is a popular scenic area. From here, walking tracks ascend the slopes of Cargill. The reserve was originally the site of sawmills and brick kilns operated by David Bethune in the 1880s, and became city council property in 1955.
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Famous quotes containing the word landmarks:
“The lives of happy people are dense with their own doings—crowded, active, thick.... But the sorrowing are nomads, on a plain with few landmarks and no boundaries; sorrow’s horizons are vague and its demands are few.”
—Larry McMurtry (b. 1936)
“Of all the bewildering things about a new country, the absence of human landmarks is one of the most depressing and disheartening.”
—Willa Cather (1873–1947)