The City Park, also colloquially known as the ''Youth Park'', is an

urban park An urban park or metropolitan park, also known as a municipal park (North America) or a public park, public open space, or municipal gardens ( UK), is a park in cities and other incorporated places that offer recreation and green space to resi ...

in the city of George Town in

Penang Penang ( ms, Pulau Pinang, is a Malaysian state located on the northwest coast of Peninsular Malaysia, by the Malacca Strait. It has two parts: Penang Island, where the capital city, George Town, is located, and Seberang Perai on the Malay ...

Malaysia Malaysia ( ; ) is a country in Southeast Asia. The federation, federal constitutional monarchy consists of States and federal territories of Malaysia, thirteen states and three federal territories, separated by the South China Sea into two r ...

. Located near the

Penang Botanic Gardens The Penang Botanic Gardens, (Malay: ''Taman Kebun Bunga'';Tamil :பினாங்கு தாவரவியல் பூங்கா,Piṉāṅku Tāvaraviyal pūṅkā) also known as the "Waterfall Gardens" because of the cascading waterfa ...

, the City Park was opened in 1972 as a recreational area and a green lung for the city's residents. True to its name, the City Park contains various recreational amenities, such as playgrounds, a skating rink,

swimming pools A swimming pool, swimming bath, wading pool, paddling pool, or simply pool, is a structure designed to hold water to enable swimming or other leisure activities. Pools can be built into the ground (in-ground pools) or built above ground (as ...

, a

graffiti Graffiti (plural; singular ''graffiti'' or ''graffito'', the latter rarely used except in archeology) is art that is written, painted or drawn on a wall or other surface, usually without permission and within public view. Graffiti ranges from s ...

corner, reflexology paths and an outdoor

auditorium An auditorium is a room built to enable an audience to hear and watch performances. For movie theatres, the number of auditoria (or auditoriums) is expressed as the number of screens. Auditoria can be found in entertainment venues, community ...

, all of which are open to the public. The park is maintained by the

Penang Island City Council The City Council of Penang Island is the council that administers the city of Pulau Pinang, which includes the entirety of Penang Island, Malaysia. The city council, which has jurisdiction over an area of , falls under the purview of the Penang s ...

History

City Park (Youth Park), George Town, Penang (2)

City Park (Youth Park), George Town, Penang (3)

The idea for the establishment of a Youth Park''' came into being in 1970, in response to concerns over juvenile delinquency and a lack of recreational areas. At the time, the area now known as the City Park was an abandoned granite quarry. A proposal to establish a Youth Park''' was accepted by

Lim Chong Eu Tun Dr. Lim Chong Eu (; 28 May 1919 – 24 November 2010) was a Malaysian politician who served as the 2nd Chief Minister of Penang from May 1969 to October 1990. He was also the founding president of Parti Gerakan Rakyat Malaysia (GERAKAN). He ...

, the then

Chief Minister of Penang The Chief Minister of Penang is the head of government in the Malaysian state of Penang. According to convention, the chief minister is the leader of the majority party or largest coalition party of the Penang State Legislative Assembly. The chie ...

. A committee was subsequently formed to explore the idea and a groundbreaking ceremony was launched late that year. In the aftermath of the 1969 race riots in Kuala Lumpur, it was decided that the park should also embody

's multi-cultural heritage in the "''community of nature''". To that end, volunteers from the various schools and youth clubs within Penang were roped in for the groundbreaking event. The Youth Park, as it was known at the time, was officially declared open in 1972 by the then

Governor of Penang The governor of Penang ( ms, Yang di-Pertua Negeri Pulau Pinang) is the head of state of the Malaysian state of Penang. The role of governor is largely ceremonial with the power vested in the executive branch of the state government led by the ...

, Syed Hassan Barakbah. At its opening, the park was equipped with an obstacle course, a skating rink and an outdoor auditorium. More facilities were added in the years since, with the latest being the Penang Graffiti Park in 2012. The City Park is also home to two of the

departments - the Community Service Department and the Landscape Department. The GBI-rated council office incorporates a rain harvesting system, an outdoor garden and vertical green walls, as well as transparent glass panels designed to allow maximum natural lighting.

References

{{Tourist attractions in Penang Tourist attractions in George Town, Penang Geography of Penang

History

See also

References