CELEBRATIONS were held for an area of Colne which was rescued from motorway blight and is looking forward to a green future.

For 25 years the Waterside area of Colne lived with the threat it could carry the M65 extension into Yorkshire.

Now it has a rosy future with plans for a millennium green and environmental work on six other areas nearby.

The celebration was held at Pendle Leisure Centre with activities during the day for families and children.

There was face painting, a bouncy castle, jugglers, a mime artist and a ball pool and entertainment from a cello quartet and acoustic music.

In the evening the centre warmed up with music from local bands including Waterside's own Pigeon Smith and the finals of a disc jockey competition for teenagers.

Brian Holmes, community organiser and Pendle Council's engineering services manager, said: "We want to celebrate that after three years of enthusiasm and commitment the community has managed to get more than £300,000 to carry out work to improve the area. "The millennium green will be a green oasis for the people of Colne, many of whom do not have gardens or places to play and enjoy their recreation. The green will include an outdoor stage for music, drama and community events."

Besides the millennium green, display boards also advertised smaller schemes for the area and asked for volunteers.

From Hagg Street to Short Street there will be bulb planting and tree planting, and a wild flower meadow will be created.

Around the youth club there will be painting and designing and tree planting, and at Shaw Street shrubs will be planted, a mosaic will be designed and a plant nursery visit organised.

At Nelson Sheet Metal, seats will be designed and schools will be encouraged to visit and at Basil Street there will be stone carving and shrub planting.

The final improvement scheme is for Nicholas Street and involves planting trees, visiting a plant nursery and designing furniture.

Groundwork East Lancashire and Pendle Council carried out the design work and the land was dedicated by Lancashire County Council and Pendle Council.

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