Liberty Features

Park Life - A day in the life

Whether he is tending the gardens or keeping an eye out for drug pushers, Trudy Waters finds life isn’t always a bed of roses for Eddie the park ranger

IF bus loads of screaming Yanks descending upon you from a height chills you to the very bone, then park ranger is not the job for you. For Eddie, St Patrick’s Park Ranger, it’s all in a days work. This guy takes it all in his stride, and while speaking to him, one gets the impression that a few yarns are told to amuse and awe the snap-happy tourists.

Being a park ranger takes a lot of stamina and to all appearances, Eddie has what it takes to keep you in tow. He has been in the business for over fourteen years and when you speak to him, it becomes obvious that he is a veteran of the inner-city parks. They are his life. He runs a total of five parks, and spends his time travelling back and forth between them. "It’s no job for the fainthearted," states Eddie, "and if you’re a nine to five type, it’s not the job for you."

St Patrick’s is the second most visited park in the inner-city, after Stephen’s Green and upon entering its gates you are transported to a haven of tranquillity. The park itself is awash with breathtaking flowerbeds with its centrepiece consisting of a fountain. However, don’t expect to receive any good wishes, as coins are not allowed to be thrown into the fountain.

Eddie’s job is quite unusual in that he has no fixed hours. In the winter time the park closes early and he usually works from twelve until five thirty, while in the summer, he can work anything from ten in the morning to ten at night . Asking him did he mind the varying hours, he replied that it was his job and if he didn’t do it, no-one else would .

There is a serious shortage of rangers to man all of Dublin corporations parks, despite recent attempts by the Committee 2000 to alleviate the situation. Eddie is also on this committee, but says that the standard response from the committee is budget shortages. So for the time being, it seems that Eddie must continue to do the work of ten men.

With something strange always occurring, life is never dull. Many tourists question him on the whereabouts of the nearest leprechaun. Only the other day, he had to referee two eighty year old women who, as he said himself, were "laying into each other." It provided a great source of amusement for the onlookers, with one even saying that it proved a better scene than the Hollyfield/Lewis fight.

However, things are not always fun and games for him. With the real threat of drugs on the doorstep, Eddie has to keep a watchful eye on the visitors to the park. Thankfully, as of yet, he has had no real problem there. Help is always at hand just in case, with the aid of a two way radio system which Eddie carries with him constantly. The rangers look out for one another and if one of them feels that there is a real danger, then help is always at hand.

Patrick’s Day is a tough day for Eddie, with thousands of people lining the street to watch the parade. It’s up to him to make sure that people don’t get squashed or trampled on . The park does not have to open on that day, but Eddie opens the gates to relieve the strain behind the barriers and give people more room. "Its all about common sense in this job," he declares, tapping his head.

Eddie works away steadily to the backdrop of high rise apartments on one side and ongoing construction on the other. On my visit to the park, there was a fire in a nearby building that was undergoing construction. As the air filled with smoke, Eddie became quite upset. He said that once the "smog from fires like that used to blanket the entire park," sometimes thrusting it into semi-darkness.

As we chat we are joined by Tom, the gardener of the park who has lived his whole life in this area. Together they talk about their childhood memories. Eddie recalls that the park was initially a series of lanes that led to the markets, now the Iveagh Baths building. Tom, on the other hand, remembers how as children they used to go up to the Jacob’s factory and stare in awe at the chocolate mixers hoping to get a taste. "Its all gone now," he laments. "The Liberties are a changed place."

Eddie points to the buildings that face the park, and bitterly complains that they once housed real Dubliners, but that they were forced out to make way for progress. Now they have been rebuilt, but it’s not the locals that will take up residence.

Over the years in this park, Eddie has built up a good rapport with the locals, who have come to know and trust him. One could only described him as a true Dub, devoted to the job in hand and never forgetting the little things, while reminiscing about Dublin in the "rare auld times". He hopes to remain in this park as long as he is needed and there is a job to be done.

However, with the city being built up all around him, it is difficult to know the future of this park, and whether or not it will survive the urban boom.