Millennium Square, Leeds

To celebrate the year 2000, Leeds built Millennium Square. It is unique in all respects. It is located in the Civic center of town. Funded by the Leeds City Council and the Millennium Commission, the project came in at a cool 12 million pounds. Hello, Year Two Thousand.

The Square is vast, bordered by Calverley Street and the Brotherton Wing of the Leeds General Infirmary on its west side. On the north side is the Leeds Civic Hall with its classical facade and columned portico flanked by two outrageously high towers and spires.

The square edges to the southeast from the Civic Center, bordered by the Cuthbert Brodrick pub, named for famous Leeds architect Cuthbert Brodrick. The east side fronts the Leeds City Museum, one of Brodrick's works, with an area of plants and benches. Brodrick also designed Leeds Town Hall, a short walk from the square.

Bracketed by Great George and Calverley Streets are the Mandela Gardens. Beside the Gardens is the new Carriageworks Theatre with its outside projection screen, stages and its grenade-shaped control tower. The red brick Electric Press building and the refurbished Victorian Leonardo building are in the east and southeast, respectively.

The idea for the Square was to create an open space and venue for events of up to 5,000 people. The Square hosts civic ceremonies, fairs, markets, happenings and shows on the projection screen. In 2001, Nelson Mandela opened the Mandela Gardens. In his speech, Mandela thanked 'the people of Liverpool for their generosity'. Oops.