The notorious Muliro Gardens was recently reopened after a year of renovation.
The 6.5-acre recreational park adjacent to Kakamega County’s headquarters came into the limelight when some residents turned its benches into lodgings for daylight romps in 2011.
Those wooden benches are no more. In their place are paved walkways that cut through the garden with two giant lockable gates, running water, metallic dustbins and manicured gardens with indigenous trees that have replaced a bamboo forest that had occupied a large section of the park.
Muliro Gardens, named after opposition politician Masinde Muliro, also has a children’s section and space that can be hired for political and religious rallies. It will also be a Wi-Fi hotspot in a few months’ time.
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“We welcome those touring Kakamega to the new-look garden that has been spruced up and is ideal for relaxing. Water is available and comfortable benches have been fitted. We however discourage the misuse of the park by law breakers,” said Sumba Juma, the Kakamega County Communications Director.
The gardens had also at some point degenerated into a dumpsite for business owners in town. But with a gate and patrolling county askaris, Sumba says that will be a thing of the past.