CHAMPAGNE corks will be popping to mark the 100th birthday of Clifton Green in York.

Residents and councillors will celebrate the anniversary of a boundary fence being built around the landmark on Sunday.

In 1904, locals, including those with grazing rights on the green, reached agreement with the Lords of the Manor to take over management of the area and put a post and rail fence around it.

After years of patching and repairing, the green, owned by City of York Council, now has a new fence to the exact specifications of the first.

Mike Griffiths, chairman of the Clifton Green committee, said: "The erection of the first fence marked the transfer of the green from the old, feudal manorial lords to the people of Clifton.

Since then, small groups of people have kept on with the responsibility of managing and maintaining the green.

"The 100th birthday party is a way of saying thanks to all those people who provided funds, time and resources to enable us to carry out the necessary work.

"It celebrates a new lease of life for the local community control of the green."

Updated: 11:56 Friday, July 01, 2005