THE City of Chelmsford has long been known for its historic buildings, its trade links and its modern culture, and now its legacy has been affirmed with the launch of its own Monopoly board.
On Tuesday, Chelmsford's new board game was launched at an event at Hylands House, which has taken pride of place on the board in what was traditionally Mayfair's exclusive spot.
Ceri Lowen, 54, the estate manager of Hylands House, said: "I think that it's wonderful to be Mayfair. Everybody knows Mayfair. What made it even sweeter was that people voted for us to be there and think highly of the house and the estate.
"The staff were thrilled. They were so excited.
"I played Monopoly when I was a kid and my kids love it. It's just one of those family favourites.
"In our house we still have the traditional Monopoly, Junior Monopoly, Lord of the Rings Monopoly, and now we have another to play this Christmas!"
When Chelmsford was officially made a city by the Queen earlier this year, designers of the much-loved game decided a new Monopoly board would be the perfect way to mark the occasion.
Mark Hauser, commercial director of Winning Moves, the company which created the Monopoly board, said: "Chelmsford has always been on the radar and this year we were keen to come to Essex.
"But then – and we weren't expecting it – Chelmsford was given city status and it made it a very easy decision."
When the decision was announced in the summer it was down to the people of Chelmsford, who took to Facebook in their droves, to vote for board landmarks.
"We were inundated with votes," said Mark. "Obviously education is a massive part of Chelmsford's make-up and there were so many children who went to the Facebook site, so we wanted to do an entire set representing education in Chelmsford."
As well as Chelmsford College taking Bond Street's place on the board, the Marconi empire is also represented, as well as other long-standing businesses, including the Essex Chronicle in what would be Fleet Street.
Essex Chronicle editor Paul Dent-Jones said: "As our masthead motto states, we've been 'making local matter more since 1764' so we're obviously delighted to be immortalised on Chelmsford's Monopoly board."
Also at the launch was Mayor of Chelmsford Christopher Kingsley, who said: "We are delighted. It has been a fantastic year for Chelmsford in so many ways.
"What more can a great city want than its own Monopoly board?"
