Blueprints revealed for £250m town revamp
Wednesday 16th September 2009, 7:00PM BST.
Submitted artists' impressions of new Southwater development.
Council chiefs and private developers this afternoon took the wraps off blueprints for a £250 million project to transform Telford town centre into a nationally important hub.
The plans will see a complex of shops, hotels, homes and leisure facilities developed, which it is believed will bring £100 million into the local economy.
The massive Southwater Square revamp will see a landmark area around the ice rink and town park created as well as a major extension to the town’s conference centre, which it is hoped will attract an extra 200,000 visitors a year.
Telford & Wrekin Council and developers Southwater Event Group are behind the ambitious plans, which were unveiled at Telford International Centre.
The scheme will also see one of the biggest complexes of offices built in the town centre and planners believe the whole development will create a night-time economy and a “vibrant” town centre in which to live and work.
The scheme will be submitted as a joint planning application by the council and Southwater Event Group, which owns the international centre, next month. It is expected that, subject to approval, work will start in the autumn of next year.
Councillor Andrew Eade, Telford & Wrekin Council leader, said: “After many years of talk and false dawns about how Telford town centre could be developed, we at last have a scheme that can be delivered.
“Despite the harsh economic climate, we have worked together with partners such as the Southwater Event Group to deliver these exciting plans.
“These will kick-start the wider regeneration of Telford and the borough and make a vibrant and living centre.
“This scheme will also provide a significant boost for the local economy.”
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Can’t wait – vibrant, hub, landmark, night-time economy – a few months consulting stakeholders and partners and Shropshire will have its very own Tower Hamlets.
Even as you read this a crack team will be working on “maximising the vibrancy offer”.
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It looks ok. Far better than the terrible proposal for the new Asda. These buildings at least look like those you might find in a town centre and appear to have uses all along their frontage, again like you would find in a normal town centre.
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excellent news
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Looks like loads of money being pumped into the town area for a good revamp, but think it’s about time they took a look at the town PARK(if thats what you can call the wasteland it has become)we went for a walk around on Monday and saw a disgraceful and depressing waste of land, it could be such a lovely area if some good planning and money was spent on it,instead we get the excuse that they want to keep it within the natural state!!! Give us somewhere we can go & be proud to say is a lovely place to go in Telford for all ages. Take a look at some other gardens & parks around that can be an inspiration such as Bournemouth, or the Dingle at Shrewsbury, Swindon, the list is endless…http://www.yell.com/find/DoFind/cl/Parks-and-Gardens
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Re. Barbara’s comment (4), a large part of the park is kept in a fairly natural state (the southern end), and is enjoyed by many visitors because of this. I would agree that there hasn’t been enough maintenance in recent years, but to turn the whole area into a traditional urban park with clipped lawns and formal bedding would be to miss the point. A large part of the southern end is a local nature reserve, where you can see a wealth of wildlife.
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This is great news! About time Telford had a proper town centre and not just a ring road! The fact it will improve a hub for night life will be great too as it’s reputation will grow for not only a great place to shop but also a great place to party!
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RE: Robs Comment (5), I like many others do enjoy a natural retreat from the hustle & bustle of the fast pace life we lead and I enjoy to see wildlife in its natural habitat, but I also enjoy to see colour and fragrances that can create inspiration and a sense of uplifting that I think our park could offer if designed in the correct way and maintained, I suggest anyone who likes natural beauty take a look at our natural state park and judge for themselves if this is how a park should look, even the cherry gardens have failed us, the ponds that used to home several fish is just overgrown marsh( told the gardener it was a disgrace – he did say they were going to clear it)!!! Yes the Southern end of the park with its wealth of wildlife is a nice place, but so is the flash at Priorslee, my comment is to raise the awareness that our town park could offer us so much more without it being spoilt and commercialised. Why revamp a town to bring more people to the area when we have such a poor show for the park which also reflects on the rest of the community around?
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