Gateway improvement sites in Chesterfield chosen
Two entry points into Chesterfield will get a £500,000 facelift after being selected for improvements by Chesterfield Borough Council following a public consultation.
The improvements will happen at the Hornsbridge roundabout and the Railway Station Link – which includes Crow Lane from the railway station past the Chesterfield Hotel and across the public footbridge, which links to Corporation Street and the town centre.
The work will be carried out using funding from Barratt Homes and the European Regional Development Fund in a project designed to improve the attractiveness of entry points into the town.
They were chosen by public vote from a list that also included West Bars roundabout, Lordsmill roundabout, Saltergate, the bus station and Markham Road.
Partner organisations including Destination Chesterfield,Chesterfield College, Chesterfield Civic Society and the Town Centre Forum were also asked their views and a two day public consultation was held in the Pavements Shopping Centre in January.
Councillor John Burrows, leader of Chesterfield Borough Council, said: “There was already a strong consensus that the Hornsbridge roundabout needed improving and the Railway Station Link came out the clear winner in the public consultation as it is the first impression people get of the town when arriving by train.
“The whole purpose of the Chesterfield Gateways project is to respond to requests from business leaders for us to do more to make the approach routes into town more appealing to potential investors, visitors and our own residents.
“The best thing is that we can use external funding to make these improvements without any impact on the core services the council provides to Chesterfield residents.”
The council, working with project managers TEP, will now appoint designers and artists to begin work on the project, which is due to be completed by December 2014.
Examples of things they could do at the two sites include installing new direction signs, lighting, paving, planting, sculptures, art installation or interpretation.
Members of the public will be consulted about the design ideas to get their views before any actual work takes place at either of the two sites.
Peter Swallow, chair of Destination Chesterfield, the town’s marketing campaign, said: “We very much welcome the news of improvements to the Hornsbridge roundabout and Railway Station Link.
“Both are key gateways to Chesterfield and play an important role in ensuring a sense of arrival and welcome, whether visitors stay in the town or pass through us to the Peak District.”
The announcement of the improvement sites was made today (Thursday 28 March) by Chesterfield Borough Council chief executive Huw Bowen during the Celebrate Chesterfield event held by Destination Chesterfield at the ProAct Stadium.
Source:Chesterfield Borough Council
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