A MAJOR step in the transformation of Warrington’s cultural quarter has been completed.
Work has finished on the £664,000 public realm improvements to Springfield Street, sections of Palmyra Square and areas within Queen’s Gardens.
The project, which aims to support an emerging bar and restaurant scene, has included the creation of areas appropriate for outside dining. The entire public realm has also been upgraded to a much higher standard, complementing that which was already in place within Queens Gardens.
It has created an attractive, pedestrian-friendly space, with a continental, pavement café feel.
Included in Warrington’s Town Centre Masterplan, the upgrade forms part of the borough council’s longer-term plans to link the area to Bridge Street, and the Time Square development, via the revamped Cabinet Works site.
Council leader Cllr Terry O’Neill; deputy leader Cllr Russ Bowden; lead member for culture, Cllr Dan Price, and lead member for highways and public realm, Cllr Hans Mundry, visited the site to celebrate the completion of the project. They were joined by ward councillor Steve Wright.
Cllr Price said: “Our town centre is rapidly changing, and it’s vital that Palmyra Square, our cultural heart, continues to transform with it. I’m delighted this work has now been completed. It’s another major step forward in ensuring the area remains a first-class destination for local people and visitors and a focal point for culture, leisure and events in Warrington.”
Cllr Mundry added: “These works will reinforce Palmyra Square as the dynamic, vibrant, cultural heart of Warrington. The re-engineering of the streets and spaces in the area have made the square more attractive, as well as supporting the establishment of street cafes. It’s a fantastic project, and an important part of the ongoing regeneration of our town centre.”
The contractor for the scheme, which took 14 weeks to complete, was Dowhigh Ltd.
Landmark day for borough’s cultural quarter
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3 Comments
I must admit I was sceptical about this scheme, which had a very long gestation. However I would like to congratulate those involved, in particular the officers, for producing a transformation which is both visually attractive and striking.
I hope that those who seldom visit our cultural quarter go and see for themselves and take advantage of the restaurants cafes and bars.
Nothing to do with benefiting the town and its people, just another step on the giant ego trip towards City of Culture status. The rest of Warrington, where the vast majority of ratepayers live, can be described as the ‘Town of Trash’ and there isn’t anybody on this photo that could care less.
Well done to all concerned, but perhaps a point is being missed here. Requalification of degraded urban zones requires a longer and more in depth vision. The town as an urban centre is an oxymoron, as hardly anybody lives there any more. At no time in the existance of urbanised human settlement has a successful town centre continued to thrive without a living and settled population. Visitors and shoppers are not enough and generally empty ‘cultural quarter’ will never revitalise Warrington. Make the centre safe and attractive enough for people to want to live there…………………….