Member Article

Next phase of £38m Stockton regeneration plan begins

Work is about to start on the next phase of a £38m regeneration programme for Stockton town centre.

Next Tuesday (August 6), contractors will be moving onto Dovecot Street between Café Nero and the Storytellers pub near ARC.

They will be replacing the paving, upgrading the pedestrian crossings, replacing street lighting columns and resurfacing the Dovecot Street-Prince Regent Street junction to help improve access to the town centre.

The visual appearance of the Dovecot Street area will also be enhanced through landscaping with trees and other greenery.

Stockton Council’s Cabinet Member for Regeneration and Transport, Councillor Mike Smith, said: “It is fantastic to see the regeneration works are now moving at such a quick pace - our town centre is really transforming.

“Once complete the road improvements will make it easier for people to access the town centre and the new paving, landscaping and street furniture will create a much more pleasant town centre environment.

“It is a really exciting time for the town centre and over the coming months people visiting the town will see how rapidly it is changing into a first class destination for shopping, leisure and events.”

As the southern end of the high street nears completion the 700 year old market is on the move. On Saturday, August 3, the majority of the stalls will move to their new permanent location at the southern end of the High Street between NatWest bank and Franks Carpets on the west side and on the east side between Spencer Market Hall and Fulton Foods. It is expected the remainder of stalls will move to their permanent position adjacent to Barclays Bank and the Town Hall by the beginning of September.

In the meantime they will remain within the market at various locations at the southern end of the high street. Stallholders will have specific location details on hand for any customers enquiring about the whereabouts of a specific stall.

New street lighting columns have also been recently installed at the southern end of the High Street.

The 15-metre tall columns, with feature lighting on their masts, are bespoke to Stockton town centre and have been specially designed with LEDs inserted inside the column so no lanterns are needed.

It means fewer street lights will be needed throughout are the town centre as the light generated by the 22 street lights will provide the same amount of light as 66 of the traditional, lantern style columns.

Next month the demolition of Lindsay House will begin. The removal of the building will mean that people visiting the High Street can access leisure activities and events on the Riverside much more easily.

Next year, the vacant Lindsay House space will create an on street short-stay car park which will also be used as a dedicated space for specialist markets at various times throughout the year.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Martin Walker .