Member Article

£23million investment proposals for regeneration of Preston bus station

Plans to invest £23million in Preston’s iconic bus station will see it become a catalyst for regeneration, more appealing to passengers, and home to Preston Youth Zone Plus, while preserving the building’s brutalist architecture.

Lancashire County Council and Preston Youth Zone have announced proposals to transform the heritage listed building into a ‘vibrant’ place focused on facilities for young people, bus and coach transport, and open public space.

Central to the scheme are plans to invest £7.4million to create a new 36 bay bus station and 4 bay coach park on the side of the building facing Ringway, and reroute vehicle access, to leave the side of the building facing the city open for the location of the Preston Youth Zone Plus.

The smaller bus and coach facilities would take up around half of the inside of the ground floor of the building.

The £6million Youth Zone Plus will feature a wide range of sporting and artistic facilities, and young people’s services, occupying around half of the remaining space on the Holiday Inn side of the building, with a separate sports hall on the apron outside.

Preston Youth Zone will be an independent charity, delivered as a result of a combination of public, private and voluntary sector support led by OnSide Youth Zones, a charity dedicated to providing modern youth facilities based on the model of the highly successful and innovative Bolton Lads and Girls Club.

Preston Youth Zone will contribute £1million towards the construction costs with Lancashire County Council investing £5million.

The facility will provide somewhere to go, something to do, and someone to talk to, for young people from the age of 8 to 19, and up to 25 for those with disabilities and/or learning difficulties from Preston and surrounding areas. The world class facility will feature an indoor sports hall, outdoor pitches, a climbing wall, fitness suite and areas for music, dance, arts and crafts.

The vision represents a major evolution of the plans for Preston Youth Zone Plus, following previous plans to locate it near County Hall, and on the site of a former nursery near Marsh Lane and Ringway.

Further plans for the bus station will see a £2million investment to develop the apron on the Guild Hall side next to the Youth Zone Plus into an open public area, with much-improved access to the bus station, linking into the high quality shared space initiative currently being delivered along Fishergate.

The 1,100 bay multi-storey car park above the bus station will be repaired and preserved to extend the life of the building for another 25 years and provide an attractive option for visitors to the city centre.

Estimates put the cost of repairs at £6.4million, and improvements to the apron at £2million, with a further £1.5million to be spent on highways improvements.

Jennifer Mein, leader of Lancashire County Council, said: “These proposals not only secure the bus station’s future, they represent a major investment in young people, transport and the regeneration of the city centre.

“We aim to breathe new life into the building and the space outside, making it a far more welcoming gateway to Preston.

“Much has been made of the historic place of the bus station but these proposals show how we intend to make the building a valuable part of Preston’s future.”

Guy Topping, chairman of Preston Youth Zone, said: “We owe it to our city’s young people to ensure that Preston Youth Zone Plus is the best it can be. This is a very exciting development for the Youth Zone Plus, Preston bus station is not only centrally located it is also extremely accessible to young people, making it an ideal location for us to deliver youth services.

“We’ve received tremendous support from the local private sector so far, and now more than ever their investment is essential to ensuring Preston Youth Zone Plus becomes part of the city’s legacy for young people.

“Local community support for the project has also been overwhelming and I know we are all eager to take this step forward in making the Youth Zone Plus dream a reality.”

“The heritage listing made it clear that the bus station is here to stay and our proposals will ensure it becomes an asset to Lancashire for decades to come.”

Lancashire County Council will now work the Preston Youth Zone team and other partners to develop the scheme, and work with contractors to refine the estimates and proposals for refurbishment.

A proposed timetable for the redevelopment will see a full proposal put before the county council’s cabinet in March 2015, with applications for listed building consent and planning permission to follow in April 2015. The timetable would see work start on site in October 2015.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Simon Malia .