New pavements and lighting have been finished in the first step of improving a number of key streets between Preston Bus Station and the city’s new Animate complex.
Known as the Illuminate and Integrate scheme work began last summer on the Old Vicarage which runs from Tithebarn Street at the Bus Station plaza through to Lancaster Road and the Markets.
New pavements, trees, public seating and what’s known as ‘Gobo’ lighting to allow scenes and colours to be projected onto the pavements have been put in.
Read more: Preston heritage centre plan urged for condemned Tithebarn pub
It’s part of plans to make Preston city centre a nicer and easier place to move around on foot.
The works have been paid for by the Towns Fund investment which saw £20million in government money pumped into the city post-Covid to support the creation of the Animate leisure complex, the Youth Zone building, the Harris refurbishment and also support the area known as a the ‘Harris Quarter’ which runs from the Harris up to the Ringway and Markets.
Preston City Council’s cabinet member for community wealth building, councillor Valerie Wise, said: The proposed works are focused on improving the quality of the public spaces and creating safer and better paths between existing spaces and transport hubs such as the bus station.
“The aim is to encourage footfall and visitors to stay longer into the evening, supporting the Harris Quarter ‘as a go-to cultural destination in the city.”
Work on the scheme has been delivered by Maple Grove Developments and Eric Wright Civil Engineering.
Project director at Maple Grove, Nick Hague, said: “The scheme has been designed to sympathetically create a contemporary feel to the area without dismissing the heritage of the Harris Quarter. It’ll promote safety and assurance while helping to create a positive ambience.”
Further funding to support the Illuminate and Integrate works has come from Lancashire County Council.
Cabinet member for economic development and growth county councillor Brian Moore said: “We’re investing £800k in the city centre and encouraging sustainable transport by improving the links between the bus station and new transformational developments taking place in the Harris Quarter, which gives more options for people to walk and cycle. Making Preston a more attractive place to live and visit helps create new jobs, grow the night-time economy, and create a more vibrant city centre.
“Alongside the recent improvement work on Ringway and Friargate delivered by the county council, we’re working closely in partnership to improve the wider city centre and provide people with more options for getting around.”
Where is next?
A second set of works are due to get started in late Autumn on the area along Lancaster Road by the St John’s Shopping Centre and the Market Hall – between Earl Street and Old Vicarage.
This area will become permanently closed to traffic once the works are finished although service and taxi ranks are being maintained as they are now – the city council say they hope this will encourage more al-fresco dining and join up with the Markets area.
Disruption is expected for traders at the city’s outdoor market during the works – with the city council saying the traders will move under the Fish Market canopy and the Wallace and Gromit bench end of the Covered Market temporarily.
Further Illuminate and Integrate works are then planned in the future for the area around the Flag Market and other streets around the Harris and Town Hall such as Birley Street. No timescale has been given for these works at this stage.
Chair of Preston Towns Fund Strategic Board, John Chesworth, said: “While it may only be a small part of the overall jigsaw, lighting fundamentally impacts place-making. Quite literally, Illuminate will showcase Preston’s fine architecture, promoting the areas of the Harris Quarter while creating an attractive but dynamic lighting scene and encouraging footfall to this area of Preston.”
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