‘Bucking’ the national trend!

With many nationwide Town Centre improvement and redevelopment schemes being shelved at the moment because of the depressed financial situation, the world’s first Garden City has ‘bucked the trend’ and has just completed the first phase of its Town centre revitalisation plans.

The £8m Street Scene scheme - fully funded by Letchworth Garden City Heritage Foundation - and constructed by leading international construction company Skanska – was officially opened on Friday, June 18, by Stuart Kenny, the Foundation’s Director General.

The scheme – which covers the Town Centre’s three main shopping areas, - Eastcheap, Leys Avenue and Station Road, - is to be followed by the construction of 26 new shops, 113 flats, a Play barn and 356 parking spaces in The Wynd ( off Leys Avenue) – an area that has underperformed in retailing terms over the years. Planning permission has been granted and it is anticipated that work will start next year on the multi-million pound project.

Five key targets were identified a few years ago to assist in preventing Letchworth Garden City Town Centre from falling further down the national retail league. They were;

• An improved environment generally for the shopper
• A ‘family friendly’ Town centre, both in terms of ‘offer’ and environment
• Bigger  and better retail units to attract more quality national multiples
• New smaller retail units to support existing and independent retailers and attract new ones
• More and better quality parking with easy access

In relation to the Street Scene completion, Stuart Kenny said: “Designed by international urban designers Landscape Design Associates, I believe that our Street Scene improvements will attract families from the wider area to visit and shop in Letchworth Garden City. That will be followed by an improving retail offer which will further draw people to our Town Centre.”

The Street Scene scheme:
As well as the quality York Stone and multi-coloured granite, used for the paving materials in Eastcheap and Leys Avenue and other ‘top of the range’ materials for the carriageways etc.. giving a complete ‘new look’ of freshness and space in the heart of the town, there are also a number of other interesting features. They include:

• Groups of half-circular seating benches set in an extended pedestrian area between Leys Square and the top of Leys Avenue ( The Colonnade), edged with evergreen hedges and colourful, fragrant planting
• Attractive, user-friendly fountains and a long seating bench in Leys Square, which is now effectively the new central ‘Town Square’ and focal point.
• Three new bronze sculptures – inspired by one of the Garden City’s most important icons, the 1909 ‘Four Square Our City’ processional banner – are set within an attractive water feature and create a striking new gateway and landmark feature. A symbol of regeneration, quality and consistency, the beacons evoke images of leaf forms, flower buds, shoots or flaming torches. The high quality beacons – finished in what can be best described as ‘Old Penny Bronze’ – are in a visually prominent location at the top end of Leys Avenue – a key entrance to the rest of the town centre.
• 30 new trees have been planted in Eastcheap and Leys Avenue and six have been replaced.
• The ‘new’ Leys Square will now create a much-need central, large space for the expanding monthly Farmers Market other markets and public activities and events. Already, two successful events have taken place in this enlarged area.