Sittingbourne regeneration finally commences
The much hyped £57 million Spirit of Sittingbourne regeneration project that claims it will transform the town centre, finally kicks off.
Demolition of the Prince’s Street Depot off Eurolink Way has commenced, with the installation of fresh new hoardings to follow in the coming weeks.
It has already been confirmed that the new big box retail units, which will be constructed on the site, will be home to popular high street names including Home Bargains.
Located in the leisure quarter, opposite the mainline station will be Pizza Express and Wildwood, LIGHT Cinemas and Travelodge hotel, further operators to be announced later this year.
Representatives from the development partners, Swale Borough Council, U+I and Quinn Estates visited the site to mark the occasion and reinforce the partnership’s commitment to transforming Sittingbourne town centre.
Cllr Andrew Bowles, Leader of Swale Borough Council, commented:
“We know local people have had a long wait to get to this stage, and there is still more to do, but it’s great to see the first stage of works about to get under way in this exciting new chapter for Sittingbourne.
“The regeneration scheme will breathe new life into the town, making it a vibrant place to visit, helping existing shops to thrive, and attracting new businesses to the area.”
Richard Upton, Deputy CEO of U+I said:
“We are delighted to be powering ahead with work in Sittingbourne. The multi-million pound investment will soon be delivering many benefits including; popular shops, a hotel, cinema, 6 restaurants and hundreds of new jobs.
“Local people and visitors will be confronted by leisure and entertainment as soon as they arrive in the town centre. Today we take another step on the journey to creating a prosperous new future for Sittingbourne.”
Mark Quinn, chief executive at Quinn Estates, added:
“Over the coming months there will be plenty of activity on site as we make progress with the development. We look forward to sharing further details of the construction programme and new shops as the buildings take shape.”
The Spirit of Sittingbourne development is a Public Private Partnership between U+I plc Swale Borough Council, Quinn Estates and Essential Land. The scheme includes the remodelling of the town centre and the introduction of a new highway arrangement outside the railway station, to create a pedestrian friendly environment without restricting traffic flow.
Comments
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Is this the 1st of April. Oh no it's the 1st of February. How silly of me. Just as the silly name of Regeneration of our poor sagging high street.
What happens with the money borrowed by our council will do nothing for the high street. What it will mean is St. Michaels road closed, more hold ups on our over stretched road system. What is it all for? I think it will be an excuse for building apartments, cinema, eating places, paid for by ratepayers. It will do nothing for our high street at all
The apartments will be private and I would think not for people on low incomes.
To sum up, Swale Borough Council are not telling us the whole truth about what is to happen in our town.
Perhaps we should all move to Faversham.