Your views needed on £280k spruce up of Spalding’s Hall Place, riverside and Red Lion Street

andrew.brookes@iliffepublishing.co.uk

Published: 10:13, 03 October 2023

Residents and businesses are now being asked for their views on how to spruce up three parts of Spalding town centre.

South Holland District Council has launched a consultation on how to spend £280,000 on ‘physical enhancements’ for Hall Place, the riverside and Red Lion Street.

The council has said these are three key areas in which it wants to make improvements – with ideas floated including planters and year-round planting schemes, de-cluttering of street furniture, replacement of trees and potential for a reconfigured design of seating in Hall Place.

The circle of benches near Boots in Hall Place has been subject of much discussion - and has been pinpointed by South Holland District Council as a key area

Alongside the project the authority is working with Spalding and District Civic Society to secure funding for its Market Art project – which proposes separate investment and improvements on New Road.

This consultation follows the recent town centre access survey, which received 815 responses. The council says that, as part of this, 69.8% of respondents expressed a strong desire for improvements to the town centre to make it more desirable and attractive.

Would you like to see benches and planters in Red Lion Street? This is an artist's impression of what South Holland District Council would like to spend a £280,000 fund on

The council also said it is working with town centre property owners to ‘support improvement works to their shopfronts and the overall appearance of the area’.

It pointed to improvements applied to several businesses including Co-Op Travel, Superdrug, Mobile Master and Ladbrokes as a sign of the success of this approach.

The riverside in Spalding is an area earmarked for improvements by South Holland District Council

Councillor Gary Taylor, district deputy leader, said: "We recognise the importance in consulting our residents, local businesses and partners, particularly with projects that affect the public realm.

"I hope that with this consultation we can gather the views and opinions of those who use the Spalding town centre and begin to progress this project as soon as possible so that we can add a fresh touch to the public realm and make it a more desirable place to visit."

To have your say, visit www.sholland.gov.uk/PublicRealm to fill out the survey.

There will also be physical copies of the survey available in the Priory Road offices, South Holland Centre and Boston College's Spalding Campus.

What do you think? Post your comments below or have your say by emailing andrew.brookes@iliffepublishing.co.uk

Politics Spalding Andrew Brookes