The City Council’s Cabinet is due to give the final go-ahead to the Palmer Lane regeneration scheme this week.
Palmer Lane is the final element of the Burges High Street Heritage Action Zone.
The scheme was given approval back in 2018, but has been delayed by Covid, the need to secure agreements with land owners and cost inflation. Twelve separate legal agreements have had to be negotiated.
Cabinet is being asked to give final approval and authorize a further payment of £318,000, funded from the Council’s reserves. The total cost of the scheme is £2.402m.
The scheme will de-culvert part of the River Sherbourne in the city centre and create an attractive landscaped space for people to sit out by the river in an area with considerable heritage interest.
The project will include extensive landscaping, enhanced lighting and sustainability improvements to the area. It ties in with the works which have recently taken place on the Burges.
The project includes the restoration of the Illingworth Building at 26 Palmer Lane. This restoration is being undertaken separately as a private venture by Complex Development Projects Ltd. The building will be used for drinks and light refreshments. It will have a cantilevered balcony overlooking the Palmer Lane scheme.
