Northampton Forward seeks views from the public over future of the town centre
Consultations are now underway to look at how the town centre should change in order to meet the needs of the town.
The Northampton Forward group, of which the BID is a strategic partner, has identified five zones as priority areas – and the public are now being invited to have their say. The five zones are:
- Marefair and Gold Street
- Market Square
- Greyfriars
- Fish Street and St Giles Street
- Abington Street
Mark Mullen, BID Operations Manager, said: “We are embarking on very exciting times for Northampton town centre and we are pleased and proud to be actively involved in the initial stages of the journey to redefine, futureproof and represent our levy payers within the decision making processes”
An exclusive consultation for BID businesses is taking place at The Platform on Tuesday, 21st May, 5.30pm for a prompt 6pm start. This will be chaired by Kevin Langley, Economic Growth and Regeneration Manager for Northampton Borough Council. This is a chance to find out more and ask questions about the Northampton Forward proposals. Email info@northamptonbid.co.uk
Grosvenor Centre Manager, James Roberts, who is on the Northampton Forward board, said: “There is enormous potential to be realised within Northampton, this coupled with a fantastic energy to drive change by passionate individuals, community groups and the Northampton Forward board, means there are exciting challenges to transform the town.”
Potential changes include delivering modern retail units, introducing more office space and encouraging higher levels of residential.
The plans could also look at improved public realm, shopfronts, and the creation of attractive links between the various parts of the town centre.
Cllr Jonathan Nunn, leader of Northampton Borough Council and Chair of the Northampton Forward Board, said: “We are extremely keen that people offer us their views on these proposals.
“We’ve asked specialists who have done great work revitalising other towns to take a fresh look at Northampton.
“Before we progress further one of the most important things is that we develop a plan which people can get behind and which delivers the absolute best result for Northampton residents and visitors.
“We have ambitious aspirations for our town and want to ensure that we can translate those into something deliverable.”
Northampton Forward is a public/private partnership which was formed earlier this year to create a vision for the town and drive forward a strategic programme of improvements.
Its board is formed of a wide range of partners including:
- Northampton Borough Council
- Northamptonshire County Council
- Northants Police
- Grosvenor Centre
- Northampton Town Centre BID
- University of Northampton
- Royal and Derngate
- LiftNN Project (Community representative)
- South East Midlands Local Enterprise Partnership (SEMLEP)
- Trickers
- Northamptonshire Chamber of Commerce
Consultation events already confirmed are as follows:
- 15 May, 10.30am – 2pm University of Northampton, Learning Hub
- 18 May, 11am – 3pm Grosvenor Centre, Unit 23 Newland Walk
- 20 May, 11am – 3pm Grosvenor Centre, Unit 23 Newland Walk
- 21 May, 11am – 3pm Grosvenor Centre, Unit 23 Newland Walk
- 22 May, 11am – 3pm Grosvenor Centre, Unit 23 Newland Walk
- 23 May, 11am – 3pm Grosvenor Centre, Unit 23 Newland Walk
- 24 May, 11am – 3pm Grosvenor Centre, Unit 23 Newland Walk
