Albion Place Area Cultural Quarter A boutique hotel to diversify the current of the Cultural Quarter, re-landscaping The Cultural Quarter is already seeing hotel offer within the Quarter, a high end the lower part of Guildhall Road to match significant investment through the residential development reflecting the the upper part of the road, introducing a renovation and expansion of the museum history of the street, or a small business shared surface route along the northern and the development of a start-up hub for premises is suggested for this street. section of Swan Street to give priority to creative industries at the Vulcan Works. pedestrians, enhancing mature trees and Other development opportunities at Swan Other improvements suggested to the area planting and improving the Angel Street Street, Albion Place and Guildhall Road are include extending the pedestrian focused entrance to the Royal & Derngate. proposed to further broaden the appeal of streetscape on Guildhall Road to the rest this area. Swan Street As a distinct destination characterised by creative businesses and institutions, the Quarter deserves its own public space for events or social gatherings. Creating a public space off Swan Street, would improve the setting and frontage to October 2019 the Premier Inn hotel. This site could also accommodate commercial offices. 24 Guildhall Road The former County Council office building Town Centre Masterplan unveiled at 24 Guildhall Road, opposite the Royal & Derngate, is currently empty and A detailed masterplan for the must find a new purpose to ensure the town centre, commissioned by sustainable growth of the Cultural Quarter. Forward, is now The Borough Council is currently exploring available following analysis ideas for cultural uses. of results from the public consultation on the draft plan earlier in the year.

Within the plan, regeneration experts 5plus Architects have The Green Four Waterside Enterprise Zone identified five areas in the town Marefair Two surface car parks surrounded by The Four Waterside Enterprise Zone – the Market Square, Greyfriars, This area creates a first impression for small industrial businesses on Freeschool site presents a significant gateway Abington Street, the Cultural visitors coming from the train station, with Street make the area feel fragmented. development opportunity to provide Quarter and Marefair - and Marefair and Gold Street acting as a main Introducing further residential development high-quality commercial office space and provided detailed suggestions of route into the heart of the town. here would help create a more established a business destination would stimulate how each could be improved. neighbourhood and a safe urban economic growth. The masterplan vision of A comprehensive approach to shop-front environment, while giving a new purpose transforming Northampton town and tenant signage design on Marefair to the existing open green space behind centre into a vibrant and attractive and Gold Street would help tone down St Peter’s Church. the busy ground floor frontages and give place, where people can live, greater presence to the historic façades work and enjoy life to the fullest, is above, along with improved street and based around the key principles of building lighting and the activation of transforming the heart of the town, building frontages to reduce the number of building a smaller and stronger dead spaces on the route. retail core, creating a residential community and enhancing The vacant Castle House site and the town’s culture, history and adjoining surface car parks could be heritage. transformed into a heritage gateway development that highlights the area’s The main themes of heritage, important historic landmarks, including retail, food and beverage, St Peter’s Church and the site of appearance, community, green Northampton Castle. spaces, pedestrianisation, leisure and residential identified from The Churches Conservation Trust and the consultation results are also Borough Council have already proposed addressed within the masterplan. to renovate the historic Black Lion pub to create a heritage visitor’s centre. This month’s Town Centre News gives an overview On the Castle House site, a residential of the main suggestions building, which reinforces the historic for each area, but to view Marefair streetscape, along with a new the masterplan, please park linking to the castle remains, would visit: northampton.gov.uk/ help to reinforce this heritage gateway. tcmasterplan

Published and distributed by Northampton Borough Council 01604 837777 Published by Northampton Borough Council Issue 65 This new layout would encourage better Drapery walking and cycling routes to be created allow the Drapery to be bus free and Market Square access, greater footfall and more flexible The Drapery could be revived as a key Greyfriars across the site and into the town centre. re-establish itself as a high-quality retail The Market Square is the most space, to allow for an integrated water shopping area for the town centre and a The Greyfriars site presents a major These routes would be interspersed by a destination. important public space in the whole of feature, specialist trading markets, much healthier street, by removing bus regeneration opportunity to reconnect the new sequence of distinctive public spaces , but extensive, high- events, seasonal activities and bays and stands, restricting traffic and northern part of the town centre area with running along the route of the former road Redevelopment of the Mayorhold quality public realm regeneration is needed temporary amusements. prioritising pedestrians, which would the core. The opening up of Emporium to create a linear park. Multi-Storey Car Park to reinstate its civic value. The square reconnect the town centre with Sheep Way and equal levelling of paths and Currently underutilised, this car park can Pivotal to the identity of Market Square Bus and coach interchange should be a destination in its own right, Street. The ground floors of buildings highways infrastructure would create be rebuilt into a smaller footprint, to free up is the market itself. Transforming A new interchange would receive buses providing a comfortable setting for people located on the eastern edge of Drapery new vistas which encourage movement space for the construction of a leisure and the existing stalls to provide a more and coaches which currently stop along to meet and relax. could be opened up to allow businesses between Greyfriars and the Market Square. recreation building which would serve the attractive and future-proofed platform for the Drapery and Victoria Street. This would to trade all the way through to Market new town centre residents. The following proposals aim to reposition independent traders would encourage Square. The masterplan suggests creating Market Square at the centre of a stronger greater footfall and bring a new a large scale urban neighbourhood consolidated retail core and re-establish it demographic into the space. with a tall, landmark building at its Emporium Way centre, accompanied by landscaping, as the heart of the town centre. Emporium Way is the covered alleyway Introducing more restaurants and bars functional open spaces and movement into the ground floors of historic buildings next to Boots which links the market A new focal point is proposed for the corridors, while commercial or civic office around the square would create a vibrant square to the lower level of the Mayorhold square to create a more inspiring retail developments are recommended at ecosystem of supportive businesses car park. Demolition of the vacant building experience. Suggestions include a Victoria Street. and ensure the square is active at all which sits above the entrance to the performance area, bandstand or fountain. times of the day. Upper floors could walkway would open it up and establish a A recent feasibility study for the site found This could support specialist traders, be reconfigured the to provide new new connection between the Square and that residential accommodation was the independent restaurants, bars and opportunities for start-up business Greyfriars. The route would be landscaped most financially viable development option. produce markets. workspaces. and include retail frontages. However, in order to include a mix of uses and integrate the site into the wider town, Reconfiguring the layout of existing stalls Improvements will be historically sensitive public sector funding would be required. would open up a primary route running in order to benefit the architectural setting diagonally from the north-west corner of the square. Enhancements must Changes to Greyfriars Road to down to the south-east corner of the complement the impressive building create a linear park Market Square. façades lining the square. Changing the layout of the roads around the Greyfriars site will allow for convenient

Fish Street St Giles’ Street Abington Street Expanding on the leisure, food and drink An emphasis on independent traders in The masterplan proposes to redefine this provision already offered in Fish Street will the ground floor units on St Giles’ Street struggling part of the town centre into a ensure that it remains an important link would help to create a new identity based new residential neighbourhood known as between Abington Street and St Giles’ on a unique retail experience. Above the the Eastgate Quarter. Street. Building refurbishments, should ground floor, alternative uses such as also be explored to encourage new and residential and commercial office space are The creation of new neighbourhoods in the exciting tenants to settle in the area, along proposed, to help embed daylong activity area of Wellington Street and Albert Place, with public realm improvements. in to the town centre. with ground floor living accommodation and front doors would eliminate dead spaces to ensure a safe and welcoming environment is established. Speading leisure, food and beverage units in these streets would help support an evening economy which would benefit the town centre as a whole, while neighbourhoods would be linked by shared surface pedestrian and cycle networks. Abington Street Many existing retail units along Abington Street are now redundant and the large retail units once occupied by Marks & Spencer and BHS will be difficult to reuse as shops. Converting these units into apartments, flats and mews houses would supporting the creation of a new town centre neighbourhood. Along Abington Street, pavements would be widened to accommodate external seating for restaurants as well as providing sufficient circulation for pedestrians to pass naturally without feeling hemmed in. Dynamic lighting and public artwork could create destinations out of overlooked routes and spaces.