Ambitious for our town centre

Earlier today Mayor Dave was interviewed by the BBC about his ambitious plans for Bedford town centre.

As you may have seen the former Goldings building on Bedford High Street has been restored to its former glory as part of the High Street Heritage Action Zone restoration programme. The scaffolding has come down to reveal brilliant gold lettering and the iconic Goldings logo painted on the building.

The restoration of the Goldings building looks fantastic. There will be more building restorations as well as the regeneration project on Midland Road. Through the High Street Heritage Action Zone scheme the Council has helped to restore a number of buildings including Blue Monk, Sundaes Gelato and the new units on Silver Street Square some of which already have new tenants lined up. There are many more works in progress right now.

Meanwhile Mayor Dave and the Council are continuing discussions with property owners about the future of the former Beales and former Debenhams sites in Bedford Town Centre.

Whilst discussions are at an early stage these positive talks are an indication of a shared commitment to improve Bedford Town Centre together. The conversations are focusing on understanding how the relevant parties can work together to progress work on the buildings in the block - known as Mayes Yard.

Mayes Yard was included as a site for development in its Local Plan 2040 and discussions are looking at how a scheme could potentially create smaller commercial units for retail or food/beverage occupiers, other leisure uses and residential opportunities on the upper floors.

The site listed in the Local Plan 2040 also includes the whole area, including Bedford Corn Exchange, the Harpur Suite and Bedford Central Library, these sites will be improved rather than relocated as a result of these plans. These key community, cultural and entertainment facilities will be a central component of the approach being considered for Mayes Yard.

Mayor Dave Hodgson said "I am delighted to be continuing our work with the owners of the former Beales and Debenhams sites to bring together plans for an exciting new town centre offer. Our positive approach to economic development has helped us to work effectively with the building owners to help understand how we can make Mayes Yard an attractive and viable development opportunity and we look forward to holding further conversations and sharing more information publicly as soon as possible as we bring this project to fruition. As you can see from these comments from the landowners involved:

Panther Securities' (who own Beales) head of property "We are happy to be able to work collaboratively with the Council and other stakeholders to hopefully be bringing forward a viable development in what we feel is a key site for the town. We have high hopes for Bedford and it is a real positive that there is such an ambitious administration keen to engage with us in these early stages."

The Debenhams owners' agents have also said "Bedford Borough Council have been proactive and supportive in working with us to identify a way forward for the former Debenhams building in Bedford Town Centre. We are excited about the opportunity to bring this complex site back into use and feel in working with the Council and other stakeholders, we can collaborate to deliver a high-quality and long-term sustainable scheme that benefits Bedford Town Centre."

While there is still lots more to discuss and plan, these conversations represent an encouraging positive step in the right direction for this important town centre location and combined with our heritage restorations, this is proof that despite national challenges caused by central Government policy, Bedford is still able to lead the way in enhancing our environment. The opportunity to capitalise on the site's central location, proximity to the Embankment, the leisure hub at Riverside Bedford, the cultural hub around The Higgins Bedford and St. Pauls, as well as the Bedford Town Deal projects, could yield a variety of exciting opportunities for our town centre.

Mayor Dave added "As well as being ambitious for Bedford town centre, I am also ambitious for Kempston town centre and will continue to bid for funding to deliver improvements at the Saxon Centre and beyond, walking and cycling infrastructure including new health facilities. It is a shame the Conservative Government have recently chosen to ignore Kempston whilst awarding £19 million of levelling-up funding to the Prime Minister's constituency!"

You can see a video of Mayor Dave outside Goldings here.