New public square in Leicester....

[adam1]

BBC NEWS: http://www.bbc.co.uk...rshire-17273609]

Plans for £4m Jubilee Square in Leicester

An artist's impression of the new square located at St Nicholas Place has been drawn

Plans for a new £4m public open space in Leicester have been unveiled by the city council.

It will be named Jubilee Square to mark the Queen's visit to the city on Thursday in the year of her Diamond Jubilee.

The new square will be located at St Nicholas Place, near to where the High Cross was originally positioned.

To help fund the project, Leicester City Council will bid for cash from the European Regional Development Fund.

The authority said the rest of the money would come from the sale of council assets.

New gardens

Leicester's Mayor Sir Peter Soulsby said: "The creation of a civic square will be a big step towards reconnecting Leicester with its heritage and will give visitors a wonderful first impression of the city."

He added that he would like to see the initial stages of work get under way this year.

The High Cross, currently located on Cheapside, will be moved to the new square, returning it close to its original position, where it would have been at the centre of the medieval town.

New gardens will replace the car park, park-and-ride hub and taxi rank, which are currently sited at St Nicholas Place.

Detailed designs are yet to be drawn up but the council is aiming to keep the park-and-ride services and taxi rank close by, possibly on St Nicholas Circle.

My thoughts:

1) The area has just had a significant amount of money spent on it

2) Its located adjacent to St Nicholas Circle (very busy with traffic - noise and pollution)

3) Eyesore that is the car park and the holiday inn hotel

4) Ill thought and rushed through (the need for a significant square in leicester)

[Trav Le Bleu]

My thoughts:

1) The area has just had a significant amount of money spent on it

2) Its located adjacent to St Nicholas Circle (very busy with traffic - noise and pollution)

3) Eyesore that is the car park and the holiday inn hotel

4) Ill thought and rushed through (the need for a significant square in leicester)

I agree with all those statements. In fact, if i recall correctly that piece of land has changed usage 4 times in the last 20 years. Was derelict buildings, then flattened, then car park, then turning point for buses, now this. Riciculous and as you say, too near St Nic's Circle, so overlooked by a multistorey (which is just asking for snipers! ) and the inner ring road. My guess is that the Council is 4 million short on its budget and needs to spend it to justify our taxes.

[adam1]

Nottingham has the fantastic old market square. Now that is a public square. Large, spacious, right in the city centre. I think that the city council are looking enviously at our neighbours.

[Webbo]

2 questions;

a) Where will the people who park there now park?

b) Why is this costing £4million?

[adam1]

2 questions;

a) Where will the people who park there now park?

b) Why is this costing £4million?

You don't. The city council is implementing a strategy whereby they try to remove/prevent public car parks from remaining open/opening. This is to encourage car users onto the piss poor and overly priced public transport. Park and rides that close at 7pm when most restaurants / bars etc are only just opening? Removal of parking spaces will result in a loss of jobs due to shop closures/less hours. Which shop will want to open on a sunday when there is a non existant bus service and no parking facilities for people?

[MrSpaM]

They've just spent x amount of millions building the park and ride, to just knock the whole thing down and build a 4 million square on top of it. Is this really what our taxes are being spent on?!? complete madness

[hairy]

They've just spent x amount of millions building the park and ride, to just knock the whole thing down and build a 4 million square on top of it. Is this really what our taxes are being spent on?!? complete madness

No one is knocking down the park and ride. The new square will be at the top of High Street.

Why cant they build the new square on the old bus station on at Southgates?

[Trav Le Bleu]

No one is knocking down the park and ride. The new square will be at the top of High Street.

Why cant they build the new square on the old bus station on at Southgates?

You mean across from the Shakespeare's Head?

[hairy]

You mean across from the Shakespeare's Head?

Thats the badger.

[Saxondale]

b) Why is this costing £4million?

Because the council are managing it.

[Finnegan]

Because the council are managing it.

I'd object but, eh, you're totally right.

[jonlcfc1990]

As long as all the goths don't claim it as their own. And i know someone mentioned Nottingham and yeah it is spacious...Thats why all those hippies managed to camp there for so long

[AS7]

Could someone kindly link the location of where they are planning to build this on Google streeview? I can't make out where they are actually planning to build this square...

Is it opposite Maiyango and near the BBC where that car park is? If so, that's a rather bizzare place as it's on the periphery of the town centre. The point of the square should be a central hub.

[adam1]

No one is knocking down the park and ride. The new square will be at the top of High Street.

Why cant they build the new square on the old bus station on at Southgates?

The park and ride facilities (pick up drop off) would be knocked down. That is where the square will be.

Southgates isn't owned by the Council. Also I think a hotel and student appartments are to be built on that site.

Could someone kindly link the location of where they are planning to build this on Google streeview? I can't make out where they are actually planning to build this square...

Is it opposite Maiyango and near the BBC where that car park is? If so, that's a rather bizzare place as it's on the periphery of the town centre. The point of the square should be a central hub.

Yes. Next to Maiyango and the BBC.

Make that point number 5) in my original list

1) The area has just had a significant amount of money spent on it

2) Its located adjacent to St Nicholas Circle (very busy with traffic - noise and pollution)

3) Eyesore that is the car park and the holiday inn hotel

4) Ill thought and rushed through (the need for a significant square in leicester)

5) Its on the periphery of the town centre. The point of the square should be a central hub.

[lcfcadam]

A much better idea in the long run would be to demolish the whole of the vile Haymarket Centre, theatre and bus station, and replace that whole triangle bordered by Belgrave Gate, Humberstone Gate and Charles Street with a big open square (in much the same vein as Nottingham's afforementioned Market Square).

I mean the theatre is a non-functional building anyway, the shopping centre is just a hang-out for chavs and other ugly people, and the bus station just seems unnecessary when there is an under-utilised proper bus station just a few minutes' walk away.

Granted that would be significantly more expensive, but the benefits to the city in the long term would be so much greater. Like others have said, creating a new public space on the peripheries of the city centre won't attract good people to hang out there - it will just become the domain of asbo teenagers, graffiti and vandalism, and a favourite location for pissing and throwing up post-Mosh.

[adam1]

A much better idea in the long run would be to demolish the whole of the vile Haymarket Centre, theatre and bus station, and replace that whole triangle bordered by Belgrave Gate, Humberstone Gate and Charles Street with a big open square (in much the same vein as Nottingham's afforementioned Market Square).

I mean the theatre is a non-functional building anyway, the shopping centre is just a hang-out for chavs and other ugly people, and the bus station just seems unnecessary when there is an under-utilised proper bus station just a few minutes' walk away.

Granted that would be significantly more expensive, but the benefits to the city in the long term would be so much greater. Like others have said, creating a new public space on the peripheries of the city centre won't attract good people to hang out there - it will just become the domain of asbo teenagers, graffiti and vandalism, and a favourite location for pissing and throwing up post-Mosh.

Good points. It would also enable a regeneration of Belgrave Gate and Charles Street.

[MrSpaM]

No one is knocking down the park and ride. The new square will be at the top of High Street.

Why cant they build the new square on the old bus station on at Southgates?

You mean where the park and ride buses drop everybody off? isnt that still called a park and ride?

I've also heard from a pretty reliable source they are planning on getting rid of the underpass near the holday inn as well, and redeveloping all the roads at that end of high street. Theres also talk about them having some place people can bring boats nearer the city center as well, apparently they've been planning that one for quite a while

[Langston]

No one is knocking down the park and ride. The new square will be at the top of High Street.

Why cant they build the new square on the old bus station on at Southgates?

They need to do something with that space, definitely.

[adam1]

They need to do something with that space, definitely.

As stated above by me. Privately owned. Apparently a hotel is planned along with student accomodation. Thats what I have heard.