New Car Park will drive transformation for Town Centre

A brand new multi-storey car park – part of the once-in-a-generation investment plans for the development of the Ryecroft area in Newcastle-under-Lyme – is set to get the go-ahead.

This will clear the way for the demolition of the ageing Midway Car Park and modern town centre housing on the site.

Leader of the Newcastle-under-Lyme Borough Council, Simon Tagg, said: “This is yet another massive step in the regeneration and transformation of the town and it is very exciting. The new, state-of-the-art car park is a major part of the development plans for the Ryecroft area which will ultimately include new, open public spaces, modern retail opportunities, superb town centre living accommodation for older people, and new connectivity with the surrounding areas.”

Newcastle’s Cabinet were set to approve the appointment of a contractor to implement bold new plans for the car park at their meeting on Wednesday 1 December.

Work began earlier this year on the demolition of the former Civic Offices, to make sure that the redevelopment can be fully optimised, and the Council recently revealed procurement plans for the York Place area, which links Ryecroft to the rest of the town centre.

The demolition of the town’s out-dated multi-storey car park, at Midway, will be funded by the Town Deals Fund and will bring to an end many years of doubt over its sustainability and fitness for purpose, with its continual repair costs and failing economic viability. Plans for the new multi-storey car park are expected to include ample space for about 450 cars, easily accessible electric/hybrid car charging points and other sustainable design features that will exceed users’ expectations for years to come.

The Council has already committed £3.5m of its own Capital Resource and Morgan Sindall have been selected through an open tender process to design and implement the construction of the car-park with a budget of just over £350,000, making the total budget for delivery of the new car park around £7m.