| April 2006 Your monthly update Welcome to the new-look town centre news. We're hoping to get this out on a monthly basis as things start hotting up in the town with construction work for the Cattle Market development due to start in October. Before then there will be various works going on to get the site ready. If there's a need to get information out more quickly then this newsletter will be issued more often. We're trying to update our distribution list so if you know anyone else who would like to receive it please let us know. Please also let us know if you do not want to continue receiving this. And if you're a member of several different organisations you may be receiving this newsletter more than once - it would be very helpful if you could let us know if that is the case. We would also be grateful if anyone in a large organisation could help us spread the word by forwarding copies to others in their company or printing one out for a staff noticeboard. We want as many people as possible to keep up to date with progress! The newsletter is compiled and distributed by St Edmundsbury Borough Council. We welcome suggestions for future topics - and comments on whether you find this method of communication useful. Contact: communications@stedsbc.gov.uk Constructive contractors A shortlist has been drawn up from the construction companies which expressed an interest in building the Cattle Market development. Tenders will be sent out in early May, with bids being assessed during the summer. As well as being a contractor with a reputation for quality we will also make sure they have a strong background in community relations. It is never easy living with a building site and the contractor will need to work with us to keep disruption to an absolute minimum and everyone up to date throughout the building work. The construction contractor will be building the shops and flats for Centros Miller and the underground car park and public venue shell for St Edmundsbury. New electronic parking signs Electronic signs giving information on how many spaces are left in each parking area, so you can decide which is the best spot to head for, will be going up in Bury St Edmunds. The signs will be placed on the main approaches to the car parks and as well as guiding drivers to where the spaces are, they will also indicate whether the car parks are long or short stay. A central computer will count vehicles in and out of the car parks and relay the information to the signs around the town. The car parks to be included in the project are Ram Meadow, St Andrews Street North, Cattle Market, Parkway and Robert Boby Way. The scheme costs £250,000 and £200,000 of this has come from the income from on-street pay and display car parking. The remaining £50,000 is a contribution from Centros Miller. | Cattle Market talks to groups We've been out and about talking to various groups about the Cattle Market plans and have received tremendously positive responses, with people telling us they are looking forward to seeing the heart of the town grow larger. If you are a member of a club or organisation and would like someone to come and talk to your group about the Cattle Market plans then give us a call and we'll be happy to come along. To book a talk call Carol Rowntree on 01284 757683 or Andrea Mayley on 01284 757343. Work starts in car park Before construction starts on the Cattle Market site various activities will be going on (called enabling works) to get it ready for the builders. Among the most important pieces of work is moving the main electricity power cable in Prospect Row. Work on this, by energy firm EDF, is due to start early in May. The cable currently runs through what will become Debenhams' basement and the underground car park. Other work includes improving drainage in the surface car park and improvements to the entrance/exit on to Parkway. Some parking spaces will be lost, but work will be carried out in zones (as it was during the borehole testing a few months ago) and co-ordinated as far as possible to minimise disruption Keeping you informed We’re keeping residents close to the Cattle Market site fully informed of what will be happening when work begins and have written to them with plans and information about safe pedestrian routes, temporary construction buildings and temporary toilets and hoardings. Most of the temporary buildings will be erected in September/October once a construction contractor has been appointed. We’ll have full details about parking and pedestrian routes in this newsletter closer to the time. Car park charges and season tickets Car parking rises are never popular but most of the increases in Bury St Edmunds are just 10p or 20p. The money is ploughed back into the service for resident permit schemes, attendants and general maintenance, and for lighting and security to keep our car parks safe for you to use. In fact our Parkway multi-storey has just won a safety award. If you're a regular user you can buy a car park season ticket which saves up to 40% on the daily charge. You can buy season tickets for Ram Meadow, Parkway surface or the Parkway multi-storey for a minimum of two months. Buy your season ticket from the kiosk at the Parkway multi-storey or by post from St Edmundsbury Borough Council offices. Town Centre News is compiled and distributed by the Communications Unit, St Edmundsbury Borough Council, Borough Offices, Angel Hill, Bury St Edmunds, IP33 1XB. |
