The first meeting of the Ipswich Borough Council (IBC) Executive since March – two sets of elections got in the way – had a long discussion on Towns Fund projects.

The Public Realm and Greening project comprises a range of measures that will ‘green’ Ipswich Town Centre and the route to the waterfront as well as improving the public realm in and around Lloyds Avenue. Public realm is a term used to identify the urban spaces that are publicly accessible. It covers all parts of the built environment that the public has free access to. These spaces are essential for people to socialise, play, work, exercise and engage in diverse communal activities.

The main aims of the project are to provide a green space right beside the heart of the town centre to encourage visitors and increase footfall.  On the eastern side of Lloyds Avenue there will be wider pavements on one side with seating to encourage people to linger and to enable local businesses to offer food and drink.

There has been consultation with local businesses and the taxi trade has been consulted a number of times. Understandably, they are unhappy to lose any taxi waiting spaces.  However, there is a need to strike a balance between improving the area through pedestrianisation and quality urban design and the operational needs of the businesses and taxi trade. There will still be space for 10 taxis and IBC will be consulting on another proposed rank in central Ipswich.

The Greener Ipswich project aims to broaden biodiversity and green areas within the town centre via a connected trail through the town including Lloyds Avenue, Princes Street, Queen Street and St Nicholas Street to the Waterfront.

The former R & W Paul silo on St Peters Dock is a 55 metre (180 feet) high derelict reinforced concrete structure that dominates the main entrance to the Waterfront area from Stoke Bridge. It is a complex industrial structure constructed in the 1960’s for storing and handling malt. The major complication is that most of the building interior is occupied by individual silos cast into the building structure.

IBC have had discussions involving 34 different operators to develop the Silo as a leisure attraction. Unfortunately, it appears that this is impossible.  It has been recommended to the Ipswich Towns Deal Board that the Silo project be closed as there are no operators with an interest in the property.

It is also recommended that the unspent money be reallocated to the other Towns Deal projects, which needs to be agreed by the Government.  Note that the terms of the Towns Deal make it impossible to spend the money on another Silo project, as the Towns Deal was specifically for a Silo leisure development.

The Silo is owned by IBC and I have asked officers to prepare an options appraisal for consideration by Executive and after consideration of all the options, IBC will decide the next steps on the Silo.

The closure of the Pauls Silo project puts at risk the redevelopment of the wider St Peters Dock area. However, it has been recommended to the Towns Deal Board that some of the Silo money is passed to the Public Realm and Greening project, to extend their work to the Waterfront. This could replace the existing IBC carpark, the walls around it and the closed slip road with a welcoming green space, possibly including a Tudor themed garden, a viewing point for Wolsey’s Gate and a launchpad for other heritage projects.

It would be great to unlock the potential of the primary entrance to the Waterfront.

 

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