North Somerset Council has revealed further plans to transform Weston – with a focus on creating a more healthier, greener and more prosperous place to live.

The Council – who’ll be speaking at our upcoming Seaside Towns Regeneration Conference – saw the 10-year vision backed by local council leaders, having consulted more than 5,000 local residents.

The new vision outlines the regeneration and economic development for Weston town centre in response to the changing face of the high street, and the strategy is the final product of a consultation period run by Turner Works in collaboration with the council. [emaillocker id=”71749″]

Turner.Works ran a number of public events under the Super Weston initiative to discover what people would like to see in town. You & Me Architects have also been involved in the project.

The vision for Weston focuses on helping the visitor economy and the town centre adjust to changes accelerated by coronavirus, as well as wellbeing and recreation, the town being environmentally-friendly and low-carbon, as well as a ‘great place’ to live, work and study.

North Somerset Council executive member for business, economy and employment, Mark Canniford, said: “Coronavirus is accelerating fundamental changes in town centres, with the need to encourage more people to the high street higher than ever.

“This placemaking strategy sets out a concrete plan to help Weston become a healthier, greener and more prosperous place to live, work and enjoy.

“Weston, like all towns, is suffering under Covid-19 recovery, so this is a timely piece of work, which started before the pandemic. More than 5,000 people replied on the consultation’s wishes and we had a great deal of engagement with businesses, community groups and organisations.

“We need to make Weston a place where people want to work, live, and has great connections, where they want to play and enjoy. The town has five million visitors a year, it’s a lovely location and we really need to take advantage of that as an authority.”

The strategy was awarded a £1.7m Government grant earlier this month which will fund Weston General Stores, a project focusing on re-purposing vacant retail space in the town centre, to create space for people to work if they no longer need to commute into an office.

Find out more about the Seaside Towns Development & Regeneration Conference here: https://www.built-environment-networking.com/event/seaside-towns-development-regeneration/

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