A firm of landscape architects has won a contract to help redesign the centre of a town in Norfolk.
Chartered landscape architects Influence have been picked to work on the townscaping element of the North Walsham High Street Heritage Action Zone project.
The team, which works out of offices in Newark and London, has experience working with local councils and communities on public spaces, including other heritage action zones projects around the 海角视频.
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Nationally, some 68 high streets have been offered funding as part of a £95 million programme led by Historic England to breathe new life into historic high streets.
Masterplanning for the North Walsham project will be led by HETA architects, in London, with a public consultation getting underway.
Other partners include Rees Bolter Architects, acting as heritage consultants, BSP, covering highways and transport consultancy and Gleeds Cost Management, acting as quantity surveyors.
Additional funding is being secured from the New Anglia LEP’s “Getting Building Fund”, and the work will take about four years.
Shona Hatton, associate director at Influence, said: “High Street Heritage Action Zones are such a key part of the future for our towns - especially post the pandemic – and are often driven by a strong local community interest.
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“Revitalising and regenerating our high streets whilst reinstating the heritage roots is critical to their success, now and in the future.
“North Walsham is a vibrant market town but has been waiting for a long time to bring forward a high street public realm project.
“Now that it’s here, myself and the Influence team are honoured to have been selected to work on this important project, and are pleased to be supporting North Norfolk District Council’s in-house team.
“Our previous experience in delivering High Street Heritage Action Zones has given us specialist knowledge and understanding of the challenges and huge opportunities in our high streets – and we are using those assets to re-imagine the physical and social environment in North Walsham – to enable it to be a prosperous town where people want to live, work and relax.”
North Norfolk District Council intends to purchase a piece of land adjacent to Black Swan Loke, a long-standing derelict area on an important pedestrian approach to the town centre, and is working on plans for the busy route.
The council and its partners are now inviting comments from residents, businesses and visitors.
Coun Richard Kershaw, NNDC’s portfolio holder for sustainable growth, said: “We are very pleased to be working with Influence on this project and have been impressed with work they have done in other market towns.
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“This will be an exciting, inclusive project to bring lasting improvements to the fabric of North Walsham and to bring visitors to the town for the benefit of local businesses.
“In addition to this, the cultural programme will soon get underway will bring together various societies and groups in and around the town to help celebrate the rich history of North Walsham.”
The Heritage Action Zone grant will also provide an opportunity to review the options for the most suitable use of the council’s New Road site and the listed buildings on it – known as The Cedars – and the role it can play in the regeneration of the town centre.