Month: December 2014

Cheshire Easts Supports The Partnership’s River Dane walkway Scheme.

The Congleton Partnership has had a long held desire to be able to complete the River Dane Walkway scheme . The last piece of the jigsaw is the section form the Town Bridge through to the scout hut in Rope Walk and includes replacing the very steep steps and the bridge end with a gradual ramp to enable pushchairs , wheel chairs and cyclists alike.

Cheshire East has made a very welcome contribution of £25,000 towards the cost of the project

When completed it will be possible to travel from Eaton Bank (Buglawton) through the Park and onto Dane St (near St James’ Church) by only having to cross one major road.

Cheshire East has made a very welcome contribution of £25,000 towards the cost of the project and is also planning to manage the project through to completion via Highways and their Public Rights of Way team.

This is one of a range of project that The Partnership is working on, more information about the projects and The Partnership in general can be found on its website www.congletonpartnership.co.uk

Congleton Partnership Executive Meeting Minutes 2/12/2014

The latest Congleton Partnership executive meeting was held on the 2nd December. Many projects are planned for Congleton in 2015 which the Partnership will be supporting in, a really exciting time to get involved! Some highlights from the meeting include:

New Partnership Website – Cathy Dean (IBD)

Cathy took us through a presentation outlining the new website (www.congletonpartnership.co.uk)  and its features. This was very well accepted, it now gives us both an identity and a platform to use to get our message through to the general public and hopefully gain members and volunteers at the same.

There is also a new social media element. The Twitter Feed is @congopar ; please follow if you are using this form of communications.

Sustainable Living In Cingleton (SLIC) – Mike Taylor.

Mike Taylor (Carbon Reduction Group Chair) took us through the SLIC presentation. SLIC is a course to help people respond to the threat of climate change and other environmental issues in their daily lives. The SLIC workbook (issued to all members on the night) is made up of 7 modules and was developed from the Transition Streets courses used in the transitional town of Totnes

 

Town Centre Report – J.MacArthur.

  1. Town Centre – End of leases, merges, illness and the continued tough time experienced by many on the High Street has led to more changes in the Town Centre. Occupancy is currently at 85% for the Town Centre – 204 units, 183 occupied. If you could exclude Capitol Walk from the equation occupancy rates rise to 90% 223 units 190 occupied.
  2. Shops ceased trading – Hallmark Thornton stopped trading and the owner has started marketing the shop. House moved from 3 High Street to upstairs in Empire Menswear. Nationwide merged with Cheshire Building Society and moved into the CBS building on the pedestrian area. The 25 year lease finished on the building occupied by the YMCA – not sure on the future of the building and whether the owner will invite YMCA back.
  3. Shops opened Delia Metcalf shoe shop (in the former A&A music shop), new hairdressers about to open outside Capitol Walk, Titanic breweries have opened in the Kings Arms. Mr Wendles opened in Lawton Street. Amans opened in West Heath Shopping Centre. Work continues on the former Game Station in the High Street and the new bar in Lawton Street but no date given for new occupiers.

 

  1. £1 million – Cheshire East has committed £1 to the first two phases of Public Realm work in Congleton -the Cheshire East Highways Team will be working up a scheme which will be shared with all interested parties. The timing isn’t clear, but this is great news for Congleton as rather than talking about the need and desire to improve the public realm we now have financial backing to make improvements to the pedestrian area and the space at the crossroads of Moody Street, Market Street, High Street and pedestrian area.

 

For the rest of the updates please download the minutes.

Executive Meeting Minutes

 

£1 million boost for revitalisation of Congleton town centre

Cheshire East Council, Congleton Town Council and Congleton Partnership have announced a major investment programme for Congleton.

Congleton is set to get £1 million boost from a key development project designed to drastically improve the town centre.

Congleton will see a million pound investment

Cheshire East Council and Congleton Town Council, will look to start improving the pedestrianised areas of High Street, Bridge Street, Duke Street and Little Street as well as the creation of a community square at the junction of High Street and Market Street in 2015.These improvements between High Street and the pedestrianised zone will become a high-quality, multi-use space for occasional markets, festivals and other street activities

The schemes will be part of a plan to re-establish Congleton as an attractive location to live, work, shop, visit and do business. One of the key problems for many towns, including Congleton, is the proliferation of ‘street clutter’. Signs, bollards, advertisements and pedestrian guard rails all contribute to the both the visual and physical intrusion.

This makes it harder for pedestrians, especially the elderly and those with young children, to move though the town. Improving the streetscape will have the added benefit of enhancing the buildings and their architectural appearance.

Costs for the project are yet to be finalised but are estimated to be in the region of £1m, which is being allocated by Cheshire East out of this year’s budget.

Councillor Michael Jones Leader of Cheshire East Council, said:

“The Council is keen to deliver these projects as soon as possible as a way of facilitating and promoting further developments within the town. Congleton has a rich heritage and a lot still to offer and we are determined to boost the economic wellbeing of the town. This project will act as a catalyst for further change and investment. They are yet another example of this Council putting residents first.”

 

Cllr Bob Edwards, Leader of the Town Council added:

“Together with Steve Foster of the Congleton Partnership and other key members of the Town Council we have been working with the Leader of Cheshire East Council for the past 12 months to achieve this result. This is fantastic news for Congleton. We look forward to working with Cheshire East on revitalising the town centre and will be sharing information with residents and businesses.”

This announcement was made following a meeting which took place on Monday 24th November with Cllr Michael Jones, key members of his Cabinet and Town Councillors Bob Edwards, Paul Bates, Glen Williams and Elizabeth Wardlaw.

 

Congleton Sustainability Group Meeting 1.12.2014

The latest Congleton Sustainability Group meeting took place on 1st Dec. Highlights from the meeting are:

Matters Arising:- MT reported that K.Smith (EBA) was approaching the board of governors regarding the SLIC presentation, he is still awaiting a reply.

Matters Arising:-  CHS Energy Leaflet Idea. The leaflet has now been received and was used at the lights switch on event 29.11.14.  Looking to site some of the leaflets at the Library and in the TIC.  MS to get leaflet onto the new website.www.congletonpartnership.co.uk

Moss Farm Planning Application. PM reviewed and reported on the plans to both CSG and Cheshire East

Congleton Neighbourhood Plan

PM, SF and PA have been invited to attend the workshops preparing the Congleton Neighbourhood Plan.  The first meeting will be held on 3rd December.

 

To view the full meeting minutes download here.