Wokingham’s town centre regeneration gets under way in earnest from Monday, January 9 – an ambitious 18-month project to turn Rose Street Car Park into a new public plaza called Peach Place.
The project will see a parade of shops from Clintons through to, but not including, The Redan pub get knocked down and new buildings put in place.
Peach Street will include an array of shops and houses as well as the new public square, which is hoped to be used for a range of leisure activities and events.
But while the project takes shape there will be disruption and road closures, leading to the Council to remind residents that the town centre remains open and is a vibrant place to come for a day’s shopping.
Cllr Mark Ashwell, Wokingham Borough Council’s executive member for planning and regeneration, said: “The message to shoppers planning to come to the town’s great shops, cafes, restaurants and pubs is – don’t panic, Wokingham is open for business and is still a great place to visit.
“We’ve got 1,600 town centre parking spaces within close walking distance of Market Place, we’ve got 65 independent shops, 30 bars and restaurants, four markets a week and a farmers’ market every month.
“We will also be making sure any roadworks are clearly communicated so people know what to expect when they make their way into and out of town.”
This week’s Wokingham Paper – on sale now in all good newsagents, supermarkets and petrol stations – contains a special advertisement feature on the Peach Place works and showing where the car parks can be found.
What you can expect during Peach Place works
- Rose Street public car park will close – signs have been on display at the car park letting regular users know of the closure and pointing them to the Regeneration Company website where they can find out more about alternative parking
- The last of the shops and other businesses in the section of Peach Street to be rebuilt will move out and the borough council has been working closely with them to try to find suitable alternative premises for those that want to relocate
- Pedestrian access to the Methodist Church and Bradbury Centre will be maintained from Rose Street throughout the works
- Initial works on site will include the internal stripping out of the empty shops along Peach Street
- During the demolition work in Peach Street (expected to start at the end of February) the road will be reduced to one lane for around 15 weeks. The footpath will also be closed for the remainder of the works. The council said that this closure is necessary to allow for the safe demolition of the units closest to the road. Exact dates are currently being discussed and will be published shortly
- The contractor, Dawnus, will be based in a site office in the former Domino’s Pizza unit in Bush Walk
Positive start says Peach Place councillor
Cllr Mark Ashwell, Wokingham Borough Council’s executive member for planning and regeneration, said: “January is going to see spades in the ground on a project that we’ve carefully planned, with residents and businesses, for many years.
“We will be getting rid of the dated 1960s parade and replacing it with attractive new buildings that have been designed to improve the look of the town centre and with the flexibility to adapt to the changing needs of the town centre for years to come.
“It also allows us to strengthen the things that make Wokingham unique compared to larger neighbours, such as the increasingly popular café culture and the strong mix of independent stores alongside larger nationals.
“While it’s early days yet, we have been really pleased with the level of interest from businesses in taking on units within Wokingham and firmly believe that we can deliver the great town centre that Wokingham and its residents deserve to have.”
