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THE OUTLINE PLANS • A fully permeable, pedestrian-friendly development focused on a central route from the canal towards Stonewell • A new pedestrian bridge over Stonewell to provide level access into the city centre through St Nicholas Arcades • A series of open spaces of varying nature, including green space and hard landscaping • An ‘open streets’ approach with a range of separate buildings • Leisure uses – restaurants and cafés – around an open space next to the canal • Residential elements close to the canal and Alfred Street • Enhanced cultural and leisure uses around the Dukes and Grand theatres and St Leonard's Gate • New premises for the Musician’s Co-operative, further enhancing the cultural strength of the area • A department store and a variety of new retail units • Multi-storey parking with access off St Leonards Gate • Offices and small workshops on Moor Lane and St Leonards Gate

LANCASTER CANAL CORRIDOR: YOUR VIEWS
Last Updated: 15/2/06:Published as part of the Virtual-Lancaster web site
Read more about Lancaster development: Click Here

• What do YOU think of these outline plans? Let us know via ed@virtual-lancaster.net

Your reaction to the initial plans announced by Centros Miller for Lancaster's "Canal Corridor" area --

Cal from residents' group It's Our City (15/2/06): "Alfred Street will overlook the multi-storey, plus we don't know the height of the proposed resident "block".
"We will have a real battle on our hands, in my view. I'm furious there's no provision for small businesses in these plans."

(Centros Miller have responded quickly to this particular concern. "The car park will take advantage of the changing levels of the site (which drops a great deal from the level of Alfred Street)," explains Steve Bryson, who works for Centros Miller's PR company, Halogen. "The plan also proposes new housing on Alfred Street and therefore the existing residents of Alfred Street will not be able to see the car park. They will also benefit considerably from their street changing from a busy rat-run to a cul-de-sac with a green park at the end.")

It's Our City has previously suggested:
• A real cultural quarter: ideally centred on a triangle between the Grand, the Dukes and the present musicians Co-op, BUT see below for an idea to use the old brewery building
• A canalside walk or park.
• Preserving or converting the old brewery building as it would be large enough for the musicians co-op, plus a performance venue, with space for small shops, eg Niche, craft shops or maybe a Lancaster version of Afflecks Palace.
• They do not want the views of the Castle any more obsured than they are now.
• Any housing should include low cost although it was pointed out that North Lancaster has been designated for the regeneration of housing stock, but land should be made available to Housing Associations
• All existing small businesses are to stay and not be compulsarily purchased

The group has also said it will not accept a multi storey car park and has very very strong reservations about a large retail store. Will the rear of the building face the residential area? What about loading/unloading etc.
Does Lancaster need a large retail store?

Simon Cresswell, 15/2/06: "I would bet anything that most of the retail spaces will struggle in the way in which artificially created shopping areas in so many towns located at the margins struggle. it won't take long before some shops collapse with empty retail space undermining the health and vibrancy of the others. for example the retail spaces in and near the new Booths and the old M&S in Kendal are quite high turnover.

"It's disappointing to see there is no obvious new space for start-up businesses that aren't retail in nature.

"I would like to see more green space in a very tarmac-dominated section of the City. "I would like to see a play area for kids / families in the scheme. "I loathe the idea of a multi-store carpark. These always blight areas and can have safety concerns. can centros point to a cheery pleasant car park? "I welcome any commitment to pedestrianisation and cycling.

"I think more integration of residential units amongst or above the retail space would make the area livelier, particularly in the evening when it will become a wasteland, like much of the city centre does after about 5.30 (but before the drinkers arrive en masse). Perhaps Centros needs to look to some regeneration projects in Edinburgh and London to find some imaginative models?

"Where will buses stop if people are to carry all their retail space goodies home using something other than a car?"

Satori, 15/2/06: "I think one question a lot of people were hoping would be resolved is the lack of a sizeable hireable venue for music events, particularly for band concerts, festival and dance nights. There is no sizeable venue currently available for hire in the whole city other than the Gregson, which is small and innapropriately placed for this purpose in a residential area, so that events cannot continue past midnight. "This puts a real limit on the extent to which local promoters and bands can shape a following or attract interest from a wider region - which means that their ability to progress beyond a local level is severely handicapped.

"For that matter, there is nowhere in Lancaster where any decent touring band would want to play. The nearest venue is the Platform in Morecambe which has a notoriously bad acoustic and layout for live music events. "Hundreds of young people attend the Lancaster Community Music Centre sessions every Saturday. Numerous bands and musicians are supported by the Musicians' Coop. The Hothouse in Morecambe turns out musicians and musical creative talent by the shedload. It's something that we do really, really well in this area and there are some great local bands squeezing into every pub back room in town all the time to play - but you can hardly get near them. We have some of the greatest dance DJs in the country - and each weekend all through the summer they're playing at outdoor 'informal' events all over Cumbria that attract a vast following.

"We should give our musicians and DJs and also touring bands a decent, affordable place to play, where they can get enough people in to create a real atmosphere and actually do a bit more than cover their costs. And maybe it would give our young people something a bit cooler to do than slosh about in WKD at the McDiscos down on Bulk Road."

City Councillor John Whitelegg

Councillor John Whitelegg, 16/2/06: "I am not happy.  This plan is already looking very much like a traditional car-based boring shopping development on the edge of a city centre.  My concerns are:

• it will damage the existing city centre and we will see boarded up shops and dereliction in Market Sq/Penny St/the pedestrianised area.  There are already about 30 empty shops in the city centre

• the allocation of "proper" green space/public space is not enough.  We need a real park of some kind and a substantial area of land allocated to this

• the multi-story car park is massive.  We need to know exactly what they plan in terms of spaces and number of floors and it should be much smaller

• I am very worried about new roads.  The whole plan for a new shopping centre is based on the idea (which I reject) that we must attract shoppers by car.  They will be planning for thousands of car trips per day to enter this site so exactly how will these cars be brought from the M6 via Caton Rd to the site?  We may be looking at a very large new road.

• I am worried about privatised public space.  I want to see an absolute commitment to open access to the whole of this site 24/7 to members of the public.  I don't want gates and private security firms throwing out kids on skateboards or buskers.  This will require a section 106 planning agreement to build this in as a "legal charge" on the land

• I want to see youth facilities on the site.  We keep saying as a Council that we are keen to provide youth facilities but there is not much sign of this on the ground

County Councillor Matt Wootton

County Councillor Mat Wootton (sent 15/2/06): "It seems to me that it could be worse... but not very... there's one bit of open space, and one building for "cultural uses". 

It's clearly not a "cultural quarter" to my mind, and there's not much green open space... when *even* Centros Millers' survey said that "The People" want:

• Leisure/cultural quarter: 54.1%
 • Shopping: 46.1%
 • Open space: 25.5%
 • Housing: 19.2%
 • Parking: 18.9%
 • Small workshops/industrial units: 8.2%
 • Offices: 4.9% 

"There are at least three buildings for "leisure use", but what will this be...? Basically, it seems to be shops and a big car park." 

'Mike' (sent 16/2/06): "Apart from the many other concerns about this plan, I would want to know how much of the "open" space will be genuinely public space. The pedestrian throughway seems to be something people are intended to be impressed by. There is a danger with area developments like this that rights of way and existing streets get privatised, managed and sometimes closed at night. (Birmingham good, Liverpool bad, apparently.)

"And how is a multi-storey car park justified by an 18.9% preference for parking? (Perhaps by referring to their statement that they interviewed a disproportionate number of 18-25 year olds, meaning car drivers were under-represented ... "

'Max' (posted 16/2/06): "The whole area will indeed be privatised. The council want to lease the land for 250 years. For those of us around today that is forever.

"They will be able to exclude anyone they want - including bicyclists, leafletters, stall holders, the dreadlocked, the people with funny noses... (anyone ever tried leafletting in Marketgate or St Nicholas'? They used to be public areas, now you get chucked out by security).

"And considering the size of this development, [it] means the town centre will shift sideways, we will want to put our GM/Peace/Priory/Save the Music Co-op etc stalls there.

"There is an easy answer tho' - the council need only adopt each and every road and pathway in the development. That way we will have the same rights as we do in the current city centre.

"The poor shopkeepers will still however be at the mercy of a monopolist landlord..."

Paul Speight, posted 16/2/06: "It is of some significance that this study is only the second biggest to have been undertaken over the corridor development... The biggest having been done by Real Planning for Lancaster. I'm amazed to have heard no reference to it in any local media outlet or by the likes of John Whitelegg.

"If I was one of the people who helped carry it out (oh... I was) I'd be a bit bemused.... "