More than £16.5m has been secured to transform Wigan town centre’s high street.
Wigan Council has been awarded a total of £16,633,691 from the Future High Street Fund to support its large-scale regeneration plans, which include creating a thriving residential, office, leisure and retail sector within the town centre.
The Leader of Wigan Council, Coun David Molyneux, said: “A lot of hard work went in to presenting such a compelling case to central government, so we are extremely pleased to have secured such a significant level of investment.
“This will make a significant contribution to the revitalisation of Wigan town centre and will complement the exciting work taking place at The Galleries and through our Heritage Action Zone on King Street.”
The funding will support a package of projects across Wigan town centre including helping to deliver the redevelopment of The Galleries, establishing a pioneering live-work scheme on King Street and public realm enhancements.
Together the projects will help increase footfall, drive economic growth and improve the experience of the town centre for residents, businesses and visitors.
Coun Molyneux added: “Following what has been an extremely turbulent time, we’re confident that this news will be welcomed by residents and businesses and will give a boost to our local economy.”
North West based company, Cityheart (the developer leading on the redevelopment of The Galleries) has recently launched a pre-planning public consultation to gauge opinion on the five-year scheme.
Running until 1 June, the outcomes of the consultation will help to shape the final planning application, which will be submitted in June. This will be followed by a statutory planning consultation.
A virtual public webinar will take place today (Thursday 20 May) at 6pm, where members of the public can look at the plans, ask questions of the project team and provide constructive feedback.
