In the Chancellor’s budget today (15 March), North East Lincolnshire Council’s bid to the Government’s Levelling Up Fund to support the remodelling of Grimsby Town Centre has been approved.
This is on top of the successful Levelling Up Fund bid for Cleethorpes Town Centre announced last month.
The £20million, secured for Grimsby Town Centre, will be used for the Freshney Place Market Hall and Leisure project, which received planning permission earlier this year.
As reported, North East Lincolnshire Council now owns the Centre and wants to recreate it as a multi-use venue with a variety of retail, cinema, and leisure for the whole community. The multi-million-pound scheme at its western end is a major step towards that aim.
Philip Jackson, leader of the Council, is now confident that this major step change for Grimsby’s urban centre will help shape the future of the town.
“We’re delighted that Government has worked with us to help us deliver our plans for Freshney Place and the new market, and securing the LUF money for the scheme is fantastic.
“In the feedback we received on the bid, Government said that they understood our plans, and the strategic fit of the purchase of the shopping centre with the future plans for the town. They also praised the work we’d done to involve local people and businesses on the plans to date.
“Our ambition is real, and matches that of the people of the borough who have engaged with us, and helped us shape the future of our town.”
The work done at Freshney Place to deliver the new market, cinema and leisure space will be complemented by the plans for the Riverhead area, which is due to start on site next week, the OnSide Horizon Youth Zone, and St James’ House – with St James Square and Garth Lane already benefiting from significant investment.
The projects announced in the budget, additional to the Round 2 allocations, were described as “high quality” and will commence delivery later this year. The budget goes on to say that investment has been targeted towards the left-behind places in the Levelling Up White Paper.