A consultation is today being launched over multi-million-pound plans to give Dovercourt town centre a major revamp.
The £9million Dovercourt Town Centre Improvement Corridor scheme will see road and public realm improvements from Dovercourt railway station to Kingsway, a refurbishment of the town’s library to include Adult Community Learning, new housing in Victoria Street and an overhaul of the outdated Milton Road car park.
Last year it was announced the town would be getting a £6.7million cash injection focused on town centre improvement projects following a successful bid by Tendring District Council (TDC) and Essex County Council (ECC) to the government-funded Capital Regeneration Project.
The rest of the money for the works will be provided by TDC and ECC.
Initial plans had included new homes – a core requirement of the Capital Regeneration Project - on the Milton Road car park site, but the housing element of the project is now set to be placed at Victoria Street, where TDC has acquired two derelict sites.
Residents, businesses and visitors are now being encouraged to have their say on the TDC-led parts of the scheme, including initial ideas and designs for the Milton Road site and the eyesore sites in Victoria Street.
The aim is to reinstate ground level parking at Milton Road and construct 9 to 12 social housing residences on the Victoria Street sites. Following the consultation, the work will be subject to planning permission.
Councillor Ivan Henderson, deputy leader of TDC and Portfolio Holder for Economic Growth, Regeneration and Tourism, said: “Dovercourt has tremendous potential and this exiting regeneration project is a great chance to unlock that potential.
“This Capital Regeneration Project will see significant investment in Harwich and Dovercourt and can breathe new life into the town centre, helping people to take real pride in our town, as well as attracting visitors and encouraging them to stay longer – which will boost the local economy.
“Officers have been working hard on delivering this project and it’s great to be able to share the designs for the TDC-led elements of the scheme with residents, businesses and visitors and we would like to hear what they think about the proposals.”
The consultation into the scheme will run prior to the submission of a planning application, which is planned to happen in October. It is hoped that construction will start next year.
As part of the four-week public consultation, the project team is running a drop-in consultation event at the former The Original Factory Shop site in Kingsway from 12noon until 8pm on Wednesday, July 17.
Information about the proposals will be available and people will have the opportunity to view the scheme designs, meet the project team and ask any questions.
To find out more about the Milton Road and Victoria Street Consultation, which ends on August 7, or to have your say online, go to tendringdc.gov.uk/consultations.
Residents will also be asked for feedback over the Town Partnership’s plans as part of the Dovercourt High Street Accelerator programme, as part of a separate survey.
The town’s High Street was last year selected as one of only ten places in the country to be part of the government’s Accelerator Pilot Programme and received £237,000 to spend on improvements to boost the town centre by March 2025.
Work is led by a forum of local partners – chaired by Paul Milsom, owner of the Pier Hotel in Harwich – and is supported by TDC.
Mr Milsom, who also chairs the town’s Tourism Group, said: “We want to hear residents and businesses on their views of the town centre to help shape the Town Partnership’s decisions on what the remaining portion of the High Street Accelerator Fund will be spent on,” he said.
“Some of the funding, which had to be committed by the end of March, has already been spent on a free fun Easter event that attracted 3,000 people alongside a series of projects such as jet washing, cleaning shopfronts, installing hanging baskets and decorating empty shops with photographic wrapping.
“There is around £180,000 remaining of the fund and we’re keen to hear people’s views.”
The Dovercourt Town Centre Survey can be completed online in just five minutes. The consultation closes on Sunday, 21 July.
A printed version of the survey is available from CVST Dovercourt and Harwich Hub in the High Street, Dovercourt.
Residents can also chat to team members about the programme at the former The Original Factory Shop on Wednesday, 17 July, between 12pm to 8pm.
