Residents are being invited to have their say on ambitious plans to overhaul The Paddock in Chatham town centre. Medway Council has revealed design ideas for the park, which sits between the bus station and the Pentagon Centre, forming one of several projects to be funded from a pot of £9.5 million from the government's Future High Street Fund. Proposed improvements include a new central space with a focal water feature, new planted areas and more seating. The plans could also see the level of the park adjusted to improve accessibility and upgraded paving at the end of Military Road to create a pedestrian-friendly route to the Brook Theatre and the Great Lines. Two large areas of existing grassy lawn will be retained for people to sit out and enjoy, while the proposed water feature could be turned off to accommodate various outdoors events throughout the year. With a budget of £1.5 million for the makeover, Medway Council says the planned improvements will help make Chatham town centre an ever better place to live, work, learn and visit. A council statement says: "The improvements are designed to celebrate the area's heritage as well as make the area more accessible and easier to get around for both residents and visitors. "The brief for The Paddock highlighted the need to connect this visual, historic and cultural landmark back to the city of Chatham and to become a new destination space. "The Paddock will be designed to take in consideration key elements including hosting a different range of activities that involve the community and the visitors throughout the key, have a strong identity that merge and highlight the local history and the contemporary life of Chatham." Dating back to the early 20th century, The Paddock was one of three purpose-built open spaces created by the former Chatham Borough Council, including the nearby Town Hall Gardens and Victoria Gardens.
The historic Edwardian park also had unusual uses throughout the years, including car parking and a now-demolished restaurant known as Paddock Restaurant. Initial plans for the new bus station in Globe Lane sparked protests because of the number of trees in The Paddock that would have been uprooted to make way for it, prompting councillors to approve an alternative smaller scheme that exists today. British architecture studio HTA Design is assisting Medway Council with the park's redesign, which has an estimated deadline for delivery by March 2024. HTA Design has advised on a number of major projects in Medway to date, including the masterplan for the Great Lines Heritage Park and most recently the 1300-home development at Rochester Riverside. Submit your thoughts by completing Medway Council's online survey before midnight on Friday, 14 January 2022.
Michael Watts
8/1/2022 22:01:52
A usable space for a local skatepark. Perfect as close to the bus station for people to get there. To get a good space for the youth of medway to enjoy.
Bryan from Chatham
10/1/2022 10:37:33
It looks like 2010 all over again (Medway Council wanted to put the Bus Station there). This latest proposal is very worrying especially given the short time scale for consultation which ends on Friday 14th January 2022. This online only consultation asks “How important is it trees are part of the planting”. It is of concern the term “maintainable” is used, are we to see more concrete paving?
Mandy knight
14/1/2022 19:24:57
I think anything that makes Chatham to become a better place, is a good idea as the Pentagon & High-street is terrible I and many others avoid going to town unless we have to go to the bank.
J Bartlett
14/1/2022 21:30:08
With the proposed redesign will this affect the traffic as around this area is a.nightmare since taking down the crossing and making it a two way one-way road. This really puts people visiting as it can take 20/30 minutes to get around from the old tesco site. Comments are closed.
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