Spring has sprung on Chesterfield’s regeneration projects

Chair of Destination Chesterfield, Peter Swallow shares his views in his latest Blog.

Spring has sprung, clocks have moved forward to British summer time, and the change in seasons very much reflects the progress Chesterfield is making with a number of key projects.

In keeping with the season, we are seeing the buds emerging on Chesterfield Waterside and Northern Gateway; and I am sure there will also be some later growth as the year progresses.

Making good progress is the Premier Inn hotel, located in the former Co-op building on Elder Way. This is opening this week following an extensive programme of refurbishment and will deliver 92 new hotel beds to Chesterfield’s growing visitor economy.

Just last year James Berresford, Chair of the Derbyshire Culture, Heritage, Arts and Tourism Board told us at the Chesterfield Investment Summit, that transforming just 5% of our day visitors into overnight stays would transform the town’s visitor economy. The opening of the new hotel at Elder Way and the additional hotels that will be created at Chesterfield Waterside and Peak Resort push us ever closer to becoming a destination for overnight guests.

Planning permission has also been granted for the three-storey Enterprise Centre on the Donut roundabout at Northern Gateway. The building will consist of 32 offices – a much-needed resource for the many start-up and small companies in Chesterfield. Just over the road, the new Saltergate car park is also due to open soon too, increasing and improving the parking offering for the town centre.

The town will also soon boast a newly constructed large office offering too. A Reserved Matters planning application has been submitted for a six-storey office building in Basin Square at Chesterfield Waterside, adjacent to the railway station. While the Enterprise Centre will be ideal for start-ups and small businesses, the ‘Grade A’ specification office accommodation at Waterside will have a large floorplate, helping the town attract established companies to relocate and invest here.

The development progress doesn’t stop in the town centre, either. A planning application has been submitted to build 700 new homes at the former Staveley Works steel site, as well as a primary school, shops and community facilities, new wildlife habitats and a cycle and footpath network.

For years we have talked about these developments and now they are finally happening. Large scale commercial developments and regeneration projects take a long time to come to fruition, and the construction element is often a shorter stage and the culmination of years of planning.

Often you have to take a step back to move forward. When you both live and work here, you can miss the huge progress we are making as a town in redeveloping and regenerating it for the future. The next time you are in Chesterfield town centre or travelling in the borough, make time to look at what has been achieved. I think you’ll be impressed.

Chesterfield is certainly a town of progress.