Two entry points into Chesterfield will get a £500,000 facelift after being selected for improvements by Chesterfield Borough Council following a public consultation.

The improvements will happen at the Hornsbridge roundabout and the Railway Station Link – which includes Crow Lane from the railway station past the Chesterfield Hotel and across the public footbridge, which links to Corporation Street and the town centre.

The work will be carried out using funding from Barratt Homes and the European Regional Development Fund in a project designed to improve the attractiveness of entry points into the town.

They were chosen by public vote from a list that also included West Bars roundabout, Lordsmill roundabout, Saltergate, the bus station and Markham Road.

Partner organisations including Destination Chesterfield,Chesterfield College, Chesterfield Civic Society and the Town Centre Forum were also asked their views and a two day public consultation was held in the Pavements Shopping Centre in January.

Councillor John Burrows, leader of Chesterfield Borough Council, said: “There was already a strong consensus that the Hornsbridge roundabout needed improving and the Railway Station Link came out the clear winner in the public consultation as it is the first impression people get of the town when arriving by train.

“The whole purpose of the Chesterfield Gateways project is to respond to requests from business leaders for us to do more to make the approach routes into town more appealing to potential investors, visitors and our own residents.

“The best thing is that we can use external funding to make these improvements without any impact on the core services the council provides to Chesterfield residents.”

The council, working with project managers TEP, will now appoint designers and artists to begin work on the project, which is due to be completed by December 2014.

Examples of things they could do at the two sites include installing new direction signs, lighting, paving, planting, sculptures, art installation or interpretation.

Members of the public will be consulted about the design ideas to get their views before any actual work takes place at either of the two sites.

Peter Swallow, chair of Destination Chesterfield, the town’s marketing campaign, said: “We very much welcome the news of improvements to the Hornsbridge roundabout and Railway Station Link.

“Both are key gateways to Chesterfield and play an important role in ensuring a sense of arrival and welcome, whether visitors stay in the town or pass through us to the Peak District.”

The announcement of the improvement sites was made today (Thursday 28 March) by Chesterfield Borough Council chief executive Huw Bowen during the Celebrate Chesterfield event held by Destination Chesterfield at the ProAct Stadium.

Source:Chesterfield Borough Council

Work has begun on a new link road which will open up further land for jobs creation at a flagship regeneration site.

Derbyshire County Council are investing over £70 million laying the foundations to drive long term employment opportunities at Markham Vale which is just off the purpose-built junction 29A of the M1 in Chesterfield.

An increasing number of companies are making Markham Vale their home because of its location in the centre of England and excellent transport links.

Car parts distributor Andrew Page has recently moved into its new national distribution centre on the east side of Markham Vale, with 120 jobs expected to be created.  And McDonalds will open the doors on its new drive through restaurant on the western part of Markham Vale this week, bringing 50 jobs.

Now work has begun on a new £905,000 stretch of road which will link the A632 at Long Duckmanton with the M1 to open up further areas the western section of the site for development. Councillor Kevin Parkinson, Cabinet Member for Regeneration at Derbyshire County Council, said: “We’ve laid strong foundations for long-term job creation at Markham Vale and are delighted that companies are choosing it as their home.

“The creation of this new road will open up a further five-and-a-half hectares for development at the site’s western side and we are confident we are providing the right environment to attract further growth.”

Work on the new road is expected to be completed by March 2013. It will also include footpaths, street lighting and provision of ducting to enable the easier installation of gas, electricity, water and telecommunications links for future developments.

Markham Vale has been granted Enterprise Zone status by the Government, meaning firms moving to some areas of the site can apply for Enhanced Capital Allowances − offering tax relief for major investment in plant and machinery.  The county council is working with partner Henry Boot Developments Limited to attract national and local companies to Markham Vale.

Source:Derbyshire County Council

Chesterfield Borough Council’s Revenues Hall will soon benefit from a substantial £300k refurbishment programme. The Revenues Hall, which provides payment facilities, customer information and advice for a wide variety of Council services, will close on 22 October 2012 for a period of up to five months; re-opening in early March 2013.

Updating the building, which will be renamed the Customer Service Centre, is funded mostly by the Council’s private partner, arvato UK & Ireland, and will therefore have little or no impact on local authority finances. This significant investment will result in much improved premises with easier access to a broader range of customer services and quicker payment methods all under one roof.

Councillor John Burrows, Leader of Chesterfield Borough Council said: “The Revenues Hall is in much need of modernisation, so we’re delighted this renovation of the building, which will provide customers with an even better service and more welcoming environment, is going ahead.”

On top of this exciting development the number of payment channels for council tax, rent, and other bills will be increased significantly to include all Post Offices and PayPoints around the Borough, making paying a lot more convenient for customers. Payment machines will also be installed in the new Customer Service Centre to speed up the process of paying.

During the closure of the Revenues Hall, customers will be able to make payments and have their queries resolved at the Town Hall basement enquiry point.

Fran Rodway, Customer Services Manager at Chesterfield Borough Council said: “We’re encouraging customers who normally like to pay by cash or cheque to set up a weekly or monthly direct debit as it’s an easier and more secure way to pay. We will also have over 70 Post Office and PayPoint locations across the Borough, so customers will have much greater flexibility and choice in where and when to pay their bills.”

Residents can view artist impressions of the new Customer Service Centre at the Revenues Hall until 19 October and have the opportunity to comment on the new resource by completing a short survey.

For more information on making payments or to answer any queries, customers should visit www.chesterfield.gov.uk and click on the ‘Pay It’ link or alternatively can call the Council on 01246 345345.

Chesterfield Borough Council and their development partner, Wilson Bowden Developments, are inviting the public to come and meet the team behind the Northern Gateway project and to see first hand the images of the proposed scheme.

The estimated £50m project will transform the Donut roundabout area, one of the main gateways of Chesterfield town centre, into a high quality shopping and leisure area. The site will also offer a mix of commercial space, homes and car parking. It’s estimated that the project will create around 1,000 jobs with around 300-400 during the construction process and a further 700 on completion of the site.

The Council recently announced the appointment of Wilson Bowden as the development partner after a rigorous tendering process, initially involving eight companies. Both parties are now keen to show Chesterfield residents the proposals for the site and hear their views. 

The Northern Gateway project will feature a major foodstore, shops and restaurants, a cinema, 80 bed hotel, 85 homes, commercial floorspace, and replacement car parking spaces, plus an outdoor performance area.

Councillor John Burrows, Leader of Chesterfield Borough Council said: “The Northern Gateway is going to be one of the biggest developments we’ve had in Chesterfield for many years. I’d like to hear what Chesterfield residents think of the plans so I’d encourage people to come along and see for themselves what’s proposed and to raise any issues with us and speak to the developers.”

David Ward, Planning Director from Wilson Bowden Developments said: “We’re keen to work with residents in Chesterfield to make sure we deliver a quality development that takes account of their views and meets the requirements of the Council’s plans for the area. We’ve got some great images of how the scheme may look and detailed layouts that we will be happy to share and discuss with local people.”

The Northern Gateway public exhibition will take place in Unit 9 of The Pavements Shopping Centre (formerly Thomson travel agents) on
Thursday 14 June – 12 noon to 4 pm, Friday 15 June – 10 am to 4 pm
and Saturday 16 June – 10 am to 4 pm. Alternatively, you can view the plans and leave feedback here

Source:Chesterfield Borough Council

Construction of Squadron Medical’s new 41,000 sq ft Design and Build facility at Henry Boot Development’s Markham Vale scheme is now complete. The new facility will be the medical supplies distributor’s national distribution centre and headquarters.

Squadron Medical operated from 3 smaller units in Staveley andChesterfieldbut soon realised their need for expansion space so took advantage of Henry Boot Developments’ “Try Before You Buy Scheme” allowing them to have a short term lease at Markham Vale’sWaterloo Courtscheme whilst their new facility was being built.

The bespoke facility, which includes 9,000 sq ft of offices, has taken just 26 weeks to construct and features a full height glazed reception area and a fully fitted state of the art warehouse. Ben Ward of Henry Boot Developments comments “This is another great success story for Markham Vale and Squadron Medical’s presence on the site will be a real credit to the scheme. The building achieved an EPC rating ‘B’ and linked with the ‘Very Good’ BREEAM accreditation is a very efficient building.”

Source:Markham Vale

Chesterfield Waterside and Markham Vale are amongst a number of Regional Growth Fund Bids that will be supported by the Sheffield City Region Local Enterprise Partnership.

The Sheffield City Region Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP) is to support eight bids. All the proposals aim to create employment and drive economic growth within the Region.

The LEP invited submissions for both ‘Projects’ and ‘Programmes’ when bidding to the £1.4bn fund opened in April, the key difference being that programme bids had to demonstrate a clear over-arching investment strategy and sustainable benefits for a specific geographical area, rather than for individual sites.

The LEP is to provide endorsement for four eligible Project bids and play a co-ordinating role for the Programme bids within the City Region (detailed below).

In addition, the LEP itself put forward two dedicated programmes of funding in order to launch an Employment Growth Programme to help small and medium-sized businesses expand and grow, and a Tech Accelerator Programme for start up companies with high growth potential, and which centre on the use of digital technologies and drive a culture of collaboration in the City Region.

The Programmes would see co-ordinated support given to smaller companies with the greatest potential for rapid expansion so as to lever in funding and support for their growth plans.

James Newman, Chairman of the Sheffield City Region LEP, said: “We invited submissions which could demonstrate a significant contribution to the LEP’s objectives and priorities for the City Region and that, crucially, would contribute to economic growth and the creation of jobs and private sector investment.

“The LEP is delighted to offer its support to this clear and focussed group of project and programme submissions to the Regional Growth Fund, which we hope will meet with Government’s approval so as to lever investment into the City Region.”

The Project bids in Chesterfield being supported by the LEP are outlined below:

Chesterfield Waterside

This flagship regeneration project on the edge of Chesterfield town centre is bidding for £1.1m from the RGF, which would be used to bring forward the first phase of office development in Basin Square, the commercial heart of the wider £340m scheme.

Markham Vale

This scheme is bidding for £1.1m from the RGF to deliver the second phase of development on this key employment and industrial site at junction 29a of the M1. The £10m scheme would create office, industrial, manufacturing and warehouse space to support advanced manufacturing and medical technology sectors and the proposed Sheffield City Region Enterprise Zone, if approved by Government.

Source:Sheffield City Region LEP