Major facelift for Chorley town centre as civic square and housing plans lodged
Plans to transform three sites in and around Chorley town centre have moved a step closer after bids were launched seeking permission for two of them.
Blueprints have been lodged for the creation of a new ‘civic square’ opposite the town hall and a housing development off the A6, a short distance from the town’s railway station.
It is intended that the square will become a new destination to stage events and in which the public can relax, surrounded by green spaces.
The scheme - earmarked for what has operated as a car park since the demolition of the bingo hall that stood on the plot until 2021 - will also include 7,500 sq ft of new commercial space and around 9,000 sq ft of office accommodation, along with 31 new apartments. Some car parking provision will return to the completed site.
Meanwhile, if approved, the housing project will take shape on Chorley Council’s depot on Bengal Street. That would feature 62 energy efficient homes - made up of 52 apartments and 10 townhouses - together with 72 parking spaces and a landscaped garden area. The depot is to be relocated to the Common Bank Industrial Estate.
The pair of developments formed part of the authority’s bid for cash from the last government’s Levelling Up Fund, from which Chorley was awarded £20m in November 2023, after an initial pitch had failed at the start of that year.
The council itself is to invest more than double that amount in order to deliver the £44m trio of schemes, the third of which is the refurbishment of its Union Street offices, where work is already under way to provide up to 20,000 sq ft of modern commercial accommodation.
The authority is also in discussions with the NHS about the kind of services that could be delivered from a proposed new health hub in the town.
The planning applications follow a public consultation in which more than two in three respondents supported the suite of plans.
Chorley Council leader Alistair Bradley said he was delighted the “exciting” projects had reached this “critical” stage.
“This once-in-a-lifetime investment will make sure that Chorley town centre can continue to thrive and be enjoyed for generations to come.
“Our expert team has worked hard to arrive at a highly efficient and deliverable design programme, based on feedback from our residents and other stakeholders as part of our public consultation, [which] not only provides fantastic new amenity for the local community but also creates new commercial opportunities for the town.
“Chorley town centre already has great things to offer, with high street stores and local independent retailers and great food and drink establishments and I have no doubt that this new investment will catapult Chorley even further as one of the best places to live, work and visit.”
Pending permission being granted - by the authority’s own independent planning committee of councillors - work could begin on the civic square before the end of the year, with a tendering process now being undertaken to appoint a contractor to deliver the proposed scheme.