Ideas include a town square, new homes and medical centre
Options for a multi-million pound scheme with the potential to transform a key part of Tonbridge town centre have been published today.
A range of possibilities for redevelopment of council-owned assets will be outlined to a meeting of councillors on Tuesday 12 March, focussing on the area east of the town’s high street, surrounding Sainsbury’s supermarket. The land is currently home to surface car parks and the Angel leisure centre, which councillors have already agreed in principle to replace with a modern, carbon neutral facility.
The ideas being put forward follow 18 months’ work supported by specialist consultants to explore how the area could be redeveloped to benefit the town. Options put forward for consideration include the creation of a town square, more shops, low-rise housing, a hotel and a new medical centre. The scheme also includes ideas on ways to better connect different parts of the town via improved walking and cycling routes.
Options to help meet demand for housing in Tonbridge suggest the development could accommodate more than 300 homes. This would help meet the council’s ‘brownfield first’ approach to hitting its target of delivering 16,000 new properties by 2039. Councillors’ views will be sought on the type of housing and the proportion that should be classified as affordable.
Members of the council’s committee for regeneration and property will also be asked for views on future parking requirements if the current car parks are put to other uses. Options put forward include building a multi-storey car park or providing ‘podium’ parking beneath the new development.
A report to councillors highlights the significant benefits redevelopment could bring and seeks their views on which options should be taken to the next stage of planning. Funding of £1.85m has been allocated in the council’s recently approved budget to support the project in addition to a pre-existing pot of £150,000. Construction costs and funding routes, including private sector partnerships, will be explored in the next phase of the project.
The report adds: ‘Delivering a town centre redevelopment can be long and complex, with many competing interests. It is important that a clear step-by-step approach is taken to ensure members are provided with relevant information at the relevant time to facilitate effective decision making.’
Matt Boughton, Leader of Tonbridge and Malling Borough Council, said: ‘We want to invest in Tonbridge and make it an even better place to live, work and enjoy leisure time. We are at the very early stages of exploring ways to deliver transformative improvements to the town centre with many exciting ideas on the table.
‘The next step will be to test their viability, their ability to help us meet our carbon neutral objectives and also give local residents and businesses a chance to have their say.
‘We will be engaging with community groups and consulting the public as we move forward so that any decisions we take are fully informed by the views of those who care about Tonbridge and want to see it thrive in the years ahead.’
Read the reports to the Finance Regeneration and Property Scrutiny Select Committee due to take place on 12 March at 7.30pm.