'Ghost' city's revamp could include new music venue
BBCA new masterplan to revamp a city includes proposals to rejuvenate key buildings and create another music venue.
Gloucester City Council has shared a blueprint that will shape the future of the area over a 25-year period.
Under the provisional proposals, Eastgate Shopping Centre, Lower Eastgate Street and The Fleece are highlighted as key areas that could be redeveloped. There are also calls to make the city more lively at night with a new music venue.
Gordon Rea, who has lived in Gloucester for 41 years, said he hopes the masterplan includes proposals to celebrate the city's heritage, adding some areas currently "look like a ghost town".
People and businesses are being urged to share their views on the masterplan as part of a consultation which will run until 23 November.
While the masterplan itself is not a planning application and will not lead directly to anything new being built, it will guide the council's future planning decisions around housing, sustainable growth, regeneration and investment.
It is the first major city-wide plan since the Gloucester Heritage Urban Regeneration Company was set up in 2003, which led to the transformation of Gloucester Docks, the Quays and Kings Square.
Andrew Hearne, the council's director of place, assets and regeneration, said the city has undergone significant change over recent years "but there is still more to do".
Documents state there is a strong desire for Gloucester to "feel more alive" in the evenings, with calls for another music/entertainment venue.
The plan also states that residents want Heritage 'Treasure Trails' to be installed to reveal the story of the city.
Rea added he was hugely proud of his city, but felt more could be done to attract visitors.
"I think they're doing a lot already. I absolutely love the Forum. It's a really swish place. Kings Square is a nice place to go through, it wasn't for years.
"I'm hugely proud to live in a city that's got such history, but a lot of it is tucked away. We don't get celebrated the same way compared to places like York and Chester," he said.
Resident Kate Phillips echoed this and said she wanted her daughter to "grow up knowing the rich heritage of the city".
She is also calling for derelict shops to be brought back into use.
"I think it could be a bit more of a destination like they've done with the Quays," she said.
"I'd like my daughter to grow up with knowing the rich heritage of the city.
"It could support a lot of educational stuff, more trips for schools," she said.
Meanwhile, locals Karen and Mike Jones called for more "investment" into the city centre which they said could do with "some TLC".
"Northgate Street used to be thriving, but it's all dead.
"We do love living here, but we just think it's a shame that more isn't made of it," they said.
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