8. Regenerate Doncaster’s town centres, including within Doncaster itself, special emphasis on the Markets and Waterdale areas. Make all our shopping attractions car-friendly areas. We are already the 4th most successful regenerating town centre in the country.
The Mayor launches his 'Buy Local Scheme' to support Doncaster Markets
There has been a market in Doncaster since it gained its first charter in 1248. I have championed Doncaster Markets and invested £150,000 in new equipment, signage and marketing. Following these improvements the markets were named as Britain’s best in 2011. We continue to support traders with a variety of high profile events such as cookery displays and visitor numbers are continuing to increase.
With around 400 shops, stalls and stands the markets provide employment for over 1,000 people and are a crucial part of the town centre’s economy. The extensive range of products, many locally sourced, that are offered by regular stall holders are supported by regular Farmers markets. We have recently launched a loyalty scheme to encourage local catering businesses to ‘buy local’ from Doncaster markets.
The Wool Market is the largest of the indoor spaces and recently benefitted from an extensive and dramatic refurbishment which has seen it re-roofed and opened up. We also agreed with traders to open on Wednesdays. This stands as a clear demonstration of my commitment to the Market and the continuation of an ongoing programme of investment and improvements.
We maintain a very high occupancy rate in the highly successful Frenchgate shopping Centre, and a number of recent store openings elsewhere in the town centre. Doncaster's high street has more shops opening than closing, up 20 on last year, making us the second most successful in the region. In fact, recent research conducted on behalf of the Sunday Times ranked Doncaster the fourth best performing high street in Britain.
Construction work of the Council's new state-of-the-art Civic Offices edges nearer
The first phase of the Civic and Cultural Quarter is progressing well. Construction of the new civic offices is moving at a pace, and the refurbishment of the multi-storey car park is going well, with a number of the floors already open for use. A new route for motorists around Waterdale has opened between College Road to Chequer Road and work has started on improvements to the public spaces and the new civic square. These will make the area attractive and inviting for visitors.
Work on the town’s new performance venue to bring top class theatre, music and arts to Doncaster has started. Plans to transform the Waterdale area and a large part of the town centre are right on track. The first phase
will be complete by early summer 2013 and the project will deliver significant economic benefits for the town, with local companies winning contracts and jobs being created.
