Blackpool consults on Towns Fund schemes
Nikal’s £300m 
Blackpool Central leisure scheme, a link road at the town’s airport enterprise zone, and a community sports village in Revoe are among the projects earmarked to benefit from £39.5m of Government funding.
The council is now seeking feedback from residents and business owners about its plans for how to spend the money, awarded last October.
Feedback from the consultation, which runs until 12 March, will be used to create a business case that will be submitted to the Government for approval.
The £3.6bn Towns Fund is aimed at strengthening local economies and revitalising towns post Covid-19.
Blackpool’s illuminations could receive a £4.5m upgrade
Blackpool has selected seven projects to receive a chunk of the £39.5m the council was awarded. The funding includes:
- £8m for Blackpool Central. The money is to be used to support the relocation of Blackpool’s magistrates and civil court to open up space for the visitor attraction
- £9m for the council’s Multiversity project that will see the relocation of Blackpool & The Fylde College’s Palatine Road campus to a new-build, carbon-neutral university centre near Blackpool North train station
- £7.5m for Blackpool Airport Enterprise Zone to create a road to open up development sites to attract jobs and investment
- £5.5m Revoe Community Sports Village, a key component of the wider regeneration of the area
- £4.5m for The Edge, a modern, town centre office space for new start-ups and growing businesses
- £4.5m to upgrade Blackpool Illuminations
- £500,000 for a youth hub aimed at boosting training and wor opportunities for young people
Cllr Lynn Williams, leader of Blackpool Council, said: “The Town Deal award of £39.5m is transformational for Blackpool, a once in a generation investment for our town to tackle some of the challenges we face, to build on our strengths and to help us in our economic recovery from the damaging effects of the Covid-19 pandemic.”
Whatever Blackpool council does it won’t reflect local people’s views, you only have to look at the democratic masterclass that is the Stanley Park golf course development. When the council builds anything you can bet your life it looks shabby in five years. Look at parts of south promenade rusting already and who will be paying for this replacement of cheap materials? – the local people. As for any newly laid precincts give the council a couple of months before it’s dug up and patched up with tarmac. It’s not good enough any improvements have to last. The council has a track record of leaving things beyond repair and then argues it’s best to pull things down. Look at the Spanish hall, at the winter gardens built by Hollywood set designers that had a painted sky ceiling with clouds to set off the Spanish village suround. That was until the council emulsioned it blue for a cheap job. Shocking and the council talks about heritage. Blackpool should first look at what good things it has and maintain them – Stanley Park comes to mind, with a bandstand, Italian gardens, cafe, tennis courts and clock tower all needing drastic attention. It’s really quite sad. And finally the council’s all-eggs-in-one-basket economic approach of investing in low paid tourism jobs. Move on kids, no good jobs here.
By Chris
In my opinion this town needs a large events arena similar to the M.E.N in Manchester. It could stage massive concerts with world wide groups or musicians as well as other events that could attract millions of pounds.
Also we are desperately short of classy bars and restaurants in this town. If you ever visit Liverpool or Manchester as I do regularly, you would see the class of bars is totally opposite to the dumps in Blackpool such as the dumps calling themselves bars on Queen St etc. This is a main priority to bring visitors for a decent night out. The only decent bar/ Reston town is the Beach House and you need a large wallet to visit there.
By T.Smith