The regeneration and revitalisation of Bedford Town Centre is a key priority of the Council. A town centre consultation exhibition was held in Harpur Square over 7 days, which was attended by nearly 7,000 people.
The aim of the Exhibition was to identify Bedford's rich history, the changes that had occurred over the recent past to improve the Town Centre environment and most, importantly, to provide a forum for debate about the shape of Bedford's future. The Council received more than 2,000 responses to its survey.
The exhibition illustrated 5 key objectives:
Key Issues:
The key issues identified by visitors to the exhibition included the enhancement of the river environment (90% of people thought the Embankment was the best feature of the Town Centre), pedestrianisation, relocation of the Charter Market and sensitive development of identified sites (such as the Bus Station area and Castle Lane).
There was also much interest in recognising and developing the history of Bedford (70% of people believed this) and genuine concern at the traffic and accessibility issues in and around the Town Centre. The survey also confirmed the majority of people (60%) are attracted to the Town Centre principally for shopping.
