Plans to transform and regenerate Camborne have reached another important milestone, with business cases for all eight projects being given approval by the Camborne Town Deal board.
The Government announced £23.7 million in Town Deal funding for Camborne in April last year – the highest amount in Cornwall. Developmental work has been going on ever since and the projects’ details are now being reviewed by Cornwall Council before being sent off to Government for official sign off in September.
Key among them is the large-scale regeneration of the town centre which includes creating a youth café, flexible performance spaces and co-working amenities. Kerrier Way, Trelowarren Street and Commercial Square will also be upgraded and improved to help achieve a visually appealing, vibrant community hub. The flagship redevelopment replaces the original Buzz Station proposal in the Town Investment Plan – delivering similar aims but impacting a wider area.
The other seven projects in Camborne’s Town Deal transformation are establishing a world-class fibre park, opening up a network of cycleways, giving high street businesses a makeover, renovating the recreation ground, creating new sports and amenities facilities, facilitating food and farming enterprise and turning the Donald Thomas Centre into a contemporary crafts club.
“Everyone involved has been working really hard to meet official Town Deal deadlines and I’m delighted that we’re progressing well towards official Government confirmation of our funding in the autumn,” said Camborne Town Deal chair Val Dalley.
“Our town centre is already changing for the better thanks to the Town Deal Accelerator Funding we received, so it really is a case of onwards and upwards. These are exciting times for Camborne.”
Camborne is one of 101 towns in England, and four in Cornwall, selected to bid for the Government’s £3.6 billion Towns Fund which aims to drive economic regeneration and level up the regions.
So 18 months of bureaucracy and not one thing to show for it – what a landmark that is!
There were business cases done to go to Government in the first place, presumably, but now Cornwall Council has to stick in their four penny’worth before the business cases go to Government for approval – not sure if this is red tape on red tape or vanishing up their own exhaust pipe.
Meantime, with inflation at 9%, the £23.7 million would now need to be closer to £26 million to enable the projects, and by the time the Government delay their decision, it will probably need to be closer to £30 million, so please pat yourselves on the back if you must, maybe others will when something actually appears.
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