AFTER the good news that Trowbridge has won £16.3 million from the Government’s Future High Streets Fund, now decisions have to be made to see which elements can go ahead and which may have to be scaled back or dropped.

Although the sum was one of the largest allocations from the fund, Trowbridge did not get all of the £23.7 million Wiltshire Council had asked for.

It received over 75 per cent of the funding bid, which will help rejuvenate the heart of the county town.

Town council leader Stewart Palmen, who is also a Wiltshire councillor for Central ward, said: “I am so pleased that Trowbridge town centre will benefit from this investment.

“While it is not the full amount we requested it is still a significant sum and will allow a lot of what has been proposed to be implemented.

“I look forward to working with Wiltshire Council to ensure that we come up with plans that will really benefit the people of Trowbridge.

“Several people are asking what exactly is in the Future High Streets Bid. In reality only a few people within Wiltshire Council have seen the bid details.

“There is a summary presentation available but this may have evolved overtime and now with the reduced amount of £16.3 million the plans will need changing.

“But we will be able to achieve a great deal with this. There will be public consultation on plans as they are worked out.”

Trowbridge town council chief executive Lance Allan met Wiltshire Council officers last week to discuss what can be achieved.

He said: “I’m not sure that there are any elements of the project that won’t happen but one or two elements may have to be scaled back.

“Whether the Castle Place and multi-storey car park redevelopment will be dropped I don’t know.

“If they own the multi-storey, it is much easier for them to develop it rather than reach an agreement with APAM, the owners of Castle Place.

“The money has got to be spent within three years and if they have not got any third party involvement it is much easier to do that.”

The Future High Streets Fund was launched in December 2018 and is a key part of the UK Government’s plan to renew and reshape town centres – making them a more attractive place to live, work and visit.

The Trowbridge bid focuses on improving connections into the town centre; bringing more leisure, residential and culture activity into the town centre; making better use of vacant units; and accelerating the development of key sites in the town centre, as well as making improvements to the town hall.

The plan is to create an improved environment for businesses and visitors to Trowbridge’s high street; encouraging independent businesses and start-ups to set up businesses in vacant properties; and creating safer, accessible pedestrian links along the river corridor from the town centre to the high street.

Several options for achieving these were submitted to the government for consideration, and if approved, outline plans will be created.

Residents welcomed the government money but have been raising questions online, including saying some of it must be spend on providing the town centre with accessible public toilets.

One resident, Peter Richardson, said: “Getting this money is wonderful, however the town is still without public toilets.

“This is the third lockdown where the elderly and disabled have no access to a public toilet.

“The elderly with no transport have to get a bus into the town centre to get weekly essentials from the shop.

“There is nowhere in the county town of Wiltshire for the elderly or disabled to use the loo.

Another resident, Helen Ashton, said: “I would be interested to know what the proposals for improving our town are, how exactly all this money will be spent.”