£6.5 million Saltergate car park replacement planned

Chesterfield Borough Council’s cabinet is recommending to full council that it approves plans to demolish the existing Saltergate multi-storey car park and replace it with a new one.

Last year councillors approved plans to refurbish Saltergate at a cost of £3.58 million.

Since then more detailed investigations have been carried out on the structure of the current car park and have found hidden problems that would have increased the cost of refurbishment to £5 million.

So councillors are now instead being recommended to approve a £6.54 million proposal to demolish the existing structure and replace it with one that will last 50 years and provide an even higher quality of car park than originally planned.

Councillor Terry Gilby, Chesterfield Borough Council’s cabinet member for economic growth, said: “The current Saltergate multi-story car park is showing its age and in real need of repair – the top two floors have been closed for the past two years and works have been carried out to keep it open.

“The option to demolish the existing car park and replace it with a newly-built one will require more investment initially but will offer much better value for money in the longer term.

“It will also offer better parking facilities not only to the existing car park users but also to the extra people we expect to use the car park following the development of the former Co-op building and the Northern Gateway project.”

If approved, the new Saltergate multi-storey car park will have 529 spaces – the same as the existing one before the top two floors were closed due to safety concerns.

Councillors will be told that while work is carried out to demolish Saltergate and build a new one, alternative car parking would be available at New Beetwell Street multi-storey car park and at surface car parks in the town centre. An interactive map of car parks is available on the council website: www.chesterfield.gov.uk/parking.

The development is part of the Northern Gateway project which will see an enterprise centre for start-up and medium sized businesses built at Holywell Cross (Donut) car park and improvements made to the pedestrian environment in Elder Way and part of Knifesmithgate.

It will be funded by a Sheffield City Region Infrastructure Fund grant of £5.83 million, which is unaffected by the council’s decision to withdraw its application to be a full member of the Sheffield City Region devolution deal.

The Northern Gateway project also includes the £10.5 million redevelopment of the former Co-op store by Central England Co-operative and partner Jomast Developments.

They already have planning permission for a leisure scheme to include six ground floor restaurants, a hotel on the first and second floors and a health and fitness centre in the basement

The first occupiers to be announced are Premier Inn.

Councillors will decide on the revised plans for the Saltergate multi-storey car park when they meet on Wednesday July 19.