LB Harrow have opened a consultation on a proposed revamp for St Ann’s Road and Havelock Place before work begins in the autumn.
The council’s vision is to create a shopping environment in St Ann’s Road that “will match the quality of any town centre in London”. As well as improving the appearance of St Ann’s Road, by removing clutter and outdated street furniture, they want to design a place where people can come together, meet friends, have fun, or sit down and relax.
The council wants the Town Centre to “come alive” with a range of activities, events, better trading opportunities and a “café culture”, once the layout of the street is redesigned. To complement the changes on St Ann’s Road, Havelock Place will be redesigned and improvements for vehicle and pedestrian access made in Greenhill Way. Havelock Place and the surrounding area provide an important pedestrian connection and service delivery route between the main shopping centre, as well as Station Road, College Road, and surrounding residential streets.
A budget of £735,000 has been made available to fund the St Ann’s project from the Council’s Capital Programme for 2012/13. This will be supplemented by a further £182,000 for Havelock Place from the Mayor of London’s Outer London Fund (OLF). The projects will be designed by David Kohn Architects.
Harrow Council Portfolio Holder for Planning and Regeneration, Cllr Keith Ferry, said: “We are committed to developing the economic heart of Harrow and putting the borough on the map. Economic Growth and fresh investment will be encouraged and breathe a fresh lease of life to the town centre.
“The Town Centre has become outdated and tired looking. Our vision is to encourage more shoppers to the area which will bring business interest and regeneration. We want to support our Town Centre, and secure its future. The St Ann’s Road and Havelock Place projects are the first in an ambitious set of improvements over the next two years that will help to make this vision a reality.”
David Kohn Architects worked with the Council to deliver a £3.5m programme of street improvements in Station Road which was completed last year. The work prioritised pedestrians over traffic, created several pockets of public spaces and included new granite paving, lighting, planting and street furniture. The proposal is to continue the most successful aspects of this scheme for St Ann’s Road so the appearance is consistent throughout the town centre.
The proposals are part of Harrow Council’s broader project, “The Heart of Harrow”, which will deliver the council’s vision for major regeneration over the next 15 years.
