An eyesore welcoming visitors to Lichfield is set to be spruced up with the installation of new boards promoting attractions across the region.
Hoardings have surrounded the site earmarked for the doomed Friarsgate redevelopment scheme since the project bit the dust in 2018.
But now Lichfield District Council is intending to complete work this week on adding new Visit Lichfield artwork to the site in a bid to improve “this gateway to the city”.
Craig Jordan, head of economic growth and development at Lichfield District Council, said:
“We’re really pleased that visitors to the city will be welcomed by attractive artwork, displaying many of the highlights the city and district has to offer to our visitors.”
Craig Jordan, Lichfield District Council
The installation of the new artwork comes after part of the site was commandeered for a political protest.
Tweets from Conservative General Election candidate Michael Fabricant were printed out and dotted around the hoardings and other parts of the city.
But the official artwork going onto the Birmingham Road site will be the first stage of an attempt to improve the area while a longer term proposal is drawn up.
“A significant milestone”
Work is due to start in the new year on demolishing the police station and buildings around the bus station.
Mr Jordan added:
“It will be a significant milestone to see the demolition work get underway in the new year along with the other temporary improvements to the site.
“This will improve the look and feel of the area while we make progress on our long-term masterplan for the city centre.
“The masterplan will set out how we shape different parts of Lichfield city for the future and provide attractive places for people to live, work and visit.
“We will be consulting on the draft masterplan in January and encourage our community and stakeholders to get involved in this process and let us know what they think.
“We’re hoping to have the final masterplan agreed in the spring.”
Craig Jordan, Lichfield District Council
It would be good if they could spend a few quid on some temporary lights along the pathway from the bus station to the rear of the Garrick, It is very dark without the light on the edge of the Police Station yard and the non functioning lights on the 1st level of the multi level car park
So MR Jordan, your quote!!!!!
It will be a significant milestone to see the demolition work get underway in the new year along with the other temporary improvements to the site.
Why are tweets from Fabricant being put up, isn’t that political advertising paid for by the local council,very dodgy
At a cost of £100k to the taxpayer no doubt.
For reference, we believe the tweets were put up without permission by a third party.
I have just returned from Maastricht where a major construction site had posters (some repeated) of the city attractions. It worked really well and presented things we might not have seen otherwise. They covered all of the shuttering as large images (not just stuck in the middle) and looked attractive. Similarly in Coventry some shuttering was covered in artificial turf, this worked too. As the shuttering around Friarsgate looks like being there some time a modest, sensitive opportunity should be taken to advertise the city.
I’m not sure Craig Jordan used ‘masterplan’ enough in that statement.
These “art work” hoardings are a superb replacement for a thriving business, which invested in the local community.
Fabricant has sworn at constituents, threatened to punch people and recently seemed to agree with the lies surrounding Leeds General Hospital (suggesting that it was “faked”).
The man is a liability and he lives somewhere on Mars. Get him gone.
As a wise man once said, “You can roll a turd in glitter, but it will always be a turd”.
Until the site project is properly resolved, this will only ever be a “glitter” fix.
Well I walked into town this morning and saw the newly decorated hoarding around Friarsgate. It lacks any artistic merit. The pictures are overwhelmed by garish graphics. It makes you wonder if that site is suffering some ancient curse. The print quality and fitting is good; the content is not. A little tip for the planners:- visit places that have similar hoarding displays. Note how tasteful good pictures can be (they are said to say a thousand words). Garish and overblown, monochrome type blocs do not work. And please, please do something to make me proud of the city, my criticism is even boring me now!
Just seen them looks as though the kindergarten did them on the cheap