A councillor has called for plans to move Lichfield’s bus station to a new location to be scrapped.
The current facility has been earmarked as part of a redevelopment project on land previously occupied for the failed Friarsgate scheme.
Now rebranded as the Birmingham Road Site, the station plus the multi-storey car park, Tempest Ford land and former police station plot.
Lichfield Civic Society has since confirmed that the council is in negotiations over a new, unknown location for the bus station in the city centre.
But Cllr Joanne Grange, independent member for Chadsmead, said any move made no sense.
“Just leave it where it is.
“It doesn’t take a genius to have a quick think about the city centre and realise there is nowhere that would work better.”
Cllr Joanne Grange, Lichfield District Council
Original plans for the land had earmarked a cinema as part of the development, but talks have since begun to convert the former Debenhams building into a multi-screen venue.
Cllr Grange said there was a chance for other parts of the site, such as the derelict land where Tempest Ford once stood, to be reconsidered.
“How about turning the Friarsgate wasteland into a grassed area with loads of trees as a central oasis? How pleasant would that be as a welcoming gateway?
“It would help with the recently discussed biodiversity emergency and the declared climate change emergency.”
Cllr Joanne Grange, Lichfield District Council
