Project Taunton: Regenerating Taunton’s Town Centre

Another Award for Castle Green

Castle Green, Taunton’s newest open space, has another prestigious award to its credit.

The space, in the heart of Taunton cultural and historic centre, has been commended by judges in the Royal Town Planning Institute’s (RTPI) South West awards.

It was among a handful of high profile projects across the region to be recognised – and follows a national award for the iconic glass-sided bridge at Castle Green from the Association for Consultancy and Engineering (ACE).

Also commended by the RTPI was the renaissance of the docks and quays in Gloucester.

Castle Green was officially opened last autumn by the Earl of Wessex when he visited the Museum of Somerset. The open space is the backdrop to the historic castle and links the town centre to the river via the glass-sided bridge and path.

Most of the site lies within the precinct of the mediaeval Taunton Castle, a protected scheduled ancient monument, and Castle Green was once the outer bailey of the castle with barns, a chapel and graveyard.

In the more recent past it was also the livestock market for the town before it moved to a site in the countryside, near the railway station, in 1930.

“Castle Green is the sort of open space many towns would love to have. It’s open, easy to reach, welcoming and beautifully finished with natural surfaces, naturalised planting and grass lawns,” said Cllr Mark Edwards, Deputy Leader of Taunton Deane Borough Council.

“It provides Taunton with a brilliant venue for all sorts of events and we are looking forward to the first major event to be held there – Somerfest on June 15. Somerfest is our midsummer celebration of arts, sports, music and more and is building up a real momentum. I hope people will turn out in force to support it.”

Castle Green Bridge Wins Prestigious Engineering Award

A 21st century bridge linking Taunton’s past to its present – and future - has won a prestigious engineering award.

The glass-sided bridge, linking Castle Green to Goodland Gardens and the River Tone, has won the Association for Consultancy and Engineering (ACE) Centenary Engineering Excellence Award for small companies in the infrastructure category.  The bridge engineers are Flint and Neill.

The glass-sided bridge was commissioned by Project Taunton and Taunton Deane Borough Council and designed by Flint and Neill and London-based firm Moxon Architects.

The award judges were told: "The bridge connects Castle Green with Goodland Gardens, providing a fully DDA compliant link to replace the previous convoluted and restricted pathway.  The glass sided bridge is spectacular as it seemingly floats across the Castle's grass moat.  In-built lighting, coupled with floodlights at the museum, make it a truly magical sight at night."

The awards were made at an event in London, attended by more than 300 industry leaders to celebrate the finest work of an industry that is integral to UK growth.

The bridge was completed last year - in time to be admired by the Earl of Wessex when he officially opened Castle Green and the Museum of Somerset in September.

The brief to provide a footway linking Castle Green and Goodland Gardens across the Castle moat was challenging as the area is Taunton's historic heart with a wealth of important listed buildings, not least the Grade I listed Castle, home to the museum.

The bridge has been carefully designed to incorporate specially formulated slip resistant material.  It does not lose its slip resistant properties when wet, unlike other hard surfaces such as concrete or natural stone.

The bridge- lit up at night - is an important feature in the transformation of Castle Green, part of Taunton's urban regeneration delivered by the Project Taunton team.

Leader of Taunton Deane Borough Council, Councillor John Williams, said: "Not only is it a superb piece of engineering but it is stunning architecturally, I exhort everybody to visit the area at night when illuminated, the whole area with the flood lighting on the museum including Tangier Way bridge is wonderful to see.  This sends a clear message that Taunton is investing in quality design to enhance our environment."

Councillor Norman Cavill, Executive Councillor for Economic Development added: "Quality design makes living, working, visiting and shopping in Taunton so much more attractive.  Awards such as this really do put us on the map."

Ian Franklin, of Project Taunton, has watched the bridge develop from a concept to reality and said: "Taunton has turned its back on the River Tone for too many years - Project Taunton and the regeneration work we deliver aims to restore the river to its rightful place at the heart of Taunton.

"The bridge between Castle Green and Goodland Gardens is another link in the chain of paths and walks that are putting the focus on the River Tone.  It's a terrific design that richly deserves recognition."

Road is key to unlock Taunton’s future

A vital £22 million road scheme in Taunton that will unlock up to £300 million of development opportunities has got the Government’s final go-ahead.

Transport Minister Norman Baker announced this morning that the Northern Inner Distributor Road has got the green light – unlocking access to Taunton’s prime regeneration site at Firepool.

Cllr John Williams, Leader of Taunton Deane Borough Council, said the announcement is the best possible news for Taunton – and the wider Taunton Deane economy.

“This is so much more than a road – it the key to unlock our prime development sites at Firepool. This £22 million investment will unlock £300 million of economic development opportunity.

“The delivery of the NIDR is the last piece of the jigsaw that will complete the picture of our ambitious regeneration plans for Taunton. We have had serious talks with investors but turning interest into action is very much dependent on this road. We can now resume those conversations in the knowledge that we have the road.

“I cannot stress how fantastic this news is – the NIDR is the front door for Firepool and will open up redevelopment opportunities for the whole of the centre of Taunton.

“Together with our partners and MP Jeremy Browne we have lobbied relentlessly for funding for the NIDR and I would like to thank everyone for their efforts over recent months.

“The strength of our case was never in doubt and this reinforces my very strong belief that we must plan and invest for the future.”

The Transport Minister said: “As well as relieving congestion in the town it will also help promote alternative modes of travel to the private car – improving access for pedestrians and vulnerable road users and providing an alternative bus route.

“The £15.2 million we are putting into this scheme shows that the coalition government is serious about investing in the infrastructure the country needs to drive economic growth and cut carbon dioxide emissions.”

The total cost of the road is being met through the Government’s funding, funding from Somerset County Council and developers.

Taunton welcomes Government Minister

Local Government Minister Brandon Lewis MP met business leaders and politicians in Taunton on Monday to hear at first hand how they are tackling the challenges they face.

Mr Lewis spent the afternoon in the county town following a working lunch at Somerset County Cricket Club, hosted by Cllr John Williams, Leader of Taunton Deane Borough Council.

"We enjoyed unprecedented access to the Minister who was able to meet leaders of both the business and civic communities. It gave us the opportunity to show how we are working together in our approach to regenerating Taunton town centre and the wider economy," said Cllr Williams.

"He heard from businesses that have been established in the area as well as those that have recently moved, about the help and support they have received from the Borough Council and their plans for the future.

"It was a very positive meeting and I am delighted he accepted the invitation to visit Taunton. The cricket club made the ideal venue – it is a significant presence in the county town and has some exciting plans for expansion in the near future which we are keen to support. Particularly relevant is the great partnership working and support given the club to ensure we retained this pre-eminent facility in Taunton."

The Minister was given an overview of Taunton's regeneration programme – Project Taunton – and finished his visit with a walking tour of some of the achievements including Castle Green for which the Minister was full of praise that this fantastic space had been created in the historic heart of the town.

He said: "It was great to see the hard work going on in Taunton Deane -S the regeneration programme is a brilliant example of an innovative approach by the local council that has led to urban green spaces where there was once just a car park."

Glass bridge shortlisted for top award

A 21st century bridge linking Taunton's past to its present – and future - has caught the eye of the country's top architects.

The glass-sided bridge, linking Castle Green to Goodland Gardens and the River Tone, is among 18 projects shortlisted by the RIBA - Royal Institute of British Architects - for its 2013 awards. Judges will now be visiting the bridge - commissioned by Project Taunton and Taunton Deane Borough Council - to see the innovative design before the results for the South West and Wessex are announced at a gala evening in Swindon in June.

Designed by London-based firm Moxon Architects in association with structural engineers Flint and Neill, the bridge was completed last year - in time to be admired by the Earl of Wessex when he officially opened Castle Green and the Museum of Somerset in September.

The brief to provide a footway linking Castle Green and Goodland Gardens across the Castle moat was challenging as the area is Taunton's historic heart with a wealth of important listed buildings, not least the Grade I listed Castle, home to the museum.

The glass sides make the bridge appear to float above the grass moat and it is tapered to tie in with the areas it connects - broad at the wide Castle Green end and narrowing slightly to fit in with the paths in Goodland Gardens. The false perspective makes the "uphill" journey to Castle Green seem shorter than the gentle slope down to Goodland Gardens.

The bridge has been carefully designed to incorporate specially formulated slip resistant material.  It does not lose its slip resistant properties when wet, unlike other hard surfaces such as concrete or natural stone. The band of glass without anti-slip material measures just 32mm wide - smaller than two 5p coins laid side by side.

The bridge- lit up at night - is an important feature in the transformation of Castle Green, part of Taunton's urban regeneration delivered by the Project Taunton team.

Deputy Leader of Taunton Deane Borough Council, Councillor Mark Edwards, said: "This is a wonderful accolade for what is a truly unique bridge and just being recognised for its design is excellent news.  This sends a clear message that Taunton is investing in quality design to enhance our environment."

Councillor Catherine Herbert, who holds the sports, parks and leisure portfolio, said: "It is great to see modern architecture in the heart of our town and sitting so comfortably with the historic castle.  For it to also be the link between two of our precious open spaces makes it very special."

Ian Franklin,of Project Taunton, has watched the bridge develop from a concept to reality and said: "Taunton has turned its back on the River Tone for too many years - Project Taunton and the regeneration work we deliver aims to restore the river to its rightful place at the heart of Taunton.

"The bridge between Castle Green and Goodland Gardens is another link in the chain of paths and walks that are putting the focus on the River Tone.  It is a terrific design that richly deserves recognition."