Ryde Town Council is working with its partners at the Isle of Wight Chamber of Commerce, the Isle of Wight Council and Island Roads to improve the public realm in both the High Street and along the Esplanade. The Isle of Wight Chamber Of Commerce has given Ryde Town Council £2,000 to spend on public realm improvements. The grant has been funded by the Isle of Wight Lottery’s new scratchcards and it follows similar match-funded grants to Shanklin and Newport.
“We’ve been working on a masterplan for Ryde for the last three years and this funding will really start to kick off that activity,” explains Kevin Smith, Chief Executive of the IW Chamber Of Commerce. “Ryde is a very important town for the Island. It’s close to Portsmouth which has itself received tremendous economic investment and Ryde is an important gateway to the economic potential of the mainland. If we can get Ryde right, I think there will be a ripple effect for the rest of the Island.”
The grant has been welcomed by Ryde Town Council which has match-funded the donation. The £4,000 total fund has also been joined by a recent £10,000 grant from the Coastal Communities fund. Councillor Roi Milburn, the Mayor of Ryde, says this cash injection will help to change perceptions.
“Ryde is the transport hub of the Island and it’s so important to get the public realm right. It’s what people see when they first come here and we need to present the right image. We also want our residents to be proud of what we’re doing for Ryde. The town councillors are all volunteers and by seeking funding like this it shows how serious we are about the future of the town. Ryde is really an amalgamation of two towns, with Union Street and the High Street. I think it’s important to show that we want people to come to the town centre.”
Ryde Town Council has agreed to match fund the offer of £2000 from the Isle of Wight Chamber of Commerce (under the Isle of Wight Lottery Fund) for improvements to the public realm. Together with funding provided by the Isle of Wight Council the overall budget for public realm enhancements now exceeds £14,000. Ryde Town Council wants to ensure that the funding that it has attracted delivers ‘additionally’ to the work already programmed by its partners. The Town Council is holding meetings with partners to examine the best way of co-ordinating the funding to deliver maximum improvements to the public realm.
“Plans are afoot and we have the resources to make sure that it happens well,” says Tim Wakeley, Chair of Planning at Ryde Town Council. “The upper High Street is looking particularly tired at the moment. Individual shopkeepers have done an awful lot to improve their frontages and I believe we should support that kind of move and improve the street furniture, seating and pavements, to make it an attractive place for people to visit and to shop. I think this funding is the start of significant investment in Ryde’s public realm infrastructure. We’ll be casting our net in the direction of wider funding, which will help us to finish the job.
“Things are happening here. It’s good that people are talking about Ryde and that’s indicative of the fact that there’s a lot of energy in this town, being directed at its progress and extending the season.”
Ryde Town Council are seeking to unify the treatment of the public realm in two areas. The first area is the Esplanade where it is recommended that, due to the Conservation Area status of this area, the ‘historic’ nature of public realm should be maintained and enhanced.
The second area is the High Street and Town Square where it is recommended that the public realm should be enhanced to unify the look and feel of the street furniture. Further presentations on this issue will be made in October 2015 as part of our consultation on the ‘Pedestrianisation of the High Street’.
Ryde Town Council recognises the importance of the designated Solent Special Protection Area. We are currently investigating how to improve public awareness of this designation through increasing the range and frequency of information points adjacent to Ryde Sands.
Read more about the Coastal Communities Team programme here
“We’re showing a collective willingness to move the Island forward. Ryde town is a key asset for the Isle of Wight. Working with Ryde Town Council and the local community is the way forward. Ryde is a fabulous place and enhancing it, as a catalyst to benefit the whole of the Isle of Wight has to be a good thing.”
Kevin Smith, Chief Executive of the IW Chamber Of Commerce
