Page 7 - link magazine

The Link Magazine • February 2005 7
All change for the centre
The New Swindon Company revealed its ideas for the redevelop- ^^^ . ° I tt I )crclnpm, ^ m^ ^,
ment of the town centre last July to include a better range of shops,
more restaurants and employment opportunities, as well as housing. R ai
Areas of the town centre have been zoned to accommodate the uses, f 4 + a;^
with, for example, cultural and artistic activity proposed for the Town
Hall - theatre square area, redevelopment of sites around Fleming Way
and new urban housing at North Star.
The Link has been delving into the Swindon archives to look at the
proposals for the town centre in the post-war era. Canal L i r Park
In 1945 planners came up with a grand plan - displaying some fine TT
Soviet style ideas - to create a tree lined boulevard running from a plaza
outside the Town Hall on Regents Circus to another plaza joining Fleet
Street and Milford Street, close to the bus and railway stations. This
would have been intersected by a park running east to west, along the
line of the old canal which had already been filled in.
The drawing shows a large number of houses demolished to make co .
9cO ^ f ^^ Civi^-flff^
way for offices, tinted red and pink, open spaces (green tint), and car
parking (yellow).
The plan was obviously not ambitious enough for Swindon's future
needs as a much larger number of houses were knocked down to
accommodate the office and commercial development of the 1960s and
1970s which we know today around the Brunel Centre, which forms the
basis for redevelopment proposals being put forward by the New d o
^Ifiero fal Road load
Swindon Company. These can be seen at www.newswindon.co.uk
Right: The 1945 plan with annotations added for orientation purposes Town ura^e„
Below: The post-war visionfor the town centre, with European town planning
overtones. The Town Hall, complete with concert hall, bottom left, fronting
onto Regents Circus, with an ornamental lake, looking down a grand boul-
evard,fronted by large office blocks and department stores
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Proposed central park N r

Centre point for communities
The old railway museum in Faringdon Road has been renamed the
Community Crossroads in recognition of the activities that take place
there and its potential for the future.
On 19 February the a ground breaking
New Mechanics' Insti- music performance in
tute Trust will go to association with the
Swindon's Cabinet to University of Bath In-
request a renewable stitute of Contempo-
five year lease on the ^' rar andlnterdisci hi-
2 p
building, vacated nary Arts.
• Comprehensive range of quality PVC-U Windows, Doors & Conservatories
when the railway mu- The February 2004
• A wide choice of finishes available -
seum moved to Steam, Link stated that with
Brilliant White PVC, luxurious Mahogany, - -
so that it can become a all the grand plans for
rich Golden Oak and warm Rosewood or
meeting point for com- the regeneration of
a combination of these finishes
munity and cultural the town centre being
• Superb installation by experienced
groups in the town cen- drawn up by the New
craftsmen P,
tre, and provide a base Swindon Company,
• 10 year Insurance Backed Guarantee
for the Trust and other town based no provision was being made for
windo's doors conservatories
community organisations. large unusual, spontaneous and Visit our showroom:
Over the last 18 months the creative events to take place. Com- OPEN Mon - Fri 8am - 5pm Sat 8am - 12 Noon IFENSA
Trust, on a short term lease has munity Crossroads can show how Unit 7, Great Western Trade Park, Great Western Way, Swindon SN2 2DJ
opened up the building for a skate- a different face of Swindon can be fax: 01793 495195 www.kingfisher-conservatories.co.uk
board event, two CAMRA beer fes- developed.
tivals, several large meetings, and • Juggling club - see page 32