A strategy that shapes what Reading town centre will look like in the future has been given the go-ahead.
Concept images show areas of the town centre reimagined to provide more space for pedestrians and cyclists, and more tree and bush planting.
St Mary’s Butts and Market Place have been reimagined with the current red brick being replaced with beige paving, and a substantial amount of bushes and flowers being installed.
Meanwhile, the road in Friar Street would be substantially narrowed, providing more space for pedestrians, and Queens Road would have substantial tree and bush planting with more defined pedestrian and cycle crossings.
These images feature in Reading Borough Council’s town centre public realm strategy that was recently approved by councillors.
Concept images also show town centre road space being narrowed to provide more space for bus stops and pedestrians.
A diagram shows a road being narrowed from seven metres wide to 6-6.5 metres wide, allowing space for a bus stop build-out and planting areas.
Named ‘pillars’ of the strategy are ‘inclusivity’, ‘sustainability’ and ‘liveability’.
Improvements to public spaces are funded by developer contributions from section 106 legal agreements that developers must pay to fund vital infrastructure.
The public realm strategy was discussed at a meeting of the council’s policy committee.
The strategy was thoroughly welcomed, with Micky Leng, the lead councillor for planning and assets, arguing that developer contributions would be used to provide a public benefit.
Cllr Leng (Labour, Whitley) said: “It will make sure that when all these developments come online that they do make a contribution outside of their ‘red line’ because they can be guilty of having a red line on their developments and this will make them contribute too.
“And then we can get a truly bustling town centre.
“I’m sure I’ll be probably in a box by then, and up the cream chimney [cremation], but in 10-15 years’ time they will look back on these things and our town centre will be a good place, all the development will be finished and the theatres will be bustling.
“They [the public] will go, ‘Yeah we moaned a bit but they didn’t do a bad job’. Mark my words.”
Karen Rowland (Labour, Abbey), lead councillor for environmental services and community safety, stressed the strategy specifically related to the ‘public realm’ which covers highways and streets rather than a strategy for the town centre as a whole.
While cllr Rob White (Green, Park) praised cllr Leng for assisting with the policy, he argued that community allotments and guidance on advertising screens should have been included in the strategy.
Ultimately, the policy committee unanimously agreed to move the town centre public realm strategy forward during the meeting on December 18, 2024.
The strategy will undergo a public consultation that will take place later this year.
