£3.3m project to bring redundant buildings back to life bearing fruit

A£3.3 million scheme aiming to fill Truro’s empty business spaces and revitalise the city centre is bearing fruit, says the community interest company behind it.

The New Life for City Buildings project has received 30 initial inquiries from owners and landowners following its formal launch in January, according to the newly-created Truro Regeneration CIC.

Funded through the £23.6m Truro Town Deal programme, the project is intended to renovate and repurpose buildings empty buildings in the city centre and the unoccupied upper floors of others.

Since then, the CIC says, it has received 11 expressions of interest in properties in River Street, Pydar Street, New Bridge Street, Victoria Square, St Mary’s Street and High Cross, most of which are looking at converting empty floors above retail shops into living space.

“We were delighted with the positive response to the launch of the project and are looking forward to the first grants being awarded in the coming weeks,” said Rupert HumeKendall, chair of the CIC.

“However, we are keen to encourage other owners and landlords with empty spaces above shops or empty or dilapidated commercial buildings on the outskirts of the city to come forward”.

The New Life for City Buildings project is one of seven in Truro approved to receive Town Deal funding from Government over the next two years.

Wholly owned by Truro City Council, the Truro Regeneration Company is responsible for assessing applications and distributing grants to owners and landlords and, where appropriate, buying and regenerating unused buildings so they can be repurposed.

Landlords and owners will be expected to meet at least half the cost of the works and will be responsible for overseeing construction.

Five applicants have now been invited to make full applications for grant funding, with a further four expressions of interest due to come forward for consideration at the next meeting of the CIC’s board.

There are some 1,600 private businesses in Truro, of which many are in the retail and professional services sectors.

“Although Truro is rightly renowned for its historic buildings and grand Georgian and Victorian architecture, we recognise that many of the buildings have upper floors which are empty and unused,” said city councillor Carol Swain, the mayor of Truro.

“We want to protect and celebrate our heritage and cultural assets and encourage more people to live and work in the city centre by transforming these empty and dilapidated buildings.

“This project provides a fantastic opportunity to create a thriving city centre by bringing new life to our historic buildings and encouraging more people into our great little city, and I’d encourage owners and landlords to come forward with their ideas”.

All applications are considered by the Truro Regeneration Company board against the criteria set out in the funding agreement between the city council and the Truro Towns Fund.

Details of the criteria are included in the application form and are also available by emailing regenco@ truro.gov.uk, the address to which expressions of interest should also be sent.

We want to protect and celebrate our heritage and cultural assets and encourage more people to live and work in the city centre by transforming these empty and dilapidated buildings

Cllr Carol Swain, the mayor of Truro

»Shoppers on Pydar Street, one of the areas of the city centre in which expressions of interest have been made Greg Martin