Work starts on controversial Temple Island
WORK is set to start on Bristol’s controversial Temple Island, kicking off one of the largest regeneration projects in the UK.
The land formerly earmarked for an arena will be turned into a huge construction site over the coming months so work can begin to build a new university campus and a new entrance to Bristol Temple Meads.
Contractors from the University of Bristol will be preparing to start work on the new £300 million Temple Quarter Enterprise Campus on the site of the old Royal Mail sorting office.
And Network Rail contractors will be on site to do the preliminary work to build a new eastern entrance at Bristol Temple Meads linking the passenger station subway to the new university campus.
The “enabling” works, which are still being finalised, are part of the council’s controversial agreement with Legal & General who will develop the Temple Island site.
The activity will mark the first construction work in a multi-millionpound masterplan to reinvigorate a huge swathe of the east central part of the city.
Long overdue for regeneration, the Temple Quarter and St Philip’s
Marsh area is the subject of a number of projects and plans in various stages of development for new homes, offices, shops, restaurants and infrastructure, including a major revamp of Bristol Temple Meads to make it “fit for purpose”.
Funding of £32 million signed off by the West of England Combined Authority (Weca) last week paves the way for the enabling works to start, according to a report to this month’s meeting of Bristol City Council’s cabinet.
A council spokesperson said some of the works will need planning consent and “are likely to include providing access, addressing any residual contamination arising from the site’s previous use as a diesel depot, reinforcing utilities and river wall assessment and repairs”.
“It also includes enhancing Network Rail’s access to the railway,” the spokesperson said.
Bristol mayor Marvin Rees said it was a “huge challenge” to keep projects like this on track during the coronavirus pandemic, but it was important for the city’s economic recovery.
The redevelopment
of Temple
Quarter is “well placed” to lead that recovery, he said.
Transport campaigner Dave Redgewell welcomed the work at Bristol Temple Meads but said there was still a lot to do to integrate busrail links and improve passenger facilities.
“It’s still one of the poorest mainline stations in South West England and probably one of the poorest stations on the national rail network,” he said.
“We need a station fit for purpose.” Bristol Temple Meads will eventually have more and better platforms and improved access routes and connections.
As well as
the new
eastern entrance, it will get a new northern entrance and gateway by the Friary, which would include an improved transport interchange, and a new southern gateway towards Temple Gate.
The plans for the station are key to the regeneration of Temple Quarter and St Philip’s Marsh, which cabinet member for planning and city design Nicola Beech said was “one of the largest and most leading regeneration projects in the UK at the moment”.
The council’s agreement with Legal & General for 500 new homes, office blocks, a 350-room hotel and a conference centre on Temple Island is part of the regeneration project.
A councillor-led scrutiny group will be set up before the end of the year to scrutinise the Temple Island and wider Temple Quarter developments.
The council is working with Weca, Homes England and Network Rail on the development framework covering Temple Quarter and St Philip’s, and this is expected to be completed by the end of this year, according to the cabinet update.
Mr Rees said the council would continue to lobby government for further investment in the project and to make sure they understand its value to Bristol, the West of England, the Great Western Gateway and the country.