Purpose

The City of Chichester, the County town of
West Sussex, attracts large numbers of visitors each year due to
its historical and national importance. As a major regional centre
of administration, retail and cultural facilities Chichester plays
an important role in the region.
 
The existing pedestrianised zones in North and
East Street, laid with red brick paviours and York stone slabs in
the 1970s, have deteriorated and require major intervention and
investment.  Alongside upgrading the
surface of these pedestrianised zones, it was recognised there was
opportunity to undertake a wider initiative aimed at fostering
growth, attracting further inward investment, and enhancing the
city's appeal and safety for residents, visitors, and businesses.
This aligns with the aims of the
Chichester Growth Deal, a key partnership with Chichester
District Council, which identified Public Realm Improvements in the
city centre as a priority to boost the local economy.
 
In October 2024,
approval was given to allocate funding for undertaking design
work to develop an improvement scheme for the city and undertake
public engagement to inform the design.
 
Following on from this engagement a final
design for the improvement scheme has now been developed.
Therefore, authority is sought for the allocation of the funding
required to complete the design work and launch a procurement
process to deliver the final construction phase of the scheme as
set out in section 2 of the report.

Decision

The Cabinet
Member for Economy and Skills, in consultation with the Cabinet
Member for Highways and Transport, has approved:

(1) The allocation of
a total budget of £9.71m, from sources as set out in table 2,
section 5 of this report, to enable completion of the design work
and to fund delivery of the construction phases of the scheme.

(2) That following the
design being finalised, authority is delegated to the Service
Director (Highways, Transport and Planning) to commence a
procurement process and award the contract to complete the project,
including obtaining any statutory consents, in accordance with the
scope and financial parameters set out in this report.