Millions more pounds could be pumped into the regeneration of Newcastle’s famous Grainger Market, while council chiefs say its financial struggles are now “salvageable”.
Traders and shoppers at the city centre market have rejoiced in recent weeks, having suffered through years of frustration. Disruptive and long-running construction works to restore its roof have finally concluded, with the next step in the historic site’s transformation being a £9m set of upgrades due later this year.
But it has now emerged that the area around the Grainger Market could also be given a major facelift too, in order to avoid cash being clawed back by the Government. Also included in the successful 2021 Levelling Up Fund bid (LUF) that is largely funding the next set of improvements inside the market hall, details of which are still unconfirmed, was more than £10m to radically overhaul Old Eldon Square and pedestrianise Blackett Street.
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But both of those projects have since been shelved by the local authority after a power shift last year that saw Nick Kemp replace Nick Forbes as Labour’s council leader. That has left civic centre chiefs searching for a new way to spend that remaining money before the Government takes it back – and it appears that the surroundings of the Grainger Market are the main target.
Councillors were told on Tuesday that there would be a “reallocation of some money into the Grainger Market project” from the two scrapped schemes that was “not part of the original allocation or the original scope”. The Local Democracy Reporting Service understands that designs are being drawn up for upgrades to the public space outside the market, though it is unclear exactly what work is planned and which of Grainger Street, Nun Street, Nelson Street, or Clayton Street will benefit.
Michael Ashton, the council’s senior adviser on capital investment, told a scrutiny committee that this “phase two” of the Grainger Market Levelling Up project would require an “extended timescale” beyond the March 2024 deadline set to spend the LUF money, with talks being held over that with Whitehall officials.
When asked if the original £7m worth of LUF money allocated to the Grainger Market, which is to be supplemented by £2m from the council, would be spent quick enough, Mr Ashton replied: “There are deadlines with the LUF, but I see no reason why that should be an issue. We will start in autumn and that will allow us to deliver what we need to in that package of work.”
Meanwhile, a report to the authority’s Finance and Budget Monitoring Scrutiny Committee reveals that the Grainger Market has a projected £377,000 shortfall against its budget for 2022/23 – though that is an improvement on the £484,000 reported this time last year. 12 months ago, the city council branded the Grainger Market a “drain” on resources as the costly roof repairs and major rent arrears took a toll – though the mood around the Geordie institution is now much improved.
Mr Ashton said: “The budgets were well-performing until the last few years. They were within the targets and we had occupancy at very high levels. But that followed into Covid and then doing the roof works, which led to lower occupancy and general trader struggles. That has been a challenge and that is why the budgets are where they are now – but they are salvageable.”
The Local Democracy Reporting Service previously revealed that stallholders had racked up a whopping debt of more than half a million pounds to the council during Covid, having slammed the authority for refusing to cut their rent rates even when they were forced to close in lockdown.
Welcoming the redirection of the LUF funding, Lib Dem councillor and committee chair Colin Ferguson said: “That is helpful to know and that is a reassurance. This committee has expressed concerns previously about the need to go through competitive bidding processes. Knowing that that money will be opt to good effect is a reassurance.”
Labour’s Rob Higgins called the news “very positive” and said that he had “come to love the Grainger Market over recent months”.
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