Newcastle’s famous Hippy Green could be paved over as part of a £50m redesign of the city centre, new images reveal.
Designs for a massive transformation of Old Eldon Square show how all grass could be removed from the popular spot and replaced by new paving, seats, fountains, and planters. The overhaul would form part of a bigger regeneration of the city centre, which also includes plans to pedestrianise the entirety of Blackett Street and Grey Street to create a “healthier and greener place”.
Newcastle City Council, which released the first concept images of its ideas for the square on Thursday, says that it wanted to “sensitively integrate” its war memorial into a “world class public space to celebrate the life and culture of the city”. The 1800s square was originally the gardens of a three-sided Georgian terrace, most of which was demolished in the 1970s to make way for the Eldon Square shopping centre.
