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Heanor's £8.6 million Town Centre Regeneration Gets Underway

People living in the ex-coal mining town of Heanor are going to benefit from an £8.59 million investment into regenerating its marketplace, derelict grammar school, and disused car-parking land.

The money, which will be drawn from the government's Future High Streets Fund, aims to give the marketplace a facelift and build 40 family homes at the underused car park on Whysall Street.

Additionally, the site of the former Heanor Grammar School will be re-opened for community and commercial use. There are plans to create spaces-for-hire, offices for businesses, and to use the main hall for large events such as weddings.

However, despite the project's intentions to "bring positive change for the town", the closure of the marketplace car park has had a negative impact on some local businesses

Sam, Owner of 'Time Warp' on Market St, Heanor.

Business owners and residents expressed their annoyance to myself concerning the disruption. Sam, the owner of high-street shop 'Time Warp', posed the question "Why rip up a car park to then replace it with another car park?"

Ultimately, the decision for the regeneration lies with Amber Valley Borough Council, which manages and strongly supports the project. Leigh Turner, Heanor Regeneration Project Manager, unfortunately had to postpone our interview due to other commitments.

Directions to Wilmot Street Car Park from the Market Place.

For visitors to the town, alternative parking can be found on Wilmot Street. Additionally, bus routes into Heanor have been unaffected. The current construction is aiming for completion by early-2024.

Featured image courtesy of Ben Mellor. No changes have been made to this image.

In-article image one courtesy of Ben Mellor. Image had been edited for colour saturation.

In-article image two courtesy of Google Maps. No changes have been made to this screenshot. Licence to use image found here.