Folkestone is a conveniently located coastal Town that has train links via HS1 in under 1 hour to London St Pancras, the Channel Tunnel service to France and the port of Dover are within 10 miles to the East. Folkestone has a number of regeneration projects with the development of Folkestone Seafront with over 700 apartments and the town of Otterpool as a new Garden Town in the next25 years. www.folkestoneseafront.com and www.otterpoolpark.org.
It was announced on 18/01/2023, that Folkestone and Hythe District Council have been awarded £19.7 million for a major overhaul of Folkestone’s town centre to improve shopping areas, an upgraded bus station and a new public green space to encourage businesses and visitors into the area.
The funding is for the three following projects:
1. Station Arrival and Town Centre Connections: This element of the project aims to improve the inks from the railway station for pedestrians and cyclists to encourage use of active travel andpublic transport and to improve connections for visitors and residents alike.
2. Improved Gateway to the Town Centre and Bouverie Square: This component of the project will unlock transformational change around the town centre. The focus will be to reconfigure the main
bus station in the town centre and implement changes to the legacy gyratory road system to the north. The money will enable a sustainable, attractive and welcoming gateway to be created for Folkestone town centre with a green park replacing the bus station in Bouverie Square. The exciting and ambitious project will see Shellons Street become two-way with bus stops and bays replacing the bus station. Better signage and obvious walking links will connect visitors to a greener, more vibrant Sandgate Road and Guildhall Street shopping area.
3. Folca, Sandgate Road and Town Centre Public Realm: This element of the project will refurbish the Folca building (the former Debenhams building) into a ‘town lab’ which will encourage andbring new and experimental uses into the town centre. The phased refurbishment of this building will bring a currently redundant building back into use in the town centre and reactivate this part of the high street. It will also improve the public realm on Sandgate Road to encourage footfall in this area of the town centre. The funding will also enable the second phase of Folca to be progressed by establishing new uses for the site, with an intended focus on public services, retail, leisure and business uses for the rejuvenated building.
There is a short video of the future of Folkestone here: https://videopress.com/v/TRDRtx4S
Planning Proposal: - Y19/0704/FH
The proposed development has full planning permission for 24 houses and six flats with planning granted for 22% affordable dwellings.
The project is ready to commence construction with material planning start and pre-start conditions discharged.
The proposal is for a mixture of 1,2, 3 and 4 bed properties to consist of:
- 10 No 2 bed houses
- 12 No 3 bed houses
- 2 No 4 bed House (1 No Wheelchair compliant)
- 6 No 1 bed flats. (2 No Wheelchair compliant)
All of the proposals will include associated parking.
Landscaping:
The approach will be to produce a good variance of soft and hard landscaping as expected of that of a residential location. Consideration will be given to the variances in levels throughout the site to allow for an interesting and varied planning scheme. Careful deliberation has been given to allocate some space back to support the natural ecology, creating a low density development.
Background:
The school site was originally sold as part of the enabling to fund the construction of the New Beacon school now in Moat Farm road which saw the merger of the Highview and Foxwood schools into new school facilities. The site is approximately 0.91 hectares in area (2.25 acres). The site is the former home of the Highview school. The school was decanted after a new facility was built a short distance away. This new school, The Beacon now houses both the Highview and Foxwood schools allowing for a new state of the art facility. The site has good transport links to Folkestone, Ashford and Dover. The nearest train station is Folkestone central which is within 0.7 miles. Further facilities in the proximity of the site: - 2 Primary schools within 0.5 mile. - Folkestone academy secondary School within 1 mile. - A Tesco Extra within 0.5 miles and 0.7 miles from Sainsbury's supermarket. - Within 0.6 miles of Radnor Park.
Featured professionals
Featured professionals
Contact us via [email protected]
