The town of Tonbridge, set in the heart of West Kent, already
has a lot going for it. There is the attractive conservation area
to the north of the High Street crowned by the imposing 12
century Tonbridge Castle.
district
focus
A recent major step forward towards
the realisation of the Council’s plans
for the town is the appointment
of Sainsbury’s as a development
partner to the Council. Sainsbury’s
operates a major anchor store in
the area but is keen to expand and
develop its operations in the heart
of Tonbridge with a brand new and
larger store within a comprehensive
mixed use development project.
More detailed plans are now being
drawn up to provide for the needs of
Sainsbury’s, provide additional retail
space to compliment the traditional
High Street, new community
and leisure facilities, residential
accommodation and replacement
car parking. One of the principles
of the development is to take
advantage of the waterside location
and the opportunities to create some
new and exciting public spaces.
Bringing forward such a major
scheme in a relatively small market
town like Tonbridge will bring
significant rewards. The major
bonus will be the significant uplift,
both for the local environmental
quality and its overall sense of
place, and add a new dimension
of retail activity to improve the
economic vitality of this attractive
town centre.
Contact:
Tel: 01732 876267
Email:
corporate.services@tmbc.gov.uk
www.tmbc.gov.uk
Just below the Castle, the River
Medway meanders through the
town providing a focus for recreation
and riverside activities. Along the
river frontage, new developments
are springing up, changing a once
down-at-heel area to one with
smart flats, offices and a shiny new
conference centre. In addition, a
recent survey found that Tonbridge
has more surface car parking than
other similar towns making it an
easy location for visits and tourism.
With all this happening, it might
be surprising that Tonbridge and
Malling Borough Council is keen
on securing even further investment
in the town centre. But the need
to ensure the retail sector remains
competitive in the face of stiff
competition from nearby Tunbridge
Wells and the need to upgrade local
community facilities and improve
the local environmental quality
of the town and its High Street,
are pressures which the Borough
Council knows cannot be ignored.
Significant progress has been made
towards realising new development
in the Angel area of the town.
A master plan for the whole town
centre was first drawn up with
the assistance of lead consultants,
David Lock Associates. Following
extensive consultation within the
local community, the master plan
was adopted and the next step was
the development of an area action
plan for the town centre, drawn
up as part of the Council’s Local
Development Framework.
Tonbridge and Malling Borough Council
River Medway in Tonbridge
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