A scheme nearing completion to improve the visual impact of the Lord Street car park site is to be one of the first funded by the Town and Village Centre regeneration fund. The ?23,000 project will see the car park’s Lord Street and Parade Street perimeters screened by a system of linked screens with planters and seating sections, and is the product of a partnership between the Douglas local regeneration committee, Douglas Development Partnership, Douglas Borough Council, the Department of Infrastructure and the police. Council Leader Councillor David Christian JP said: ‘For some time now the Council has been working closely with Douglas Development Partnership and government to progress projects contributing to the regeneration of the town centre, which we see as a number one priority. The Lord Street car park scheme is a cost-effective but short-term solution to enhancing what is a prominent but, until now, visually unappealing site. I would emphasise, however, that this is only a temporary measure and should not be considered a substitute for the proposed major development of the car park site which I hope will commence sooner rather than later.’ Chris Pycroft, Douglas Development Partnership’s development manager said: ‘The unsightly appearance of the car park regularly prompts comments not only from local residents but also from visitors, especially those arriving by ferry. Anecdotal accounts tell of some first-time visitors believing the groups of police vehicles parked on the site to indicate a local disturbance of some sort. This is clearly not the image we wish this gateway to the capital of the Isle of Man to portray. ‘In drawing up the design proposal we made it a priority that the units were made locally. To this end the planters, which will be filled with low-maintenance shrubs, as well as the screens and seating sections have been manufactured from local timber at the Department of Environment, Food and Agriculture’s saw mills in St John’s. The units are also destined to have a long lifespan as although they are secured to the ground, they are portable with the aid of a lifting device so can be repositioned to a new site when the Lord Street site is developed. ‘This scheme is the first physical project in Douglas to be funded by the Town and Village Centre regeneration fund that will be of immediate benefit to members of the public and make a very real difference to such a high-visibility site in the town centre.’ Chairman of the Douglas regeneration committee David Cretney MHK said: ‘I very much welcome this initiative. The bus station and the shelters have presented a very unsatisfactory facility for a long time and I look forward to playing my part in the provision of suitable permanent facilities for bus passengers including proper waiting, refreshment and toilet facilities together with information and advice being available to them in a much better form. In the meantime these improvements will certainly make things look better on the site for all concerned.’ Ends