LAND AT ELWICK PLACE, ASHFORD, KENT

CLIENT
Stanhope Plc

SECTORS
Sport & Leisure
Commercial

LOCATION
Ashford

PLANNING AUTHORITY
Ashford Borough Council

HIGHWAY AUTHORITY
Kent County Council

PROJECT TEAM
Guy Holloway Architects
Gillespies
Savills
Alinea
Cudd Bentley

PROJECT MANAGER
Stephen Kemp

PROJECT DIRECTOR
Daniel Ekstrand

PROJECT

We were appointed by Stanhope Plc to provide transport support for the application of a leisure-led scheme comprising a boutique cinema, restaurant space and a separate 60 bedroom family hotel development in the heart of Ashford town centre.

The Ashford Borough Council planning committee approved Stanhope’s plans for the scheme which also provides a new town centre car park of 282 spaces which is shared with the new leisure and hotel facilities. The former ring road was redeveloped in 2007 as a shared space with reduced street furniture, road markings and traffic lights, and the speed limit decreased to 20 mph.

APPROACH

Key challenges included the mitigation of transport impacts with the local highway authority, while integrating the design of new transport facilities with the existing shared space design of Elwick Square and new landscaping areas within the development, all of which were successfully resolved through the plan development process.

OUTCOME

The proposals were approved at committee and construction has been completed.