Revamped St George’s Square cost £1m more than planned
Aug 28 2010 by Barry Gibson, Huddersfield Daily Examiner
St George's Square
THE controversial revamp of St George’s Square cost almost £1m more than planned.
New information shows the regeneration cost £4.92m – rather than the £4m which was budgeted.
Kirklees Council came up with £2.67m for the redevelopment, with the remaining £2.25m coming from the now defunct development agency Yorkshire Forward.
Yesterday a council spokesman blamed the spiralling cost on contractor Wrekin, which went into administration last March, seven months before the revamp was completed.
He said: “The projected figure of £4m is from two years ago and was an estimate, as exact costs cannot be calculated until a project comes to an end.
“Unfortunately, the collapse of Wrekin, who had been contracted to carry out the renovation works, led to additional costs for the council when we had to take over the project and guide it through to completion.
“St George’s Square was fully reopened in October last year. It is a popular open space among residents and visitors and a premier venue for major events in Huddersfield.”
The figures were released this week after a Freedom of Information Act request by John Pinder.
Meanwhile, a Huddersfield disability campaigner believes the revamped square is dangerous.
Jean Goodison of Better Futures for the Blind thinks the new water jets outside Huddersfield Train Station are unsafe for visually-impaired people.
The Newsome woman said: “There’s nothing to stop people from walking into the middle of the fountains and getting absolutely soaked.
“When the work was going on, we asked Kirklees to put something round the fountains. Some brass studs would alert anyone using a stick that there was something ahead.”
Mrs Goodison added that some of the pavements around St George’s Square were also dangerous.
“There’s a very narrow kerb opposite what used to be the Huddersfield Building Society,” she said.
“The square is very badly designed and could be in breach of the Disability Discrimination Act.”
