COUNCIL bosses say they have public backing to revamp a huge slice of Huddersfield town centre.

Only a handful of people want to see the site around Queensgate Market and the Piazza stay as it is.

And now more talks are to take place on the multi-million pound Queensgate Revival scheme.

A blueprint to transform a crucial part of the town centre, taking in the site covering the library, market hall, piazza, multi-storey car park and surrounding area, got a huge 'thumbs up' from people who responded to a month-long public consultation.

More than 2,000 people visited the public exhibition in the first week. Other meetings were held for special interest groups, and more than 300 people filled in cards or responded on the council's website.

Only 19 people went for the 'status quo' to do nothing and leave it as it is.

Clr Ken Sims, Kirklees Cabinet member for regeneration, said today: "This latest consultation indicates people are fully behind us in taking the town and the Kirklees area into the 21st century with a modern, vibrant, robust, and thriving regeneration programme.

"It is a further endorsement of the forward-looking approach that Kirklees has for its main town centres. And this is not just about Huddersfield as it will have spin-off benefits for the district as a whole.

"I am pleased that all but a handful of people recognised that the 'status quo' is not a realistic option if we are going to further establish Huddersfield and Kirklees as a major regional shopping and commercial centre.

"A 'do nothing' option is not really an option at all. We would still have to spend huge amounts of money - more than £5m - on simply repairing the library and market hall, and the town centre would lose trade as competition from other towns increased.

"Many specific concerns were raised which will be looked at in detail such as open space, buses, roads, shopping needs and car parking.

"One that needs to be dealt with now is a concern that this is going to be a burden on the council tax.

"That is not the case. The funding will come from the selected developer and there will be no capital cost to the council taxpayers of Kirklees.

"The proposals put forward build on the consultation three years ago into seven development options. More than 70% of local people came down in favour of a widescale re-development of the area, but they wanted to retain the library building. This scheme does just that.

"Since then both the library and the market hall have been listed as being of architectural or historic interest. The 'Queensgate Revival' project resulted from taking account of the support for a big regeneration project, while at the same time retaining important elements of the library and the market hall."

He said the council wanted to build on what has been happening in the town over the last few years with Kingsgate, Huddersfield Renaissance, St George's Square, the proposed Waterfront development on Chapel Hill, and other projects.

He said: "This is the biggest and most exciting development proposal for Huddersfield for many decades.

"Officers will be formally reporting back to Cabinet around February with a detailed timetable of where we go from here. This is a huge initiative and there will be many matters to address - planning issues, assembling the site, and negotiating with property owners and existing businesses.

"I can assure everyone who will be affected that we intend to get them fully involved and meet their needs wherever possible. Our aim is to come up with a forward programme that everyone can be on board with."

THE Queensgate revival plans centre on a stunning new two-level open pedestrian street linking King Street to the south end of New Street.

Further key features outlined in the blueprint include:

* A major department store

* 60 new shop units

* Cafes, bars and restaurants

* 170 residential apartments and a

100-bed hotel

* A 70,000 sq ft new library and art gallery on the corner of Ramsden Street and Peel Street

* 1,350 underground car-parking spaces

* A modernised, re-shaped and re-furbished market hall

* A unique footbridge link to the university

* Improved open spaces and Town Hall setting

The existing library building will be kept and refurbished, with the two lower floors housing shops, and the upper two floors potentially earmarked for a health club and leisure facilities.

The department store, some of the shops and apartments will be on the site of the current multi-storey car park, and the hotel is planned for the upper floors of the old Co-operative building, retaining both the Victorian and 1930s facades.