Funding to demolish eye-sores to expand cultural quarter

Two scruffy empty buildings in one of Plymouth’s key streets are to be knocked down to help pave the way for development that could expand the city’s flourishing cultural quarter.

The Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities announced that the Council has successfully secured £353,250 from its Brownfield Land Release Fund Round 2 to demolish two redundant buildings in Tavistock Place on a site a stone’s throw from The Box.

One building was an annex and storage site for the old museum and art gallery, while the other was a social club which closed its doors in 2017.

Cabinet Member for Finance and City Centre Champion Councillor Mark Lowry said: “Tavistock Place has changed beyond all recognition since the Box opened in 2020. It is now somewhere people enjoy events, walk between The Box and the gallery space in St Luke’s and there are now places to eat and drink.

“The Box has seen over half a million visitors and it’s fair to say these buildings are not exactly adding to the atmosphere we are trying to create.

“I’m pleased that we have managed to secure this funding to knock these empty buildings down and get the site ready for a new life.

“This area used to be a quiet unloved back water, but now with so many people passing through Tavistock Place, I have high hopes that we can attract something exciting that will bring more people, more buzz and even more life.

“This is good for the economy of the city centre and the city.”