Wickham Station car park extension completed
The station car park at Wickham has been extended to increase parking for workers and make more spaces in the Square available for shoppers and visitors.
It was opened officially today (Thursday 13 August) by Cllr Victoria Weston, Deputy Leader of Winchester City Council. Work was completed in July.
Cllr Weston said:
Car parking is an essential part of any successful town, and seeing this extra parking area being delivered for Wickham shows that where there’s a will there’s a way. I would like to congratulate all the partners in this project for creating a really useful facility out of redundant land that will help take pressure off the Square. Above all this will help Wickham move forward as an attractive place to live and visit.
An extra 38 spaces have been added bringing the total to 67 in the station car park, following planning consent which was granted in October 2014. The car park has been extended to the north with improvements to lighting.
The £110,000 project included use of specialist materials to suit the location and to protect tree roots, plus work to prevent drainage issues.
The City Council decided an extension was the best way to tackle shortage of parking capacity in the Square after discussion with the Parish Council and local businesses.
The extra spaces are expected to boost the local economy by helping visitors and shoppers to park more easily. The spaces will offer traders the opportunity to use the extended car park, freeing spaces in the Square.
Cllr James Byrnes, Portfolio Holder for Local Economy, said:
The extension of the station car park provides better parking for those who work in Wickham and for the general public. We expect this to provide a boost for the local economy of Wickham by increasing parking capacity overall and making it easier for first-time visitors and shoppers to park in the Square.
Cllr Angela Clear, Mayor of Winchester and ward councillor for Wickham, said:
I am delighted to see this important car park extension completed. Wickham is a special place with its own unique heritage and we look forward to welcoming more visitors to the village.
Louise Oram, Chair of the Chamber of Trade, said:
This extension of Station Close car park is wonderful as it will bring benefit to villagers, visitors and businesses alike through the provision of additional safe parking.