A MAJOR cash injection that will help pay for improvements to Chester’s City Walls towers has been announced.
Chester City Council has secured a grant of £500,000 from the European Union towards a £1.1 million joint scheme called Portico. It will include repairs, improved interpretation for visitors and access improvements. It will also pay for an important study to investigate how the city walls can help boost Chester’s local economy as well as new uses for the towers.
As part of the improvement work, Chester will also be learning and sharing ‘best practice’ with other European cities including Cologne in Germany, Ghent inŠ Belgium andŠ Utrecht in the Netherlands, which is leading the Portico project.
Cllr Stuart Parker, city council executive member for development, said: “This is great news for the walls and for Chester Renaissance. Portico represents another important milestone as we press ahead in our work to restore the walls and move Chester higher up the league table of must see European cities.”
Cllr Adrian Walmsley, executive member for resources, said: “This major cash boost from the European Union represents excellent value for money for Chester’s residents. It’s a fantastic success and will spur us on as we continue to look for other external funding sources that will pay for more improvements to Chester’s world famous landmarks.”
Councillor Hilarie McNae, Chester Heritage champion and chairman of the council’s walls steering committee, said: “The city walls towers are a wonderful heritage asset. They provide a fantastic opportunity for bringing to life many of the untold stories about Chester. I am looking forward to their transformation over the next few years.”
The funding for Portico has been approved in principle, with full approval expected once the details are agreed. It is hoped that the project will begin in September running until March 2012. It is jointly funded by the EU’s Regional Development Fund and Chester City Council.
