Contractors are on the home straight galloping towards the finishing line as they hurry to complete the new Chester Racecourse entrance in time for the 2018 Boodles May Festival (May 9-11).

The fresh approach to the main entrance will include a resurfaced and pedestrianised Watergate Square.

And there will be a canopied entrance leading into the County Stand where The Watergate Inn stood until its recent demolition.

Contracting are working at break-neck speed to get the entrance to Chester Racecourse ready for the 2018 Boodles May Festival (Wednesday, May 9-Friday, May 11)

Existing entrance gates and railings on the boundary of Watergate Square have been removed and the old box office and IT office complex demolished.

Empty offices created by the race company’s relocation to the nearby HQ building are being transformed into new customer amenities.

Chester Race Company has released an artist's impression of what the new look entrance will look like after all the changes.

There will be a ground floor fully accessible new box office with a staircase – now in place – leading up to a first floor bar with a new roof that reflects the character of the original building and is open all year-round with views of the City Walls .

The staircase links into the existing decked area at the rear of the County Stand providing a welcoming entrance into the Long Room.

Chester Race Company recently unveiled its £100m masterplan which includes a 1,000 seater conference centre – or ‘events building’ – to host conferences, banquets, weddings, trade fairs and even concerts.

Contracting are working at break-neck speed to get the entrance to Chester Racecourse ready for the 2018 Boodles May Festival (Wednesday, May 9-Friday, May 11)

The Pavilion Grandstand will be a replacement for the Leverhulme stand with the most modern hospitality facilities in racing, including boxes and restaurants overlooking the course.

Most car parking linked to Holiday Inn Express will be relocated to a three-level multi-storey on the other side of the railway line but accessible through the arches.

The following artist’s impression reveals Chester Race Company's ‘2018 Masterplan’ with an events building for up to a 1,000 people on the left and the brand new Pavilion Grandstand alongside as a replacement for the Leverhulme stand.

Freeing up the hotel car park plot will create room for the events building and a 30-40-bed extension at the Holiday Inn.

A planning application is expected to be lodged in the next few weeks.