A PUBLIC square, riverside walks, and a footbridge could be on the way for an “underused” corner of the city centre, under another new development plan released by the council.

City of York Council has published the plan for the streets around Clifford’s Tower, the Eye of York, Piccadilly and Coppergate. Senior bosses at the authority have long wanted to bring about the regeneration of the area, the latest masterplan sees the area renamed the Castle Gateway.

The area has much lower footfall than the rest of the city, and is under-developed and in parts derelict. A regeneration plan will, the council hopes, bring a new cycle and pedestrian bridge over the Foss, riverside walkways, redevelopment of Clifford’s Tower and Castle Museum, and the end of the Castle Car Park.

Council leader David Carr said: “Our new ambitious vision will revitalise this whole area of York ensuring it can realise its full potential. We’re already seeing new developments in this area such as Spark:York.

“We hope this vision will help to further kick-start new interest and investment in what has been an often underused and in parts semi derelict part of the city.”

Project manager Andy Kerr has written an update report for a key planning committee which meets next week, and in it he dubs the car park “hugely inappropriate” so close to a historic monument like Clifford’s Tower.

The new plans would see it replaced with a commercial development along the old street line of Castlegate plus a new public space between Clifford’s Tower and the Eye of York; while a new pedestrian and cycle path would better link the area to Piccadilly and on to Walmgate and Fossgate.

York Press:

The parking spaces would have to be provided elsewhere, either in an underground car park beneath the current site, or in a new multi storey built elsewhere, the report adds.

City of York is a major landowner in the area, and can influence development through planning rules, but the report also reveals Steamrock Capital - which now owns the Coppergate leasehold, Banana Warehouse and Ryedale House - has been in talks with the authority about their development plans, raising hopes it might be possible to regenerate the whole area with a “holistic” masterplan.

Without it, the project managers warned councillors development will likely be piecemeal and might not fulfil any ambitions for an important gateway into the city.

Deputy council leader Keith Aspden added: “The area contains a substantial amount of public estate including three museums, three court buildings and many listed structures and a historic monument of international significance. It’s therefore vital that as a principal land holder, City of York Council has a major role to play to ensure that this new vision is a success.”

The development plans stretch over the inner ring road into St George’s Field, and include changes that could be on the way for the road network - like narrowing carriageways on Tower Street and Piccadilly to make better pedestrian routes, a new coach drop off point on Piccadilly, and a push to reduce the number of vehicles driving along Coppergate and Piccadilly.

In October 2015 the council released details of its ambitions for the area, then known as the Southern Gateway. That plan also floated the idea of an underground car park and the footbridge, and said the authority would need to find a private sector partner to help drive the redevelopment.

Since then Spark: York’s plans for a temporary shipping container development on the old Reynard’s site have emerged, as have Northminster’s £25 million plans for a 146 bed hotel and apartments on Piccadilly.