THREE landmark York building projects have won prestigious awards.

York's Millennium Bridge was among the constructions to scoop a prize at the national Civic Trust Awards.

The National Centre For Early Music in Walmgate and Poplar Gardens, the ground-breaking factory-built affordable homes development at Sixth Avenue, Tang Hall, also won Civic Trust commendations for architecture and environmental design.

The awards were announced at the trust's annual awards ceremony in Salford last night.

The £4.2 million Millennium Bridge, which was part-funded by City of York Council, was opened by Prince Andrew in May 2001.

Bill Woolley, the council's assistant director for environment and

development services, said: "The Millennium Bridge is a fantastic example of how working in partnership with the community can produce exceptional results. This structure not only performs a very important addition to York's cycling and pedestrian infrastructure - its very presence also adds to the landscape. It is very satisfying that this has been recognised by the Civic Trust through this award."

The £2 million Poplar Gardens housing project was the first of its kind outside London. The 24 factory-built one, two and three-bedroom apartments were developed by York firm Yorkon and architects Cartwright Pickard in partnership with housing association Yorkshire Housing and the council.

The development has already received recognition, coming first in last year's Pro-Yorkshire Awards, organised by the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors. The £2 million National Centre For Early Music is located in the grade one listed medieval St Margaret's Church. The church was upgraded to allow for different types of performance and provide space for teaching, conferences and exhibitions.

The conversion, which received a Royal Institute of British Architecture award in 2001, included completely rebuilding the roof to enhance acoustics.

Tony Dennis, the council's head of environment and conservation, said the success of the three projects reflected a major contribution to improving people's quality of life in the city, together with good design. He said: "The council's commitment to innovation as well as conservation echoes the way that York has developed over time."

Updated: 11:22 Friday, April 04, 2003