New plans unveiled to revitalise Armada Way

COUNCIL PRESENTS £12.7M SCHEME AND LAUNCHES SIX-WEEK CONSULTATION

- WILLIAM TELFORD

AN ambitious new plan has been revealed for Plymouth’s Armada Way which will see trees retained, new ones planted and a range of new features including a huge children’s play area.

Plymouth City Council will today launch a six-week public consultation on the proposals, which it hopes will end seven months of misery and protest following the felling of 110 trees in March.

The council sent the controversial former plan back to the drawing board and has created a fresh alternative, which sees an increase in semi-mature trees for the city centre and other features which it hopes will revitalise the city centre.

It said the proposed scheme, which will fall within the original £12.7m budget, will provide “a greener, safer, more family friendly city centre.”

It said the proposals will “recapture the scale and grandeur of Armada Way”, providing a gateway to the city centre, linking the train station to The Hoe. Crucially, the plans include more trees and greenery – with 50 more trees than there were on Armada Way before the felling.

In total, the scheme envisages having 202 trees growing in Armada Way. This includes 13 saved when a legal injunction stopped the chopping in March. A further six that were saved will be relocated to a new arboretum in Plympton.

Another seven trees that were always going to stay will, of course, remain, as will the 16 growing on the Piazza – which will be helped with 3m-wide rain gardens at their bases. The new trees planted will all be 3.5m to 8m in height when planted, to give immediate environmental benefits and a canopy to provide cover.