Bridlington gets £1m to help restore historic quay

East Riding Council has secured a second stage grant of £930,800 from the Heritage Lottery Fund for the Bridlington Quay Townscape Heritage project.

The project aims to bring out the qualities of the Victorian and Edwardian architecture - the town developed as a resort after the arrival of the railway from Hull in 1846 - which have been hidden under unsympathetic modern alterations in an area close to the seafront, which includes shops, guesthouses, small hotels and flats.

The area, including the buildings housing the amusements on Garrison Street and Garrison Square, as well as part of King Street, Marlborough Terrace, The Crescent and Cliff Street, is currently on Historic England’s at risk register.

East Riding Council is putting up to £499,050 into the project, which will be matched with private contributions to just under £3m.

It will see a four year capital grant scheme for buildings in the conservation area offering up to 60 per cent towards the cost of repairs with higher rates for reinstatement of historic features.

Head of Bridlington Renaissance Nigel Atkinson said: “What we are hoping to do is set the scene to having the area removed from the ‘at risk’ register. We are talking to a lot of the owners to see what we can do to make their properties more sympathetic to the original character of the area.

“It is particularly aimed at trying to restore some of the features of the buildings: it could be replacement of original window features, detailing around windows, shopfront detailing - getting away from the modern shopfronts and doing something that reflects the original character of the building.”

Bronson Taylor, director of Taylor Made Fun on Garrison Street, is on the steering group behind the scheme.

He said they hoped to reinstate period shopfronts on Garrison Street and hopes it will be a catalyst for other business owners to follow suit. Mr Taylor said: “I am hoping it becomes another gem in the crown.

“I’ve been taking more notice of architecture and how much we have and the need to preserve it. We want to be a good example to other property owners.”

They hope to put up architectural lighting “which can make the nightscene very different and hopefully stimulate Bridlington’s night-tine economy.”

A guesthouse owner on the Crescent said she hoped to see the frontages repainted to better reflect Bridlington as a holiday resort. She said: “It’s Bridlington, not Bath - but we’d have to agree on a colour scheme.”

The project also includes relandscaping, repaving and relighting Garrison Square, activities and training over four years to encourage people to take greater involvement in heritage and a management plan for the wider conservation area.

Council leader Coun Steve Parnaby said: “We’re delighted that the Heritage Lottery Fund has continued to support the Bridlington Quay Townscape Heritage project.

“We now look forward to implementing our plans to regenerate an historic part of Bridlington for the benefit of its residents and to support and grow the local economy.”