Lowestoft £24.9 million transformation given green light

A £25 million project that could transform Lowestoft has been given final government approval following two years of development.

The green light will allow East Suffolk Council to start work on five major projects designed to enhance the town and attract future investment.

Selected as one of 100 towns to be given a total of £3.6 billion in funding - or as much as £25 million each - the project has formed part of Lowestoft's regeneration ambitions since it was first drafted in 2020.

Councillor Craig Rivett, East Suffolk’s Deputy Leader and cabinet member for Economic Development said: “Securing [the funding] was great news and since then, there has been a huge amount of work behind-the-scenes to prepare a detailed business case for each of the five major regeneration projects.

"Receiving Government approval for all of the business cases is incredible news and means we can now move forward at pace with our ambitious plans to enhance the town, driving economic growth and attracting future investment.”

The five projects are:

• The 'Station Quarter,' which will see both the former Post Office and front of the vacant Lowestoft railway station building fully restored and returned to working use
• The 'Cultural Quarter,' which will see improvements to the Marina Theatre, the redevelopment of the Customer Services Centre, and the redevelopment of the former Battery Green multi-storey car park
• The 'Historic Quarter,' which will focus on the redevelopment and refurbishment of the Town Hall
• The 'Seafront Vision' which will see the redevelopment of Royal Plain to complement the recently refurbished East Point Pavilion.
• The 'Port Gateway' project which will support the development of the Lowestoft Eastern Energy Facility to help turn the town into a hub for renewable energy.

Provisional funding for the projects was secured in March 2021 when a deal was secured with the government, which was confirmed in March 2022.

The council has said all projects have entered the design stage. The results of this will be available for the public to view in the coming months.

The investment plan was developed in partnership the Lowestoft Place Board (LBP) comprised of representatives from public, private, and voluntary organisations and overseen by East Suffolk Council.

The LBP has been working alongside the council for the past two years and will continue to monitor the projects as the are developed.

Peter Aldous, MP for Waveney, said: “Lowestoft faces both tremendous challenges and opportunities in the coming years, and projects like these will help us to address the former and to take advantage of the latter.

"I shall continue working with local councils, the Government and businesses to ensure that the necessary policies and support are in place, so that the town realises its full potential for the benefit of the whole community.”

All projects are expected to be completed by 2026.