Latest Leale’s Yard plans seek to revitalise the Bridge

Plans are afoot for 190 new homes at Leale’s Yard and the transformation of the car-dominated streets so that people can sit and enjoy the views of the working harbour.

The latest plan also includes new shops, night-life, good food, cultural events, the arts and green public spaces.

Parking could be moved away from the Bridge itself, and instead there would be a car park behind the row of shops.

Traffic heading northbound would be confined to one lane, which would open up space for terraces, pavement cafes and comfortable benches.

After decades of uncertainty, a draft development framework was published on Monday, and after a final round of consultation the finished plan should be completed in April.

The proposals are available online on the States website, and on display at the former Smilers shop on Southside.

However, yesterday that display was reminiscent of the 2017 Tory party conference when crumbling stage signs embarrassed the then Prime Minister Theresa May.

Of the six display units in the old Smilers, three had fallen down, which did not do much to promote an image of vibrancy and optimism.

Passers-by were in a forgiving mood though, and the overwhelming message from people was that there is huge pride in the Bridge and its historic legacy, but something needs to be done.

John Philp works on the Bridge and likes the area, but said it needed a bit of love.

‘I’m in favour of the redevelopment. I hope it happens because they’ve been talking about it for a long time. Traffic has always been a problem here and they need to get rid of that bottleneck.’

Hazel Roberts was out shopping with her friend, and thought the plans sounded interesting.

‘The shops are good here, a lot better than they were, there are a lot of charity shops but there’s good stuff in them.

‘The traffic is bad so it’s probably a good idea to put the parking behind the shops.

‘190 new homes is a lot, I don’t live in this part of the island, but I know that there is concern among the residents here about all the building happening in the north.’

Mike Dowding said he does not visit the Bridge very often, but likes the atmosphere and natural setting.

‘Compared to other places the Bridge is doing well, it’s active, a lot of the shops are occupied, it would be good to include green spaces because I’m sure people around here don’t want it to become too overbuilt.’

The development of Leale’s Yard has been talked about for decades, and Sue de Jersey sounded a note of weariness.

‘I’ve worked on the Bridge for 27 years, starting off at Maison Carre, and for more than 20 of those years they must have been talking about developing Leale’s Yard.’

The principal landowner of Leale’s Yard is the Channel Islands Co-operative Society, and a spokesperson from company expressed confidence that the plans could at last become reality.

‘The latest proposed plan, in consultation with the States of Guernsey... provides a framework that will allow the area to be developed on a demand-led basis while providing the basic infrastructure for the whole site.

‘With the considerable assistance from the States of Guernsey, we are confident that we have a plan than can at long last be delivered.’