Work has begun on a big ‘Lincoln Spring Clean’ for the city, as visitors begin to make their way back to the High Street now restrictions have ended.
City of Lincoln Council along with partners Visit Lincoln and Lincoln BIG were awarded over £170,000 in government funding to support the safe return to the city’s high street following the Covid-19 pandemic, some of which will be used to give an extra boost to smartening up the High Street.
Some £175,632 was awarded as part of the government’s Welcome Back Fund, which is providing councils across England a share of £56 million from the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF), with a large proportion of this funding going to events and activities in the city, such as the Lincoln Festival of Fun in February.
A proportion of this money will be used in a range of areas across the city through environmental improvements.
Throughout March, as part of the Lincoln Spring Clean, the following will take place:
- Delivery of a range of environmental improvements to enhance the look and feel of the city centre, including:
- Clean up and restoration of street furniture – mainly benches in the city centre (clean and paint or treat)
- Increased pressure washing of known toileting and pigeon mess ‘black spots’
- Replanting of some flower beds
- Brickwork repairs to planters
- Anti-littering posters/triads for littered areas
- Purchase of some new tree guards for city centre tree plantings
Separately, work to deep clean the bus station and Lincoln Central Car Park has already begun.
Cllr Neil Murray, Portfolio Holder for Economic Growth at City of Lincoln Council said: “All planned activities alongside our partners Visit Lincoln and Lincoln BIG are focused on attracting residents to Lincoln city centre and helping to grow the local economy following the impacts of the Coronavirus pandemic.
“As we continue to open up, and welcome back visitors to the city, we aim to attract higher levels of footfall to the city to help grow the local economy and importantly ensure Lincoln continues to be a remarkable city and key tourist destination in the UK. ”