Talks over £62m revamp of college
The proposed £62 million transformation of Stafford College will be coming under the spotlight as part of two open evenings next month.
People are being invited to learn more about the planned development of the college, which is set to be approved when it comes before planning bosses on Wednesday.
Open evenings will be held at the college's Earl Street campus on March 18 and 19 from 6pm to 8.30pm.
There will be tours of the site and advice on courses available and an opportunity to enrol for courses up to degree level starting in September.
They are being launched just days after Stafford College Principal Stephen Willis visited Parliament to discuss the proposals.
Mr Willis travelled to London with Stafford MP David Kidney to talk about the scheme with Sion Simon, minister for further education.
"David Kidney and I were able to underline the importance of this project and stressed the impact that this investment will have not only to the facilities and resources available to young people and businesses but also to the economic regeneration of the area," said Mr Willis.
He said that Mr Simon was "broadly sympathetic" to the local case.
"I would like to thank Mr Kidney for the energetic support he is giving the college and in particular to this project.
"Like him, I am aware of the much-needed boost it will provide to contractors, many of whom will have an opportunity for involvement with a construction process that is expected to take four years.
"We are pressing for a very significant investment in the area at a vital time."
The multi-million pound plans include the demolition of some of the college buildings on the four-acre Earl Street site as well as an extension to the Grade II-listed Tenterbanks building which dates from 1939.
The college revamp will also involve increasing floor space from 15,286 sq metres to 15,877 sq metres.
The first phase of demolition would involve the workshop and Skills Centre in Broadeye and parts of the central link block and Tenterbanks link block.
The Earl Street building and the main part of the central link block would come down in the second phase.
The Broadeye and sports hall buildings will be retained under the plans. But as the scheme would involve the loss of 70 car parking spaces, a condition of permission would require the college to contribute £60,000 towards public parking in the town centre.
An open central courtyard along with a restaurant and cafes would also be created as part of the plans.
The plans have been recommended for approval by planning officers but English Heritage bosses claim the designs of some of the buildings could leave the site looking "barren and hostile".
