During the summer people were asked for their views about the future of the Feethams area of Darlington.

The following are some of the main points raised:

Those who responded all wanted Feethams to change. None said it should remain as it is.
 
Seven main issues recurred throughout the consultation:

• The lack of bus station in the town
• Opposition to another food store
• The desire for community and leisure facilities
• The loss of a children’s day nursery
• The desire for affordable housing
• The desire for an improved riverside
• Mixed views on a multi-storey car park

Throughout the consultation people asked for a bus station in the town centre.  This is not a realistic option due to the following:

• Consultation carried out before the pedestrian heart was developed, showed people wanted buses to be able to pick them up and drop them off in the town centre.  As a result the town centre was designed to include this. 
• If there was a bus station in Feethams, it is unlikely that bus routes would serve the central area of town, so would be dropping users further away from the shops and other facilities.
• Both Arriva, and Stagecoach when they operated in Darlington, said they will not use a bus station in Feethams, because it is not where bus users want to travel to.  Arriva's market research found that four out of seven bus passengers wanted to travel to the town centre and back, not change buses to travel to another destination.
• The Council has no powers to make bus operators use a bus station. A bus station would also increase operating costs, which would be passed on to passengers through higher ticket prices.  Money would also need to be found to pay for a Bus Station to be built.

The inclusion of a small food store in the Feethams area was suggested in the original Planning and Development Brief, as a result of there being some developer interest. However, the results of the consultation showed there was some opposition to this, when considering the impact it could have on the markets and other retail in the town.

Many people expressed a desire for community and leisure facilities, particularly for younger people. The Planning and Development Brief has been modified to include these within the mix of uses for Feethams.

The loss of a children’s day nursery from the town hall site was a concern. Although specific re-provision is not identified within the consultation materials, if the redevelopment of Feethams includes the site of the nursery, alternative provision on site or elsewhere will need to be made. The future of the nursery is subject to Kids and Co’s own consultation. 

The desire for affordable housing was raised. Planning rules which govern the amount of affordable housing required on any site within the Borough would apply to the Feethams area and as such is included in the Planning and Development Brief.

There was general support for opening up and improving the area around the River Skerne to create a green, public space. The Planning and development Brief has been amended to include this, with an area of 2,500 square metres allocated for this purpose.

The inclusion of a multi-storey car park on Feethams resulted in mixed views. Some questioned the need for this parking, others were concerned about the size and design. Approaches to including the car park in a way which reduced its visual impact on the area were preferred and so this has been included in the Planning and Development Brief.

The Planning and Development Brief sets out the types of development which can be included on the Feethams site in the future. The exact types of development which will be seen there will depend on developer interest.

Part of the site has been sold to the Government’s Department for Children, Schools and Families to build offices there. Half an acre of the Beaumont Street area will be used to build offices for 450 staff, currently working from offices at Mowden Hall in Darlington.
The DCSF will carry out a public consultation on the scheme with a view to starting work in 2010, with the offices being completed in 2012.

By the time work starts to develop the site, the bus depot at Feethams will have been demolished and laid out as a temporary car park providing 266 spaces to compensate for the spaces lost as a result of the DCSF development.