A SERIES of schemes targeted at enhancing the centre of Okehampton costing £750,000 will be rolling forward this summer as West Devon Borough Council seeks to maximise the benefits to the town of European grant assistance.

The five schemes have to be completed by the end of September to make use of the £500,000 of European 5B funding allocated to projects in Okehampton. Other funding is coming from West Devon Borough Council and Devon County Council.

Mayor of Okehampton Christine Marsh said Okehampton was well overdue for a facelift and the work taking place over the summer would make the town much more attractive.

'It is going to uplift the town and I hope it will jog shopkeepers into doing up the front of their shops,' she said. 'With a little bit of TLC spent on Okehampton it will give the right impression to visitors that we do care about our town.'

The money will be spent on:

l A new footpath link by the East Okement River, from Mill Road Car Park to Mill Road towards Okehampton College and Simmons Park

l Fairplace enhancement including traffic calming and stronger pedestrian linkages, refurbishment of Fairplace Gardens and new toilets together with new paving areas at Fairplace Church and outside the Post Office.

l West Street environment improvements including a new seating area on the north side and by the West Okement River and improvements at Westbridge itself.

l Environmental improvement at Fore Street including central street lighting scheme and pavement realignment.

l A new bridge and footpath link by the Ockment Centre to link School Way with North Street.

Following a consultation with the town on designs for Fairplace Gardens by Tavistock architect Steve Whettem, the public have stated a clear preference for a particular scheme to provide new toilet facilities in the area.

The final decision was made by West Devon Borough Council and Okehampton's Enhancement Working Group.

The toilets will be based on a pavilion design and access will be gained directly from the outside rather than a lobby for maintenance and security purposes. The garden will include a focal point sculpture, which is yet to be decided.

Chairman of the traffic and enhancement group Cllr Coleen Herriman said: 'The majority of respondents clearly felt the area should be used solely for gardens and toilets and not be combined with a Tourist Information Centre.

'The group was left to decide some details and took into account individual comments which people wrote on the response forms.

'As a result some sections of the original granite walling and capping stones will be retained and original stones reused.'

The £100,000 scheme will now be prepared in detail and go forward for planning permission, with a view to the construction taking place in August and September.

The enhancement working group, which is made up of local people representing Okehampton organisations and the county, borough and town councils, has been pushing hard to get town projects progressing, and local architect Peter Woodgate has been extensively involved in the proposals at West Street and Fore Street.

Cllr Herriman added: 'This is a really exciting set of proposals which added together is going to make an enormous difference in the town.

'We have tried to consult and involve local people wherever possible and we are grateful for the way they have got involved.'

West Devon Borough Councillor Jayne Hill agreed: 'We have been working from a town base and I think local people will be pleased with the end product.'