Shrewsbury residents are invited to attend a public meeting about the future of the Dana Prison site.
Trevor Osborne, chairman of the Trevor Osborne Property Group, will be attending an open session following Shrewsbury Town Council’s Full Council meeting on January 19. [MON]
The new owner of the Dana will outline possible plans for the site, and take questions from residents, from 7pm in the Council Chamber at the Guildhall.
The meeting will provide an opportunity for members of the public to have their say about the development, which could potentially be one of the most important transformations in Shrewsbury’s recent history.
Mr Osborne said retaining the building’s ‘historic fabric’ and ‘the essence of its architecture’ would be at the forefront of any regeneration and pledged a full consultation with the local councils and residents.
Leader of Shrewsbury Town Council, Alan Mosley said: “During a recent meeting I was delighted that Trevor Osborne accepted my invitation to attend a meeting of Full Council to discuss the future of the Dana site. Trevor is clearly committed to engaging with the community in taking his plans forward. I believe that he genuinely wants to hear from residents, councils and businesses and I would urge people to come along to listen and then put their views and ideas forward. There’s no doubt that the renovation will bring exciting employment, economic and environmental improvement opportunities to the immediate area, and to Shrewsbury as a whole.”
Mr Osborne said: “I am pleased that the Department of Justice has allowed me to purchase the Dana with completion in the Spring of 2015. The building and its site is part of Shrewsbury’s history and offers enormous potential for heritage regeneration. It will be my aim to retain the historic fabric and the essence of its architecture. The way in which the building will be used will not only be subject to Shrewsbury Town Council, Shropshire Council and English Heritage but it will also be subject to the views of the residents of Shrewsbury. I look forward to meeting more of the townsfolk and grasping an opportunity to benefit from the way in which the Town responds to the prospect of change.”
The Trevor Osborne Property Group was founded in 1973 and undertakes high quality projects involving both historic buildings and local authority partnerships, with an emphasis on mixed use environments. The Group’s philosophy is to engage with the communities in which it operates. Previous projects have include the regeneration of Oxford Castle and Armagh Gaol in Northern Ireland.
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