Welcome to the February 2016 update…
Painting of Street Furniture – We are delighted to confirm that we have arranged for the refurbishment of street furniture throughout the town, prior to the eagerly awaited Tour de Yorkshire.
This work will be completed by the end of April and will be undertaken partnership with Leeds City Council, with LCC covering all costs. As far as we are aware we are the only area of Leeds where this work has been approved.
The refurbishment work will involve the painting of traffic light posts in the following 3 areas of the town:
- Traffic lights outside The Black Horse Hotel at the junction of Westgate and Kirkgate
- Traffic lights outside Argos on the corner of Boroughgate and Crossgate/Wesley Street
- Traffic lights by the Maypole Fisheries at Cross Green
New Bins – In a further attempt to improve the look of the town centre we have also arranged for 10 new black litter bins. These are a combination of replacements and new bins, and have been funded by the following organisations:
- Leeds City Council funded 5 bins
- Otley BID funded 3 bins
- Otley Chamber of Trade funded 2 bins
New Tour de Yorkshire Flag Designs – As part of the promotion of our town our vision is to create an ever-changing look to the town centre. This has culminated in the decision to organize new flags for the Tour de Yorkshire and flags for bi-monthly key events.
Following discussions with Shane Green from Prince Henry’s Grammar School, we are excited to announce that Yorkshire flags, depicting scenes of Otley, have been designed by the lower 6th form.
The Otley BID Board are also in discussions with other local schools and are progressing ideas for each school to design flags for bi-monthly activities.
Window Artwork for Empty Shops – We are currently investigating vinyl graphic displays for empty shop windows in an attempt to make them look more attractive in the run up to the Tour de Yorkshire and beyond.
Here is an example of the kind of designs we have been looking at:
If any businesses or landlords are interested in getting involved in this project by agreeing to have a temporary, modern graphic design within their windows, please contact peter.mudge@otleybid.co.uk.
Street Entertainment – To help increase footfall we have been talking to local talented artists with the aim of organising regular street entertainment located at various points throughout the town. This project is in its early stages and we will update you with more information once agreements have been made.
Otley Lido Developments – We were pleased to see that the Friends of Otley Lido (FOOLS) have been granted 12 months exclusivity to come up with a plan to restore the Otley Lido, following initial Otley BID and Leeds City Council talks