The development will take over derelict railway arches by St James Street Overground station
In 2023, Walthamstow Council secured £17.2 million in Levelling Up funding to use across its Walthamstow: Culture For All projects, which include enhancing public spaces around Hoe Street, High Street and St James Quarter. St James Street is already home to CRATE, a shipping container market, and now it’s getting another boost as the arches at Courtenay Place, right by the Overground station, are being transformed into a new restaurant and retail hub.
The 16 arches, which have been derelict, will be refurbished so that they can house cafes, restaurants, shops and other businesses, with one of them being turned into an accessible toilet. Feix&Merlin and Extended Studio will be working on the project, which will include new signage, lighting and art projects added to Courtenay Place, along with a ‘pocket’ park to help form a ‘green link’ between St James Street station and Walthamstow High Street.
The regeneration plans were first proposed last year but were officially given the green light at a planning committee meeting at the beginning of March, with five councillors taking just 13 minutes to vote on approval. Speaking about the project, Labour councillor Jenny Gray said it was a “really good idea” and that it would “bring life to a dead area”.
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