Flemingate : The Size Of The Development Is Really Starting To Hit Home

One of the main major construction projects happening in Beverley right now is the development of the college and retail park at Flemingate.

After what seems like a lifetime of waiting the giant structures are starting to dominate the skyline along Flemingate as steel frame works go up and construction workers start to create the units that will occupy the site.

For a few years now, the project has been on and off. The housing part seems pretty much as though it has been completed by Linden Homes. During their time in Beverley, the House Builder worked with St Nicholas Primary School to ‘put a bit back’ into the community.

Many of the homes that were built on the site are now occupied. I remember going to see them before the work on the college and retail park began and thought they had some nice views of Beverley Minster.

Going back this week to those same places and looking at the transformation in what has been a little over two years I was staggered to see the giant structures towering over people’s homes. I can only assume that the people living there knew what was being built before they moved in.

Of course, it is not all bad. The college is long overdue for a new location and in September 2015, they will have one. For the students who attend the college, it will be much better for them too as they will be located closer to the town centre rather than being tucked away up Gallows Lane.

It seems strange to think this land was nothing more than some waste land for many years while whatever needed to be done was done in order for work to begin. When I arrived in Beverley, the Transport Museum was just in the process of being closed and not long after that the Beverley Bomber was moved to Fort Paull.

When complete I am sure it will be a great asset for Beverley if for no other reason than the fact, we will have cinema. Yes, it is new, yes it may distract visitors from heading straight into the town centre, but for many Flemingate will mean the nightmare trip to Kingswood can be put on a back burner.

As this modern development takes shape it is closely being watched the whole time by the most iconic structure in Beverley, the Minster. The thought of this makes me chuckle and often during my walk, I would look at the new buildings and then glance at the Minster and think to myself that this old girl has seen it all before and will see it all again.

In five hundred years time it is highly unlikely anything they are building now will still be standing, but I do think Beverley Minster will still be there. Only then the Minster will be overlooking something else other than the Flemingate Development, what that is, well none of us will ever know.

For now, we will soon have a retail park and cinema, for now I suspect many of us who live here will settle for that.