Appointment of contractor imminent for second phase of Upton Country Park project

Improvement works will involve the construction of approximately 2,400 metres of new footway and cycleway paths, new leisure and hardstanding areas, new fencing, gates, bridges, boardwalks, a viewing platform and signage.

Other potential developments in the second phase include a car park and toilet facilities for the new county park. The land for phase two of the project runs from Upton Mill Farm to the edge of the village of Kislingbury.

The first phase was delivered in 2008 at the area including the Elgar Centre community building, which opened in 2011. It also included car parking, new drainage ponds and ditches, playing fields for five football pitches and a cricket square.

Work has been funded through section 106 money, which is made up of contributions from developers towards local infrastructure when they are given approval to build housing estates by the local authority.

Northampton Borough Council says the country park project will ‘provide a gateway to the wider countryside and create a link between the urban area and the countryside’, as well as proving an ‘attractive setting for adjoining development’.

The council’s cabinet is due to discuss the appointment of a contractor to oversee the project at its meeting next Wednesday (April 3).

It has been recommended that the cabinet delegates authority to the council’s Head of Economy, Assets and Culture to finalise the contract terms and to appoint the main construction contractor.

They would also be approved to undertake any further land acquisitions or transfers that are required in order to enable the delivery of the scheme, as long as no additional funding is required.