Final property deals approved to enable Castleford town centre regeneration schemes - demolition work is expected to start in the autumn

Senior councillors agreed to purchase two town centre properties to prevent the major schemes from stalling.

Castleford was awarded £24m from the government’s Town Deal programme in 2019.

Wakefield Council is required to meet the government’s deadline for completing the work by 2026.

The authority has already acquired six properties in order keep the projects on track.

Negotiations with land and property owners in the Castleford have been ongoing for almost three years.

The council’s cabinet members gave the go-ahead to officers’ recommendations to purchase two final properties, on Sagar Street and Bridge Street.

Demolition work is expected to start in autumn this year.

A report said the programme will have a “transformational impact” on the town.

It adds: “Approving the acquisitions allows officers to complete the final purchases required by the programme and for focus to move fully to the delivery phase within the short timescales available.”

The council has so far received £9.6m in instalments from the government.

A “significant proportion” of that sum has not yet been spent due to “challenges” faced over the acquisitions.

“If the ownership of these buildings is not secured, the Town Deal programme, and wider project delivery in Castleford, is jeopardised,” the report adds.

Regeneration plans include the Castleford Riverside Project, where the historic Queen’s Mill is being restored.

Work will also be done to create more green space close to the River Aire and to showcase the Roman bathhouse located nearby.

The Heart of Castleford scheme aims to transform the area around Henry Moore Square into a “new vibrant and active heart of the town centre”.