An ambitious plan to create 900 new homes in Kendal town centre has been revealed.
Kendal Futures, the town’s regeneration partnership, has published the 58-page Kendal Vision Opportunity Sites Study.
It said it was a radical new approach to housing development and also included commercial and leisure spaces.
The study, commissioned after people in a consultation identified a need for desirable, affordable housing within Kendal, was funded by Westmorland & Furness Council and Kendal Town Council.
It looks at four brownfield sites – Canal Head, Busher Walk, Blackhall Road and Railway Gateway – and how they can provide a rich mix of residential and many existing light business uses.
Kendal Fell Quarry, has also been looked to show its potential for relocating some existing commercial uses, better suited to an out of town centre location.
Canal Head
The report says the 9.9 hectare Canal Head could accommodate 142 homes and 209 apartments.
The site has a number of established industrial uses including several employers such as Gilbert Gilkes & Gordon and Mardix. It is also the location of Westmorland & Furness Council’s Household Waste Recycling Centre and Depot.
The report said: “Land ownership across the site is highly fragmented, with multiple stakeholders involved.
“A large portion of the eastern area is held in private ownership. The council-owned household waste and recycling facility is widely recognised as having poor access and being unsuitably located within the town centre context.
“Mardix currently occupies a large area of the site known as The Factory but relocation to another Kendal site is imminent.”
The report’s vision said the area had the potential to integrate residential living with creative employment spaces.
The masterplan for the site says: “On the eastern side of the site, existing heritage buildings are retained and complemented by a new layer of apartments and houses.
“Together, these define a sequence of informal yards, threaded with new pedestrian routes that cross the reopened canal. Ground floors of both new
and refurbished buildings could accommodate workplaces, ensuring the vibrancy of this historically industrious quarter is sustained.
“The Gilkes factory is retained in its current form as a cornerstone of the site’s character with an improved service yard allowing access to the factory perimeter.
“The western side of the site continues the ribbons of housing up the valley slope, establishing new pedestrian connections to Kendal Castle and integrating the development into the wider townscape.
“Allotments are repositioned to allow more built frontage onto the canal SuDs feature, while existing mature trees are preserved to strengthen the site’s landscape character.
“To the north, a new car barn provides replacement parking for the Gilkes factory. This facility could also serve as a shared resource for the Snowsport Club, local workers, and residents, supporting a more flexible and efficient approach to parking provision.”
Blackhall Road
A 1.7 hectare site that occupies a prominent town centre location.
The report says: “It forms a heavily trafficked street parallel to Stricklandgate.
“The site is predominantly occupied by service and civic uses, including a multi-storey car park, surface parking, the bus station, and the Westmorland Shopping Centre, currently used by Kendal College.
“The modernist telephone exchange and the rationalist Kentmere House, occupied by Job Centre Plus, occupy pivotal gateway locations; however, their scale and
appearance detract from Kendal’s distinctive character.
“These larger structures interrupt the finer urban grain that defines much of Kendal’s historic core. Despite its proximity to the River Kent, the site currently makes limited use of its riverside setting.”
Most of the site is owned by Westmorland and Furness Council.
The report’s proposal says: “The study proposes a finer grain of development that reinstates Kendal’s urban character. New gallery-access apartment blocks
create an active frontage to Blackhall Road, with ground floors animated by commercial units, such as Majestic Wines.
“The existing Cancer Care facility could be relocated to a more prominent location and use a landscaped courtyard garden for its amenity space.
“Some car parking is accommodated in rear courts, with the potential for further provision within podium structures. The limited number of parking spaces reflects the town centre location.
“The masterplan acknowledges that some town centre parking would be reduced; however, a more holistic, area-wide parking strategy will be required to support future development and ensure sustainable access to the town centre.
“The bus station is re-provided along Blackhall Road, offering several bus bays and a more generous, landscaped waiting area, creating a more efficient and welcoming gateway for public transport users.”
It added that it could feature ground floor commercial units and upper floor apartments ranging from five to six storeys. Tenures could vary from starter flats for students or renters to later living occupants, it added.
Blackhall Road could have 215 apartments; Railway Gateway could have 45 houses and 229 apartments and Busher Walk could see 89 houses created, with 49 apartments.
Railway Gateway
A 6.4 hectare site on the edge of the town, including the railway station. Part of the site lies within the floodplain.
Ownership of the site is fragmented with multiple landowners.
The site includes Stagecoach, which operates the large bus depot on Station Road and David Hayton Mazda, next to the railway station.
The report said: “Engagement with the majority of landowners has taken place, and several would consider relocation to suitable alternative sites or premises, while others plan to sell in the longer term.
“Others would consider development options for combining light commercial uses and housing, which could maintain the vibrancy of the important town centre site.”
The redevelopment, the report says, would include a new public space at the same level as the railway, designed as a welcoming arrival point for Kendal.
It added: “Lined with active commercial frontages, this space will provide visitors with a vibrant first impression while framing dramatic views of the town’s skyline and surrounding fells.
“The level change could accommodate some podium parking. From here, a new pedestrian route will extend through the network of museum yards before
crossing Stramongate Bridge into the town centre.
“On the northern side of the site, the plan seeks to repair the town fabric through new residential frontages that bring activity to the street.
“Larger apartment buildings will define more civic locations, with opportunities for creative employment or light industrial uses at ground floor and residential accommodation above.
“Ribbons of lower rise houses extend towards the railway line.”
Busher Walk
Busher Walk, a 3.6 hectare site, includes civic buildings like the now empty County Hall and fire, police and ambulance stations.
Its river frontage is currently used for car parking and service areas for the blue light facility.
Much of the land falls within the flood zone, presenting constraints on development.
Westmorland and Furness Council currently occupies much of the site. To the north, on either side of Busher Walk, the land is also in council ownership.
The area to the east is occupied by the emergency services, while the plots extending towards Stricklandgate is more fragmented, with multiple owners.
Emergency services have been engaged with as part of the study. They said while their current buildings performed well, there was recognition that they would
benefit from purpose-built, modern premises on the outskirts of the town.
The masterplan reimagines County Hall as a later living facility and said it wanted to introduce ‘ribbons of housing’ that extend to the river’s edge.
It added: “The warehouse building on Busher Walk is converted to apartments and complemented by sensitively designed new structures, forming a stronger frontage to the yard and reinforcing the relationship with the historic collection of buildings at the rear of Stricklandgate.”
Mark Cropper, chair of Kendal Futures, said: “Building homes in the town centre can bring huge financial and community value to Kendal.
“Carefully redeveloping brownfield sites can ensure they significantly contribute towards Westmorland & Furness Council’s annual new homes target while securing the future vitality of Kendal’s town centre and its businesses.”
The Kendal Futures team said it acknowledged that there were areas including parking, transport and flood risk management which would need further detailed consideration.
Mark added: “There are significant benefits to developing brownfield sites but further refinement of the proposals will be needed. The value of urban regeneration is very well recognised but generally requires public sector support to make it a reality.
“Kendal Futures and its partners will explore this alongside seeking interest from potential developers. This could include canvassing for investment funds under the auspices of the proposed Mayoral Authority which is in part designed to enable such projects.
The Kendal Vision Opportunity Sites Study can be read at www.kendalfutures.co.uk
