Work to begin on new cafe and toilets as part of major investment in Preston Park
Work on an improved café and toilet facilities is set to begin at Preston Park.
The plans are part of efforts to upgrade facilities at this much-loved Tees Valley destination.
Work includes the refurbishment of the café in the park to create a modern cafe space where visitors can enjoy more comfortable seating, a new entrance and a covered outdoor area, which will face onto the children's play area.
The existing, outdated toilet block will be demolished and a new extension to the café will be created to include improved toilet facilities and accessible 'Changing Places' facilities.
Work is set to begin on Monday 25 November, following planning approval in the summer. Local contractor T. Manners will carry out the works, which are expected to take around six months to complete.
The existing toilets will remain open throughout the work.
The café in the park will remain open for as long as possible, but there will be a short period where it will need to be closed. Visitors should check the Preston Park website and social media channels before visiting.
The improved visitor facilities are part of the wider improvements to Preston Park Museum and Grounds, which include the addition of a new modern extension to the museum.
The two-storey building, which will be connected to the existing Victorian Street, will include a large, flexible exhibition space and collection stores. The new spaces will make it possible to bring renowned, nationally significant exhibitions to the region for the first time. As well as allowing hundreds of unseen local objects to be put on display from the museum's collection.
The roofing works and construction of both floors and the internal walls of the building are now complete and work to the southern car park that will create 100 extra spaces is also continuing and will be complete soon.
The transformation of Preston Park is being funded after the Council secured £20million of funding for work in Yarm and Eaglescliffe from the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government.
Councillor Steve Nelson, Cabinet Member for Health, Leisure and Culture, said: "The major exhibitions and events in the museum extension will bring thousands more visitors to Preston Park, from the local area and further afield. These improvements to the café and toilets are so important to allow more visitors to have a positive experience of the whole attraction.
"The improvements will also allow visitors and families to have refreshments inside the café and a new safe space to enjoy outdoor facilities and watch their children in the playpark."
The improvements to Preston Park Museum & Grounds are set to be complete in 2025.
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