Carterton invites ideas for town centre revamp (From Witney Gazette)

Carterton invites ideas for town centre revamp

7:50pm Tuesday 29th January 2008 in Witney By David Horne

A MOSAIC could be the centrepiece of the new town square in Carterton.

The idea has been put forward in preliminary designs for the project, which last November won more than £38,000 from the People's Millions Lottery Fund in a TV voting contest.

But the mosaic has not yet been set in stone - other public 'artwork features' are to be considered for the Town Square revamp, near the town centre crossroads.

A working group, set up after the Lottery win, wants a centre piece to the project, aimed at clearing out an untidy eyesore in the middle of the town, and turning it into a welcoming public space.

As well as the Lottery money, the town council is providing £10,000 from this year's budget.

Town clerk, Janet Eustace, said this week: "The local youth council and volunteers will be involved, and we want people with artistic ideas to come forward with them.

"A mosaic is what we are looking at at the moment. It would be easy to clean and maintain, but we welcome other ideas."

Designs have been drawn up by West Oxfordshire District Council's landscape architect, Alison Leask, and the council's arts officer, Heather McCulloch, is also involved.

Work is expected to start in the summer, with the whole project completed by the end of the year.