THE first phase of a long-anticipated project - which is instrumental in making Barnsley the country’s first ‘Tech Town’ - will open next month.
The Seam Digital Campus will soon celebrate the opening of its first phase next month - including the refurbished 292-space car park, improved CCTV, EV chargers and gardens.
The opening event will be the evening of March 23, with the refurbished lower Seam car park back open and operational a day later.
The lower Seam car park has been closed since May last year for the refurbishment.
Arguably the main attraction of the first phase are the three Yorkshire Roses - with the central sculpture standing at 15 metres tall and two smaller 12-metre sculptures standing high above the regenerated area.
The illuminated sculptures serve as an important landmark for the town centre, visible to commuters from Sheffield and Leeds.
The sculptures shine proudly as a symbol of the borough’s new status as the UK’s first Tech Town - and the council’s ambitious plans to become the UK’s leading digital town.
The lighting and sound capabilities of the roses will revolutionise the town centre and will be an integral part of events.
As part of the South Yorkshire Investment Zone, it will help cluster and scale innovation through a sustainable, digitally enabled campus.( Funding for the project comes largely comes from the government’s Future High Streets Fund.
Sir Steve Houghton, leader of Barnsley Council, said: “We’re incredibly excited to be opening phase one of The Seam Digital Campus next month - a project years in the making on a site which is crucial to our mission of becoming the UK’s leading digital town.
“The Yorkshire Rose sculptures are the undoubted highlight of phase one and will be the focal point of the opening event.
“They will be the symbol of our new Tech Town status, while the three public gardens below will provide a high-quality space that residents and visitors alike can enjoy, day or night.
“We’ve also refurbished the lower Seam car park and improved the facilities by adding well-lit pedestrian walkways, additional trees, better lighting and upgraded CCTV.
“Our ambition doesn’t stop at phase one though.
“Plans for phase two include a high-end hotel, a National Centre for Digital Technologies and a third Digital Media Centre - adding to the existing infrastructure at The Seam, which we want to be a hub for tech and digital businesses and a catalyst for further growth and innovation in our local and regional economy.”
