Boarded-up buildings will be flattened as part of regeneration

The stretch of properties on Bickerstaffe Street - which include a former bookies and hairdressers - offer a bleak welcome to those who arrive in St Helens at the nearby bus station at present.

They have been labelled an eyesore by Star readers.

However, these buildings are not a symbol of retail decline as some readers have suggested.

They have been emptied and are awaiting demolition to pave the way for the redevelopment of the land and neighbouring station.

The properties on Bickerstaffe Street will be bulldozed (Image: St Helens Star)

The pharmacy, Merseytravel centre and bus station newsagents remain open but the rest of the adjoining row are set to be flattened once clearance work starts at the Hardshaw Centre, which is scheduled for later this year.

As the Star reported in December, a reserved matters planning application was submitted setting out the granular details of the first phase of St Helens town centre’s regeneration plans.

Phase one covers 24 acres and will see a "tired" Hardshaw shopping centre replaced with a new town centre featuring new buildings and attractive public areas.

It will be created through a regeneration scheme being brought forward by St Helens Borough Council in partnership with the English Cities Fund (ECF).

A map showing part of the plan for phase one (Image: St Helens Council/ECF)

Developers say the aim is to deliver "an ambitious vision to create a more vibrant, sustainable, and people-friendly town centre".

This planning application covers a new market hall flanked by a mixed-use area set around a 120-bedroom "globally branded" hotel.

The plans also include 64 new homes, a 75,000 sq ft office space, 11,000 sq ft of modern retail space and extensive high-quality public spaces.

The site for phase one comprises of the “northern portion of the masterplan minus the Gamble extension and bus station”, says planning documents.

It also consists of the existing Hardshaw Shopping Centre.

An artist's image of how the view could be looking from the new bus station (Image: St Helens Council/ECF)

A separate planning application will cover the other main element of phase one - the replacement of an existing and outdated bus station with a new modern multi-modal transport interchange.

It is understood part of the plans for this section on Bikcerstaffe Street would involve the creation of the new bus station and a public space that an extended Gamble building (plans for which which have yet to be released) and the Theatre Royal would overlook.