Welles Street is home to hospitality venues, commercial services and offices making it a popular place to work and visit. There is also a growing number of people living around Welles Street.
This project responds to requests shared through feedback and submissions on the South-East Central Neighbourhood Plan and the Long Term Plan.
In October 2024 we asked for ideas to help shape our plan for Welles Street. We received 42 submissions which requested trees, more outdoor seating and bike parking. People asked that we slow traffic, making it safer to cross the road while retaining as much carparking as possible. We’ve incorporated this feedback from Welles Street users, residents and businesses into the plan and we're now ready to share the draft concept design for Welles Street. Please let us know whether you think we've got it right.The plan
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This plan for Welles Street is a temporary design that will be in place for at least the next five years. The budget is limited to a light touch upgrade. The plan includes:
- Two new seating areas on the southern side of the street outside key hospitality businesses. The areas will include landscaping, bike stands and seats.
- Nine trees in planters along the street to improve overall amenity and to increase the tree canopy cover.
The location of seating areas and landscaping is proposed for areas of the roadway which already have no parking restrictions or where there are no official parking spaces outlined, as much as possible. However, this proposed plan does reduce the number of carparks by five.
77% of responses in the first round of feedback were supportive of some parking removal. Most of the feedback requested improvements that include adding planters and low shrubs, seating, slowing traffic and wider footpath areas.Click the dropdown boxes below to learn more about what's planned outside each of the locations.
Coffee Supreme / Burger Burger
- Adding planters and low shrubs to the street and installing outdoor seating outside Burger Burger and Coffee Supreme.
- Two bike stands
- A planter on the north side of the street.
The Welder
- A licensed outdoor dining area outside Kokomo with the remainder of the seating available for use by anybody visiting the area.
- General seating, landscaping and four new bike stands incorporated into the designs.
- Planters on the northern side of the street
Atlas Quarter
- A couple of planters near the entrance to Atlas Quarter
Winnie Bagoes and Muy Muy
- Planters next to the existing dining areas
- Planter on the north side of the street
About the Enliven Places Programme
The Enliven Places Programme has a small budget each year to fund amenity improvements that support strategic plans and outcomes such as the South-East Neighbourhood Plan, Vacant Site improvements and lighting initiatives. Past projects have included adding trees to Southwark Street, creating new murals, and creating new public spaces on vacant Central City sites.
Welles Street is home to hospitality venues, services, offices, and residents, making it a popular place to live, work, and visit. Through Long Term Plan submissions and feedback on the South-East Central Neighbourhood Plan, we’ve heard that people would like Welles Street to have more trees, seating areas, slower traffic, and wider footpaths.
The Enliven Places Programme which has funded trees on Southwark Street and created new public spaces on vacant central city sites, has a small budget to improve Welles Street. However, the budget limits us to a light-touch upgrade, so we want to know what’s most important to you.
Your feedback will help shape a project that meets your needs and reflects your ideas to achieve positive outcomes for everyone. We are also aware of some stormwater and maintenance issues which we will take into consideration with any design proposals.
Inspiration for improvements to Welles Street
Movement: Pedestrian-friendly environment, traffic-calming, safe and convenient cycle movement (e.g., narrowed sections to reduce car speed, spaces for cycle parking, widened footpath, clear space for pedestrians and street furniture, reduced and marked parking spaces)
Use of space: Support local businesses and community identity (e.g., seating in extended footbath or on private land, using the street or empty parking lots from businesses on weekends to host neighbourhood events, additional parklet/spaces for outdoor seating/dining area)
Vibe: Vibrancy, amenity, business-supporting (e.g., adding to the current collection of murals, street lighting to increase safety and amenity to benefit night-time businesses, artistic installations and features offered by new fences and construction hoardings, greener streets through moveable planters and/or permanent planting)
