Revitalisation for Whanganui’s Guyton Street

Darni Struijck and Leslie Stead from Guyton Group Trust.

Central Guyton Street (between St Hill and Wicksteed Streets) is set to be revitalised under the Streets for People programme – by February 2024. The area will have new seating, greenery, lighting, and street art which reflects Whanganui’s unique history and culture.

The intention is to create a more inviting, accessible and safer space for our community and visitors to Whanganui to enjoy.

Streets for People project lead, Diana Veitch, says infrastructure will be put in place first and street art and greenery will be added later.

“Infrastructure will be installed in mid-November, with the exact date to be confirmed based on weather forecasts. To minimise disruption to motorists and business owners, the work will occur overnight and has been timed to coincide with already scheduled road resurfacing.”

Infrastructure changes will include:

■ a roundabout at the intersection of Wicksteed and Guyton streets

■ new raised pedestrian platforms

■ extensions to existing kerb build-outs (removing a total of four car parks)

■ at least two new mobility car parks.

Only two car parks will be removed per block, one on each side of the road.

The project is 90 per cent funded by Waka Kotahi NZ Transport Agency’s Streets for People fund, which gives councils the opportunity to trial changes to streetscapes to make them more vibrant and people-friendly.

“The infrastructure for this project is designed to be easily removable, in case anything needs to be moved or changed in response to community feedback. Everyone will have a chance to have their say on the project – we’ll be collecting feedback from mid-November until May 2024.”

Leslie Stead, Paige’s Book Gallery owner and head of local advocacy group Guyton Group Trust, says the Trust is extremely excited that work is about to begin to revitalise the street.

“We participated in the community co-design workshops earlier in the year and prior to that had been advocating for changes on Guyton Street for quite some time. As a business owner on the street, I know only too well how fast some cars travel up this street – it can be nerve-wracking for customers trying to cross the road, especially with the poor visibility at the intersection with Wicksteed Street.

“The redesign will slow vehicles moving through the area, making it safer for pedestrians and cyclists, so we wholeheartedly welcome the changes.”

The council will share final design plans for all aspects of the revitalisation work on Guyton Street in the coming weeks.

For more information about the Streets for People projects in Whanganui, including the St Hill Street public transport hub, visit the ‘Streets for People’ page on the Whanganui District Council website.