Name chosen for Huddersfield public square
Delivered as part of Kirklees Council’s Our Cultural Heart regeneration scheme, the site has been named Queensgate Square following a public vote in which it received 41%.
Delivered by Bam, the square was part of the £53m phase one of the project and sits alongside a food hall and library. The space will be used for events, street food options, and general everyday public use.
Voters were able to choose from a shortlist of four names: Mill Frame Square, in a nod to the town’s textile past; Lions Square, intended to suggest confidence; Ramsden Square, so-called for the prominent landowning family who essentially shaped modern Huddersfield; and the victorious Queensgate option, a familiar name, given the foodhall and plaza replaced Queensgate Market Hall.
Bam is now working on the £55m phase two of Our Cultural Heart, with main works expected to run until October 2028 and the project set to open to the public in 2029.
This phase will see the former library and gallery building on Princess Alexandra Walk refurbished to house a museum and art gallery for the region.
The Piazza Shopping Centre will also be demolished, to create space for phase three of the project – a new town centre park.
Funding for phase two was approved last year, despite estimated costs tripling from £5m to £14.5m.
The square and library hub are due to open next month.
