My Amber Valley

PLANS to spend £750,000 to revitalise parts of Ripley have been revealed.

Amber Valley Borough Council will spend £500,000 upgrading paving in the town's centre and a further £100,000 to improve shop fronts in the town.

Other plans include a £150,000 walkway linking Ripley town centre with Crossley Park and a drive to attract more car boot sales and attractions such as children's rides to the town's market place.

Councillor Liz Bowley, cabinet member for green and thriving places to live, said: "I see this as kick-starting the transformation of the town. Crossley Park is an asset to Ripley but there is currently no obvious way to get to it from the centre.

"NO OBVIOUS WAY TO GET TO IT FROM THE TOWN CENTRE". Has Liz Bowley ever been to Ripley. Seems obvious that the way to get to Crossley Park is from the centre of Ripley(The Market place) down Shirley Road and voila, you're there. And if people don't know, stick a bloody great big sign at the top saying so, this should save £149,500 I would have thought.

"If our vision is realised it would provide a safe link to the park from the town centre and create a focal point for residents, shoppers and visitors to the town.

"These are examples of some of the projects which came out of the Ripley Masterplan and are just a taster of the many ways to improve the landscape and make Ripley more attractive."

The council is also looking at the possibility of improving paving and landscaping on Derby Road, Church Street and Grosvenor Road, new signs to help motorists find a place to park as well as re-painting the town's benches, bollards and CCTV columns.