The construction of more than 150 homes is underway as a part of a new £35 million town centre neighbourhood.
Developer Placefirst marked the start of the work on Central Street with a 'groundbreaking' ceremony attended by council leader Martyn Cox and representatives from Caddick Construction, which is responsible for the work off Deansgate.
The plan for the site, once occupied by a number of buildings and a car park, is for more than 150 homes – a combination of apartments and townhouses – as well as commercial space and 'pedestrian-priority' open space.
This plan was approved almost two years ago, while the demolition of the buildings and the car park was completed around 18 months ago.
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Cllr Cox said: "Central Street is a perfect example of what we are delivering through our town centre masterplan.
"Without the intervention of the council, this area would have remained an underused brownfield site.
"But by working with our partners it will become a new neighbourhood of high-quality homes that will attract people into the centre and make it a more vibrant and attractive place.
"This is an exciting time for the town centre as work is now underway at a number of key sites with more projects to come later in the year."
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Central Street is a part of Croal Valley, one of several so-called intervention areas in the regeneration of the town centre, as set out by the £1 billion Bolton Town Centre Masterplan.
Other examples include Cheadle Square, Church Wharf, Crompton Place and Trinity Square. There are also schemes outside these intervention areas, which are all at different stages, such as Bolton Library and the Wellsprings Building.
Darran Lawless, development director at Placefirst, said: "We are delighted to commence work on this key regeneration project in the heart of the town centre. "Addressing the shortage of high quality available rental housing is a key part of Bolton Council’s masterplan and we are proud to be part of this, creating a new community that will have a positive impact on the local area and local economy.
"We look forward to bringing this new neighbourhood to life," Mr Lawless added.
This article was written by Jack Tooth. To contact him, email jack.tooth@newsquest.co.uk or follow @JTRTooth on Twitter.
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