Plans for the redevelopment of Salford's Chapel Street area have received a boost after the Northwest Regional Development Agency (NWDA) agreed to invest nearly £10.8m to kick-start the scheme.

NWDA's investment will enable public infrastructure work to be carried out in order for the mixed-use development to move forward, which will eventually generate more than £650m in private investment. The first phase of work, which is now set to get underway and is scheduled to be completed in the autumn, includes a range of junction improvements and highway reconfiguration work to direct traffic away from the area.

Stage Two will include new street furniture, lighting and signage, the planting of new trees and widened footpaths, as well as the creation of new public squares at Salford Cathedral and St Phillips Church to improve access. The regeneration project covers a 17.4-hectare (43.8-acre) area in the heart of the city centre and will eventually include the creation of nearly 400 hotel rooms and 220,000sq m (2.4 million sq ft) of commercial space for retail and leisure developments.

Led by Central Salford Urban Regeneration Company (CSURC) and English Cities Fund (ECF), the project has received nearly £9m from the NWDA and £1.79m from the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF). Plans were given the green light by Salford City Council in January. NWDA director of land and property Paul Lakin said: "The Chapel Street area has huge potential but needs significant public investment to create the type of environment which is essential to attract high levels of private investment."

CSURC chief executive Chris Farrow added: "This funding enables us to deliver the right infrastructure for Chapel Street to generate 11,000 new jobs and 849 new homes. Importantly, it allows us to get on and deliver what the local community has been telling us they want, to revitalise the historic heart of the city." Image: RHWL Architects