Old Market Square is Nottingham’s signature public space. The original layout was 75 years old. Gustafson Porter’s design features textures water terraces, a new avenue of trees on a traffic-free Long Row and a dynamic water channel that follows the line of the wall that once divided both the great Market Place and the Saxon and Norman boroughs of Nottingham.

The site itself is an existing market square which means that work had to be planned around the busiest times of the year, mainly Christmas and New Year, to ensure the shops remain open and customers are safe

The regeneration of this historical square in central Nottingham - a joint London and Peterborough office project - involved the removal of walls and steps and other dated aspects, replacing them with quality granite paving and new seating areas with flowerbeds and stunning water terraces

The brief includes:

• Resurfacing of the existing paved market square
• Paving to be replaced with Portuguese granite with seating areas stepped down
• The area has to link to the tramways and must include lighting and associated drainage
• Construction of a new £1.2 million fountain, designed by the architect who created the Diana fountain

Value Engineering was critical for the project to remain on track. A significant exercise took place regarding a change in the quality of the granite.

Post Contract unforeseen difficulties, particularly within the ground, have increased costs and this presented a significant challenge to manage and control