A fun-packed family leisure area has been officially opened at Seaton Carew at the conclusion of a £1.3m Hartlepool Borough Council project to revitalise the popular seaside resort.
Featuring water jets and play equipment for children plus beach huts and picnic tables, the leisure area has been created on the southern end of the promenade on land including the site of the old paddling pool.
The new facility is part of wider improvements which have already been completed.
The nearby Grade II-listed art deco clock tower and bus station which occupies a key location at Seaton Carew’s southern entrance has undergone structural repairs and has been repaved, and in the autumn hundreds of bulbs will be planted in the grassed area in front to create an attractive springtime welcome for visitors and residents.
Meanwhile, a three metre high sculpture by Hartlepool artist Stuart Langley called ‘Waves’ was unveiled a few days ago at the other end of the prom, at Seaton Reach.
Reflecting the town’s maritime and industrial heritage, the sculpture includes pieces of sea glass which pupils from local schools helped to collect from the town’s beaches.
The Seaton Carew improvements were made possible thanks to a £600,000 contribution from the Government’s Coastal Communities Fund and £100,000 from local company Able UK. The main contractor was local firm Deerness Fencing and Landscaping.
In a separate development, a new ten-hole crazy golf course will be created next to the leisure area by a private investor.
The Seaton Carew improvements are part of much wider Hartlepool Borough Council plans to regenerate key parts of Hartlepool including an ongoing £6m project to revitalise the Church Street area and turn it into a thriving creative industries quarter.