COLCHESTER will be made even more merry and bright this Christmas as plans to decorate the city centre with more festive lights have been given the go-ahead.
The owners of GreyFriars Hotel and Restaurant alongside East Hill House proposed an extension to the Christmas festive lighting scheme in summer.
The lights currently begin in Head Street and go along the High Street down to the British Heart Foundation and St Nicholas Hotel.
The scheme will see the lights continue along the High Street to the far eastern end.
A meeting was held in May between city centre manager Sam Lancaster, the owners of GreyFriars Hotel and Restaurant and East Hill House, and Sam Wood of Gala Lights, who are the approved specialist installers for the current lighting display along the High Street.
Now, the plans have been given the green light by Colchester Council.
There will be three successive illuminated catenary wires with pendants across the High Street between GreyFriars Hotel and Restaurant and East Hill House.
The design has been developed by Gala Lights and will match the existing scheme along the main High Street.
Greyfriars Hotel is funding the new lights to go outside the hotel, with Colchester Council working to ensure they will be in the same design theme as all other Christmas lights across the city.
Whilst GreyFriars is a Grade II listed Georgian building and East Hill House Grade I, plans say the proposed new fixings can be considered as “causing a low level of harm to the significance of the listed”.
Council leader David King said the council is “pleased there will be more Christmas lights than ever before in Colchester this year”.
“The Christmas lights are a very exciting addition to our wonderful city centre and bring much joy to residents and visitors”, he added.
Colchester’s Christmas lights switch-on event is on Wednesday, November 15, scheduled to run from 5pm.
The grand switch-on will once again be marked by a Festive Light Parade through the city centre, starting at Firstsite, heading along the High Street (which will be closed to traffic), and finishing at The Mercury Theatre.
Once the parade has concluded, Lion Walk will host its own popular light switch-on party.
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