Leatherhead town centre’s pedestrianised areas are to get a £260,000 makeover and another £50,000 is to be spent on works of art to brighten the town.

The money is coming from developers who have received planning permission for a variety of projects under what is known as section 106 agreements.

The cash is to be spent on improvements to Leatherhead High Street and the pedestrianised sections of Church Street.

A report to Mole Valley’s executive committee said, “there are some longstanding problems to be dealt with including street surfaces, drainage issues, street furniture, traffic barriers and so on”.

Some of the problems are likely to require additional funding from Surrey County Council, which also has section 106 money to spend.

The council is likely to consult members of the public before spending £50,000 on works of art.

“Public art can be a contentious issue although there are some good examples of well-accepted projects in Leatherhead,” the report said.

“In the past it has been difficult to achieve unanimity of views and the best approach would be to invite local representatives including local members tot consider suitable projects.”

The developers who worked on the former national grid site in Leatherhead have paid out £192,000 for environmental improvements in Leatherhead which must be completed by July 2012 while the developers of the former Seeboard site have paid out £67,632 which must be spent by June the following year.

Almost £50,000 for works of art and craft for Leatherhead comes from developers of the ERA site, Lidl, the Bilton Centre and the PIRA site in Leatherhead.

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