The tracks had once carried rail wagons onto the Stone Jetty where they picked up freight from ships, ready to be transported by trains on the main lines. Later they were used to move scrap metal from Ward's ship breakers on the jetty. The old Harbour Band Arena, a key site earmarked for redevelopment, is currently being landscaped by contractors for Lancaster City Council. Last year the Northwest Development Agency (NWDA) offered to fund the project to demolish buildings at the Harbour Band Arena and replace them with a new area of open space.

Contractors started work on the demolition phase of the project just before Christmas. Work on the second phase will see the area laid out as a predominantly grassed open space. In addition, the section of promenade leading to the Stone Jetty and the area in front of the Midland Rotunda will be resurfaced.

The council owns a large part of this area and has entered into a development agreement with Urban Splash Ltd whereby this developer has an option to take forward a redevelopment of this area (subject to certain conditions including securing satisfactory planning permission).

Urban Splash proposes that the site be transformed into 'Seaside Square', an open space which can be a focal point, not just on the promenade, but for the town as a whole.

The cost in undertaking project – anything up to £225,640 (funded entirely by the NWDA) – includes demolishing all buildings (other than the electricity sub-stations), getting rid of remaining services in the buildings, importing topsoil and turfing the area over, maintenance of the area (mainly grass cutting), re-rendering the existing wave reflection wall to complement the material used on the Midland Hotel, high quality seating along this wall, a new dwarf wall between the promenade that provides access to the Stone Jetty and the beach and high quality lighting.

Urban Splash has said it will maintain the grass.

The project should be completed by the end of March.