ELY’S “uninviting” market place could be redeveloped into a vibrant and attractive focal point for the city, says a new report.

East Cambridgeshire District Council officers have contacted owners of the buildings on the market place and are hopeful that the area could be revamped to be more in keeping with the city’s historical heritage.

In a report to councillors they say the “current buildings have long been considered to be unsympathetic to the historic character of central Ely and this may be an opportunity to achieve some significant improvements to this area.”

The issue is set to be discussed at the recently convened town centres working party and councillors are expected to support further discussions.

City of Ely councillor, Mike Rouse, said: “I think we could do so much more with the market place. The owner of the central building is keen to do a renovation and that must be part of a wider look at the market place, Fore Hill and down to the river.

“The market place should be a very welcoming central feature for the city and we haven’t achieved that yet but when we look at the way the centre of Ely is developing as much more of a social area, I think the market place could play a much bigger role in this.”

Giles Hughes, the district council’s head of planning, said they were keen to see how the centre could change “to meet the needs of residents, visitors and businesses.”