IT will be twelve months at the very earliest until work on a new building in Liskeard’s former Cattle Market is complete, says Cornwall Council.

The local authority is constructing a new Integrated Services Hub and will relocate a range of services including Children and Families, Registrars, Adult Day Care and the DWP.

Having pledged to explore all options for reinstating a footpath and disabled access ramp at the site which has been closed since June, the local authority is now warning that this could be tricky.

It will come as a blow to residents of the Varley Lane area and users of the Liskerrett Centre, particularly those with disabilities, who have found themselves effectively cut off from the car park and their safe route to the town centre.

Head of property for Cornwall Council Kevin Reader said: “The design of the upgraded ramp is complete and costs are being sought. Installing the ramp while the Hub is being constructed will be difficult, as the ramp is located in a narrow corridor of land between the Hub construction site to the east and Varley Lane to the west. Varley Lane itself is narrow too, and we will also need to keep it open for emergency access during the works. However, we are considering different construction options.”

Although it has been in frequent use by local people for decades, the footpath is not officially recognised as a byway and therefore Cornwall Council was within its rights to close it off without consultation back in June.

The Liskerrett Centre has applied to have the path added to the definitive map as a right of way. This would mean that in future, any plan to close the route would need to be consulted upon.

Resident Susan Quinlan says she feels communication from Cornwall Council continues to be poor.

“The only correspondence we’ve had is from the Liskerrett Centre. There’s no interaction with us from Cornwall Council. We know they’re behind, the full total of it could be two years. It’s not good enough really.”

Varley Lane was closed to traffic for almost three weeks recently for works to connect the new Hub to services. Susan feels that this made walking the ‘long way round’ to the town and Westbourne car park safer.

“It’s not ideal now we are fully into winter. There’s nowhere to go and car drivers can get very unpleasant with you. I am worried that someone will be hurt.

“It would be great if that small section could be pedestrianised as it really did make a difference.”

Meanwhile, the limited parking at the Cattle Market as a consequence of building work continues to impact businesses and members of the public alike.

A separate project will be the creation of a bus interchange, and as part of this scheme the Coronation Hall will be knocked down. The town council has suggested that this building could be demolished at an earlier date, so as to free up space for parking while the Integrated Services Hub is being constructed.