Leicester Square facelift plans unveiled

11 2008
London's world-famous Leicester Square is to be given a makeover, Westminster Council has confirmed.

The landmark piazza has been at the heart of the capital's West End nightlife for decades and is today best known for welcoming Hollywood stars for UK movie premiers.

However, over recent years, the council has admitted that it has become rundown, with proposals first put forward for a facelift to improve the "squalid" square back in 2002.

At the centre of the new £18.5 million plan will be a white granite 'ribbon' which will serve as a bench for an estimated 25,000 people a day.

Westminster council leader Sir Simon Milton said: "We have turned Leicester Square from a squalid and intimidating place to somewhere where there is hope for the future and people are willing to invest. When we have done all the refurbishment it will be one of London's best public spaces."

Leicester Square remains one of the top attractions for both tourists and those renting a property in the city of London, with around 400,000 people estimated to have passed through on New Year's Eve.
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