“Let me show you a gem of Maidstone”

That’s become Cllr Malcolm Greer’s catch-phrase as he embarks on a blitz clean-up of the historical All Saints area of Maidstone town centre.

According to the cabinet member for regeneration, the £50,000 project will uncover, as he puts it, the “gems” of the county town, transforming the area around the Archbishop's Palace, All Saints' Church and the Carriage Museum in Palace Avenue into one of the Kent’s primary tourist destinations.

Already work has begun in the park behind the carriage museum where trees have been removed to reveal the 14th Century stable building wall.

“The things that went on behind those trees you don’t want to talk about” he said. "we're bringing it back into mainstream use. It’s absolutely fantastic but nobody knows it’s here.”

Cllr Greer intends to open up garden areas around the Archbishop’s Palace by clearing heavy foliage, and removing barriers to make grassy areas and the River Len more accessible to the public.

In All Saints' churchyard work will be carried out to uncover and protect headstones, which will include the removal of some trees, while other trees will be planted to create a barrier between the churchyard and College Road.

The riverside near the Archbishop's Palace was also central to his vision.

“When I used to come down here in my teens you could hire a canoe and go up the river. There used to be loads of people here on a Sunday morning - it could be like that again.”

Further clearance work will aim to make areas by the River Len - including the medieval bridges beneath Bishops Way - more accessible to the public.

“Nothing’s been done here for more than 16 years” added Cllr Greer, “but I don’t want to put finger of blame; I want to focus on the future and the work we need to do. Let’s get on. We’re all working on this and we’re all interested in Maidstone.”

He said work would be completed by the end of the year and that people would see “a great visual improvement in the not to distant future.”

He added: “I think it will bring people back. If you look at areas like Gateshead where they’ve done a similar project it’s made an enormous difference to the footfall.

“If we can get the footfall we can have a far better restaurant/cafe culture in Maidstone. It’s going to bring businesses, it’s going to bring jobs and it’s going to be an absolute gem for Maidstone.”

He said the riverside near the Archbishop's Palace was also central to his vision.“When I used to come down here in my teens you could hire a canoe and go up the river. “There used to be loads of people here on a Sunday morning - it could be like that agai