Work on the first phase of a new public square on Bristol’s waterfront have been completed.
Museum Square has been created as part of developer Umberslade's £26m, 3.5-hectare Wapping Wharf scheme and was this week be handed over to the city’s M Shed museum to be used as an outdoor public event and exhibition space.
The works have included resurfacing the square, installing power points, water, new lighting and public seating. The design of the new square also features a map of Bristol’s waterways. 
Pictured: Stuart Hatton of Wapping Wharf with Bristol Mayor George Ferguson
The work coincides with the launch of M Shed’s latest summer exhibition – Wallace & Gromit from the drawing board – which opens on May 24. Plans are already afoot to use the square during the summer months as a community space for museum and city wide events. On Father’s Day, M Shed will host a special Grand Day Out for Dad, which will offer dads the opportunity to drive M Shed’s steam engine and control the cranes along the Harbourside.
Bristol Mayor George Ferguson said: “Bristol’s Harbourside has become the city’s greatest attraction since its rescue from a fate worse than death in the 1970s. The redevelopment of Museum Square, alongside the rescued dockside cranes, will greatly enhance its use, creating a new venue for events and exhibitions, and extending M Shed’s presence on the quayside.”
Museum Square has been developed by the Wapping Wharf team as part of a package of community benefits.
Wapping Wharf developer Umberslade’s director Stuart Hatton said: “We have worked closely with M Shed for many years as neighbours of Wapping Wharf and to ensure we retain the gritty industrial character of the dockside to showcase its history and mirror the museums efforts.
“The handover of the public square is a great step towards realising the vision for Wapping Wharf and the immediate area, to create a vibrant neighbourhood and community destination.”
Essential landscaping works have also been carried out on Museum Street, the road that runs behind M Shed, and a new pedestrian pathway and cycle lane has been created.
Further works on the street will continue in order to realign the roadway to the rear of the Stevedore and Guinness Building before it re-joins the harbourside. These works will make Museum Square traffic-free and also provide a cycle route away from the harbour’s edge.
Wallace & Gromit from the drawing board runs until September 7, taking visitors on a journey that shines a spotlight on the world behind the Wallace & Gromit characters, their Bristol-based creators Aardman Animations and the award-winning films in which they star.
The first phase of construction at Wapping Wharf is due to complete in early 2015 providing 194 residential apartments, including 26 affordable homes and 865 sq m of retail and leisure space. A new pedestrian route called Gaol Ferry Steps will link Gaol Ferry Bridge, the existing footbridge over The Cut, through the site to the new public square.
