YORK will be given a mini makeover from today as part of a £200,000 initiative to reinvigorate the city centre.

Lighting, seating and bollards will be either restored, refurbished, removed or replaced as part of the Reinvigorate York initiative, which is funded by City of York Council.

The initial phase of work due to be carried out over the next few weeks will see new lanterns installed on Lendal Bridge, in Petergate, in Colliergate and in Stonegate.

The lanterns will be “appropriate” to the historic environment following a “lighting design study” by consultants Sutton Vane Associates.

Existing lights will be replaced with new LED and metal halide lights to produce a more natural light, a council spokesman said.

Coun Dave Merrett, cabinet member for transport, planning and sustainability, said: “These works are just a few of the projects currently taking place in the city centre to improve and enhance the quality of the city’s public spaces.

“Along with the council’s investment in the York Minster Revealed project, which ties into our Reinvigorate York initiative to redesign Exhibition Square and improve and enhance the quality of the city’s other public spaces like King’s Square, we are also supporting and investing in York Art Gallery and the refurbishment of St Leonard’s Place to transform this part of the city into a high quality cultural hub for York.”

Forty new seats will include a number with only one arm, allowing easier access to people who use wheelchairs. They will also offer more upright seating to aid and support older and disabled people and wheelchair users, the council said. A number of bollards will be removed which are no longer required and existing bollards will be replaced.