St John’s Market will close its doors to be the public on Friday as it plans for a £2 million revamp.
The regeneration project, which will see the market spread over two floors and a new central hall built, was approved by council chiefs in July 2014 and had originally been set for April last year.
Scheduled to be completed in time for Christmas trading, the scheme will also see work done on the Elliot Street facade in an attempt to make the market more attractive to potential customers.
And Councillor Malcolm Kennedy has hailed the project as a potential game changer when it comes to the market’s fortunes.
He said: “St John’s Market has being looking tired and dated for a very long time and it is not a bright or particularly welcoming place to shop.
“It still has the feel of the 1970s and is very much in need of modernisation to meet the needs and expectations of today’s shoppers.
“It will see the market transformed into a much more up-to-date, brighter and more airy environment in keeping with current shopping trends.
“We also want to make it more attractive from the outside. Currently people can walk past its entrance in Elliot Street without realising they are outside a market.
“We believe the new entrance and signage will attract many more shoppers when combined with the work we are doing outside to install new paving and landscaping.”