THE Maltings has officially reopened tonight.

It had been set to open tomorrow morning at 8am, but work was completed ahead of schedule and it was reopened at 8.15pm this evening.

People will be able to access the city centre from Central car park through the Maltings, and support the shops and businesses that will start to reopen over the weekend.

The site has been thoroughly cleaned following the nerve agent attack almost three months ago, to ensure any traces of the nerve agent have been removed by specialists.

Alistair Cunningham, chairman of the recovery coordinating group, said: “We’re delighted that the Maltings is reopening. This day marks a massive step in the recovery for this beautiful city and it has always been a priority to reopen this main economic thoroughfare, which takes visitors and shoppers from the main car parks to the city centre past the shops in the Maltings that have been directly affected.

“The Maltings site has undergone thorough testing and clean-up work by world-class specialists, and the public can be reassured that any traces of nerve agent that may have been present have been removed and the site presents no risk to public health.

“I would urge people to visit and support the businesses in the Maltings, and the rest of Salisbury as the city recovers and gets back to normal.

“I would like to thank the businesses in the Maltings for their patience and stoicism during the investigation and clean-up work and to recognise the role of the police officers who will continue to maintain the cordons that are in place at The Mill and Zizzi.

“This reopening reflects the work of all the local and national partner agencies who cleaned the site to enable it to reopen. Their work to clean-up the other potentially affected sites continues.”

People will be able to access the city centre from Central car park through the Maltings.

The area has also been improved by Wiltshire Council, Salisbury City Council, and the Maltings Shopping Centre team, including brickwork repair, grass cutting, painting and routine maintenance.