A new museum and gardens could be created in York if £30 million can be raised, according to recently-lodged plans.
Plans from the Chapter of York, York Minster’s governing body, include details of long-term ambitions for the Old Palace Library and surrounding area including a public sensory garden.
The Old Palace building in Dean’s Park, which houses the Minster’s library and archives, could also be turned into a new dedicated museum and educational centre.
The Chapter’s plans stated achieving its aims for the area would be subject to efforts to raise the necessary funds which are currently ongoing.
It comes as the application lodged by the Minster’s governing body is set to see the car park which lies to the south west of the Old Palace building resurfaced.
Plans stated the 430sqm Old Palace Car Park was in poor condition, with parts of its reinforced mesh surface having failed.
A large pothole has also opened up which fills up with water after it has rained.
The resurfacing of the car park will allow it to carry on being used by Minster staff in the short term.
The car park application has been approved by City of York Council.
Plans stated the long-term vision set out in the York Minster Neighbourhood Plan, which runs until 2035, would see the area transformed if ambitions can be realised.
The Old Palace currently houses the Minster Library which holds the historic printed collections of the Chapter of York dating back to the 1470s.
It is also a modern reference and lending library and is open to the public from Monday to Thursday.
Plans stated the formal sensory garden which could be created in the area around the Old Palace would support the wellbeing of the local community and wider city.
They added the building could be turned into the Minster’s new dedicated museum which would also be a centre for learning and educational excellence.
Plans stated: “York Minster is more than 800 years-old, it welcomes more than 700,000 visitors a year and is a major tourist attraction in the North of England.
“The Minster Precinct is a sensitive and highly complicated area of the city, the future of which must be planned for carefully.
“The Minster receives no ongoing Government funding or central Church of England financial support.
“The responsibility for caring for the building and its precinct falls with Chapter which relies on the generosity of various funding bodies and paying visitors.
“Ensuring a viable and sustainable business to underpin the care of the Minster lies at the heart of how the Chapter plans for the future.
“The delivery of this ambition is subject to fund raising which is currently underway, to raise the £30 million required to complete the works set out in the Neighbourhood Plan.”