Latest news with #citycentre
BBC News
5 days ago
- Business
- BBC News
Wolverhampton roadworks to last three months longer than planned
Roadworks in the centre of Wolverhampton will go on for three months longer than planned due to the need for emergency repairs.A six-month road closure on Darlington Street between Chapel Ash Island and Red Lion Street was due to end next month, but the council said it would now run until road was shut as part of a two-and-a-half-year £19m city-centre transformation scheme that began in companies had to intervene after recent excavations found a water main in poor condition, BT chambers that needed urgent work, and cellars that had to be filled to avoid subsidence, the council said. According to the authority, Severn Trent Water cannot start the mains work until the end of the month, a situation which has temporarily halted development on the southside delays were described by a spokesperson as "out of the council's and [developer] Taylor Woodrow's control"."We appreciate this is frustrating and we will continue to do everything in our power to minimise disruption caused by these unforeseen issues with utility providers," said the council's cabinet member for city development Chris added the works were the next steps in plans to "enable people to better enjoy our city centre" following improvements to North Street and Victoria Street. Pedestrian access to business would be maintained during the lengthened closure period, the council added the site works schedule had been adjusted and overall city centre improvements were still on course to be completed by summer revamp follows consultation with residents and businesses and aims to improve lighting, create more greenery and make the area easier to access for buses, cycles and taxis. Follow BBC Wolverhampton & Black Country on Facebook, X and Instagram.
BBC News
02-06-2025
- Business
- BBC News
Flats plan for Stoke-on-Trent office building set for approval
Plans to turn a vacant city centre office building into 99 flats have been recommended for disused Telecom House in Hanley, Stoke-on-Trent, would be converted into 24 studios, 61 one-bedroom flats and 14 two-bedroom flats under the proposal submitted by TT firm said the development would be "car free" but with two accessible parking spaces and storage for 110 bikes.A report with the planning application said the building on Trinity Street was in a "highly sustainable" location in the city centre, within walking distance of amenities including the bus station. The seven-storey building was previously a base for British Telecom staff. A full planning application is not required as certain residential conversions are allowed under permitted development rules. In a report to Stoke-on-Trent City Council's planning committee, planning officers described the development as "acceptable" and recommended members approve the committee is expected to make a decision on the plans during a meeting on Wednesday. This news was gathered by the Local Democracy Reporting Service which covers councils and other public service organisations. Follow BBC Stoke & Staffordshire on BBC Sounds, Facebook, X and Instagram.
The Sun
27-05-2025
- Business
- The Sun
Town centre once branded ‘ugly & uninspiring' to undergo £8m transformation and be made ‘fit for 21st century'
A MAJOR town centre once branded "ugly and uninspiring" is to undergo a huge £8 million transformation. The plans are a bid to make the centre "fit for the 21st century" with work expected to be completed by the end of next year. 5 5 5 The final designs for two major schemes have been drawn up to introduce sweeping changes to Leicester city centre, reports Leicestershire Live. Years in the making, the two projects will focus on Leicester Market and a link between Market Place and Cank Street respectively. The Leicester Market scheme is on track to be completed by the end of 2026 while work could get underway on the Cank Street Link in the summer. The market proposals were first introduced in 2022 and have undergone a series of changes since then. The original market scheme was put on hold while Leicester City Council mulled turning it into an events space. But this provoked a furious backlash from traders when they were told they may not be allowed to return. As a result, new plans were proposed to use the square as a shared space for both events and the market in October 2024. The new plans proposed a new 48-stall market site created next to the existing food hall which could be fully dismantled if the site was needed for an event. This went to a public consultation, launched by Leicester City Council, where 60 per cent of 1,667 respondents supported the proposals. The changes are much needed with some residents bemoaning the state of the centre in recent months. A recent Reddit post on the Leicester subreddit page asked residents for their thoughts on moving to the city from London. Many disparaged the centre with one user saying "the city centre is largely quite ugly" with others saying it was "horrible" and "dreadful". One user recommended they "avoid" the city centre citing "poor hygiene" while another added the centre was "mostly ugly and uninspiring". But many admitted the centre had problems like any city and loved calling Leicester home. In addition to the market plans, the second scheme is known as the Cank Street Link and will see a new pathway between Green Dragon Square and the St. Martins area. This will see a number of Leicester City Council-owned buildings demolished and others refurbished with plans to rent them out. Revealed in December 2023, the plans will also see a new shopping area in place of the demolished buildings. This space could see units for creative and artisan start ups, bespoke and higher end retail offers and street food style food and beverage. Final designs for both schemes are being prepared with Leicester City Council saying their teams are "busy" wrapping up the plans. They will then be submitted to the council's planning department for approval. For the market scheme, the planning applications will be submitted in two phases, according to a council spokeswoman. The public square space, including tree planting, seating, lighting and landscaping will comprise the first phase with plans to submit this at the end of next week. Whereas the second phase requires "further work", according to the spokeswoman with an application expected later in the summer. She added that the regeneration of the market is still on track to be completed by the end of next year. A planning application for the Cank Street Link Scheme, dubbed "essential infrastructure", is being prepared. This includes power supply and waste management developments with the spokeswoman adding: "Subject to final confirmation of costs, works could start later this summer". 5 5
The Sun
23-05-2025
- Business
- The Sun
Major department store with 26 shops UK-wide shuts TODAY after closing down sale
AN iconic department store has closed its doors for good today. The legendary retail giant has pulled the shutters down on the once-beloved high street staple. 2 The recent closing down sale has marked the end of the city's historic House of Fraser. The Lincoln High Street site has housed the department store for more than 100 years, while it was previously called Mawer and Collingham. In 1980, the company was bought by House of Fraser. Its closure highlights a "real problem" for the city centre losing a big "anchor tenant". The old building in the city centre is said to be 'difficult to redevelop' with it being right beside a road. The luxury Radisson Hotel chain had won planning permission in 2020 to demolish the building and replace it with a 150-bed 'lifestyle' hotel featuring shops, a restaurant, a gym, a bar, and a courtyard garden. The proposal was expected to create 190 jobs and boost Lincoln's economy. However, these plans never materialised, and the permission expired in May 2023. House of Fraser was saved from collapse by billionaire businessman Mike Ashley back in 2018. But while the deal saved the chain's 59 stores and 17,000 workers who were facing the axe many more stores have closed in recent years. Topshop teases high street return Other stores affected include Bristol, Bluewater, Birmingham, Cardiff and Guildford. Inflation and the cost-of-living crisis have made large-scale projects increasingly difficult to come to fruition. Decreasing store sales and rising staff costs have made it impossible for shops to stay open. The Centre for Retail Research (CRR) has warned that around 17,350 retail sites are expected to shut down this year. Why are retailers closing shops? EMPTY shops have become an eyesore on many British high streets and are often symbolic of a town centre's decline. The Sun's business editor Ashley Armstrong explains why so many retailers are shutting their doors. In many cases, retailers are shutting stores because they are no longer the money-makers they once were because of the rise of online shopping. Falling store sales and rising staff costs have made it even more expensive for shops to stay open. The British Retail Consortium has predicted that the Treasury's hike to employer NICs from April 2025, will cost the retail sector £2.3billion. At the same time, the minimum wage will rise to £12.21 an hour from April, and the minimum wage for people aged 18-20 will rise to £10 an hour, an increase of £1.40. In some cases, retailers are shutting a store and reopening a new shop at the other end of a high street to reflect how a town has changed. The problem is that when a big shop closes, footfall falls across the local high street, which puts more shops at risk of closing. Retail parks are increasingly popular with shoppers, who want to be able to get easy, free parking at a time when local councils have hiked parking charges in towns. Many retailers including Next and Marks & Spencer have been shutting stores on the high street and taking bigger stores in better-performing retail parks instead. In some cases, stores have been shut when a retailer goes bust, as in the case of Carpetright, Debenhams, Dorothy Perkins, Paperchase, Ted Baker, The Body Shop, Topshop and Wilko to name a few. What's increasingly common is when a chain goes bust a rival retailer or private equity firm snaps up the intellectual property rights so they can own the brand and sell it online. They may go on to open a handful of stores if there is customer demand, but there are rarely ever as many stores or in the same places. The Centre for Retail Research (CRR) has warned that around 17,350 retail sites are expected to shut down this year. 2
BBC News
22-05-2025
- Business
- BBC News
Hull Paragon ticket office to become 'quality' bar, says council
Hull Paragon's former ticket office and hall are to be turned into a "high quality" bar, officials city council has awarded grants totalling £315,000 to Hull Tap Limited to help fund the BBC understands the company will run the bar as Thornbridge And Co, creating about 15 former ticket office is occupied by WH Smith, which will move to a vacant unit on the opposite side of the station's concourse, next to Costa Coffee. The hall is vacant. Councillor Paul Drake-Davis, portfolio holder for regeneration and housing, said: "It is pleasing that a large unit will be occupied, thanks to grant funding."He added: "These awards are also helping to maintain city centre presence for a national brand in WH Smith, whilst safeguarding jobs." Morrison's also recently submitted plans for a small store in the station, next to Starbucks. Drake-Davis added: "Morrisons' that Hull is a place that high street brands want to be [in] and will only add to the offering for commuters and passengers alike."The council said it allocated a portion of government funding received in 2021 to create a grant scheme, which aims to bring back into use empty units and create city centre than £9m has so far been awarded to businesses, creating added around 900 jobs, it said. Since its closure in around 2007, the ticket hall has been used as a cycle park and a mobility scooter hire centre. It was also used by the makers of the 2024 film Blitz. Planned features for the hall include leather and hardwood fixed seating for 150 customers. A bar counter will be built in the former ticket office, the council to highlights from Hull and East Yorkshire on BBC Sounds, watch the latest episode of Look North or tell us about a story you think we should be covering here.
