Whiteley Village Stores have now closed and the 20-week demolition programme is complete. Work on the construction phase of the £64m, 300,000sq ft scheme has started.
During the period up to Easter 2012 the key elements of the works will be:
- Complete the remaining demolition works
- Commence site levelling works
- Commence foundation works
- Commence drainage installations
- Commence steel frame erections
The new Whiteley Village shopping Park will be designed to attract top tenants to suit market demand, it will have a completely new look including glazed elevations, attractive landscape and public realm providing a vibrant new shopping destination. It has a target opening date of Easter 2013. Take the Video Tour.
Tesco and its car park will remain open during the works. There will be a path through from the Meadowside through to Tesco to allow pedestrian access. The Meadowside Leisure Centre will remain open throughout the works.
Many major retailers are interested in locating in Whiteley after the redevelopment. 50% of the retail floor area has been pre-let with "Marks and Spencer" (60,000 sq ft) and "Next" (19,500) sq ft set to become the cornerstones of the new development. H&M (18,200 Sq ft), Boots (12,300 sq ft), JD Sports (6,800 sq ft), Bank (6,300 sq ft), Sports Direct (10,700 sq ft), "Frankie & Benny’s" (4,000 sq ft) and Starbucks (2,500 sq ft) have also signed up. There will be around 50 units for local and national retailers, restaurants and cafés. To put this into perspective Gunwharf Quays is 425,000 sq ft and has 95 stores, 30 bars and restaurants while the M&S store in Fareham Shopping Centre is 24,000sq ft.
Work on the next phase, building the new shops, will begin now the existing site has been fully cleared. By April 2012 the new layout will be visible and will be starting to take shape.
The New Village will include 242,000 sq ft of retail, 58,000 sq ft of catering and amenities, 1136 free parking spaces and will create 1000 jobs. Its catchment area will be 1.2M people with a potential spending power of £3.1 billion.
Throughout this next phase Meadowside Leisure Centre and Tesco will remain open.
The plans for the redevelopment are here: Winchester Planning
Last Updated on Monday, 20 February 2012 18:21
