BUILDING work on Bromsgrove’s £3.5million development on the former market hall site, which includes a Waitrose food store, is now under way.
Commercial developer the Hinton Group has started phase one of the construction process which will transform the area on that side of town, creating 60 new full and part-time jobs. It is due to open in the spring (2017) and is also expected to attract other retailers to the site, bringing further investment.
Hinton Group director Jon Hinton was joined by Coun Karen May and Coun Margaret Buxton from Bromsgrove District Council and Daren Humphrey of Waitrose to officially mark the work starting.
Contractor PDR Construction has started demolishing the existing buildings, including George House, which housed the former Blockbuster store.
Phase one will see the 9,000 sq ft food store built, along with 86 car parking spaces and there will also be improvements made to the Spadesbourne Brook, including the water course and water vole habitats. Trees will be planted both on site and off site at Sanders Park.
A planning application has been submitted for phase two, which will include a further 14,500 sq ft of retail space.
Mr Hinton said as the company was based in Bromsgrove, the project was very important to them.
“We are very proud to be playing our part in delivering a key element of the regeneration of our town centre, and we are committed to achieving similar success with the remainder of the site.
“We have been working very hard behind the scenes for a long time to ensure Bromsgrove gets the best result possible on this site.”
He added he was confident the new Waitrose would be welcomed by Bromsgrove and residents and visitors and would provide an impressive store on an important site.
Coun Karen May welcomed the beginning of the building work, adding: “After lots of hard work behind the scenes, it is extremely exciting that residents and visitors will now be able to see the development physically taking shape.
“I’d like to welcome Waitrose to Bromsgrove and look forward to hearing about future opportunities for the town via this development.”
Waitrose development surveyor, Daren Humphrey, said: “We hope local residents will share our excitement after reaching a key milestone in achieving our ambition to open in Bromsgrove and delivering what will be only our fifth store in the county.”
He added the former market hall site provided the company with a prime town centre location that he was confident it would be trading from for many years to come.
“We cannot wait to welcome our new customers when we open next spring,” he added.
Public access to the store will be from St John’s Street.
