Small is the new big idea for town centre (From Swindon Advertiser)
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Small is the new big idea for town centre
9:30am Wednesday 3rd June 2009 in News
SWINDON’s town centre regeneration is going back to the drawing board after one of the developers went into administration.
The Regent Place scheme, on the site of the Granville Street car park, is on hold after Modus Ventures, the parent company of developers Modus (Swindon) went into administration.
The £215m development with Modus (Swindon) still stands, but the developer is likely to go the same way as its parent company when a winding-up petition finally reaches the courts. Now Swindon Council and the New Swindon Company are taking the opportunity to re-evaluate the scheme – which could move away from big-name shopping developments to feature smaller, independent traders, as well as restaurants and a supermarket.
Peter James, chief executive of the New Swindon Company, said: “We will be going back to the drawing board to a degree but it may not necessarily hold the development up.
“The original scheme involved compulsory purchase orders of £40m on properties around the site, which would have taken 18 months to two years to carry out.
“The scheme that we are possibly thinking about may not require the acquisition of properties outside our control. The council already owns Iceland and the car park.
“We are re-looking at the proposal because the market is so bad. To put together a 50-unit scheme just does not make sense in the current climate because there are not 50 retailers out there coming to Swindon.
“We are not trying to compete with Cribbs Causeway or The Oracle. We need to concentrate on making Swindon special and attracting people to the centre. We are looking at bringing more restaurants into the town centre.
“Maybe there’s room for food retailers to come into the town centre. If there was a big supermarket interested maybe they could go onto the Granville Street car park site. It would be something to attract people in and then there could be restaurants attached to it.”
Coun Phil Young, the council’s lead member for regeneration said: “The Modus scheme was the right one for the time but we now have to look at how the market has changed and see how our regeneration fits into that.
“We want to build a centre for the town rather simply a town centre.
“It’s a great opportunity to reflect on what will bring people to Swindon, considering there are already two huge shopping developments at Bristol and Reading.
“I think our reputation for putting on music is growing so perhaps we could look into something in the town centre. We have more and more happening at the Arts Centre, but that’s not the biggest building. We could have more green spaces – create an atmosphere that attracts people to the centre.
“We want to look at some consultation with the community to find out what they want to see there.”
Comments(23)
Robert Feal-Martinez
says...
9:56am Wed 3 Jun 09
Peter James, chief executive of the New Swindon Company, said: “We will be going back to the drawing board to a degree but it may not necessarily hold the development up.
Of course it will hold it up, does he think everyone in Swindon is a 'numpty'. Why do the New Swindon Company just disappear and leave it to SBC and local people to decide what we want. Mr James you have failed in your task of regenerating Swindon, it seems however you have about as much integrity as our politicians. If you did have an ounce of integrity you would resign now.
Janais is back
says...
10:11am Wed 3 Jun 09
On one hand they want a massive Town Centre but on the other hand they want to make it as difficult as possible for anyone to actually travel there with poor overcrowded routes and extortionate car parking prices.
In 2009 what is the need for a Town Centre anyway? There are now outlet villages that cater for all needs - unfortunately because they are attracting all the former Town Centre shoppers their car parks are generally overcrowded because they are free.
The main ammenities available away from the Town Centres have left behind just poor quality shops, boarded up shop fronts and the likes of mobile telephone shops.
When people actually have to venture into the derelict Town Centre the main thing they notice are the pubs and low life that are attracted by such businesses.
Start from scratch & design a Canal & transport route through the middle and develop buildings and recreational areas around that - something that was the origin of Swindon New Town.
There are obviously no Visionaries within SBC (unlike David Murray-John in 1937) who can see what will be required for the future of an ever expanding Swindon.
I would suggest they start by looking at good transport routes, parking & quality of life before embarking on more housing in the defunct Town Centre area.
Surely the bus transport system should be looked at because how many times do we see almost empty buses following themselves various routes polluting the air with thick anti-social fumes - design an environmentally friendly tram system.
I think my message is clear - stop everything then plan & develop around areas that are clearly defined transport routes allowing for expansion if necessary.
Start from scratch and I am sure this will generate more interest and investment, even from money saved from the Government expense budget.
Have a longer time view in stages - surely much better than what we are experiencing now.
By the way does anyone know how much the current plans that have been scrapped have actually cost us so far?
swindonsnumberonegay
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10:13am Wed 3 Jun 09
The ever ironic security word is :
used-city
LOL
Ardiles
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10:15am Wed 3 Jun 09
For big ticket items, Swindon people will be expected to get in their cars and drive for an hour. I think that's sad, not least because the expansion of Swindon is far from over. Despite the warm words and talk of 'making Swindon special', this simply feels like plans are out there to create the bargain basement town of the future.
Janais is back
says...
10:22am Wed 3 Jun 09
What a joke this comment is:
How will people travel and park in such a large supermarket with SBC's policy on travel & parking even if there were room for a suitable car park.
Oh yes let's have some more fast food outlets to encourage even more the Town's low life into an already unfriendly area.
Common Dreads
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10:59am Wed 3 Jun 09
How convenient for the New Swindon Company. They've spent 8 years, and millions of our pounds, achieving nothing but a few site demolitions and lots of white fences and now they're going to have to start all over again.
By the time they've spent a few years dreaming up the plans and have spent time in meeting about meetings they'll have when they have meetings to arrange meetings with the new developers, the recession will be over and they'll probably scrap the 'new' plans and go back to the originals.
SBC don't seem to have noticed this very obvious fact: it is not in the interests of the New Swindon Company to do what the New Swindon Company is tasked to do!
Janais is back
says...
11:19am Wed 3 Jun 09
Al Smith
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11:28am Wed 3 Jun 09
Maybe SBC and NSC have finally realised that Swindon is no Bristol, Oxford, Cardiff... so people won't come flooding in to do their shopping.
That's why I go on and on about how the University should go in the town centre. This would help town centre businesses in a way a university at coate wouldn't.
emz1200
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11:31am Wed 3 Jun 09
Start from scratch & design a Canal & transport route through the middle and develop buildings and recreational areas around that - something that was the origin of Swindon New Town."
A canal are you mad, they filled the old canal in for a reason. It wasn't maintained and ended up a stinky pit. Yeah great idea putting it in again i think not!!!!!
Robert Feal-Martinez
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11:35am Wed 3 Jun 09
RF1
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11:36am Wed 3 Jun 09
yeti
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11:39am Wed 3 Jun 09
not a poor second rate option like we already have
Kineasy
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12:14pm Wed 3 Jun 09
RF1 wrote:Yes! Start with the phone shops and takeaways. Do away with bus stops. Have out of town Dole Offices, Move Watt Tyler Kremlin and its residents to Nuneaton. No right minded person wants to shop in Swindonistan. The place is a disgrace. Unlike Coventry, Bristol etc. it was never bombed so was never redeveloped. Better late than never. Flatten it now.
Swindon town centre is an unsightly boil on the backside of Wiltshire - it should be bulldozed back to the stone age and then left as a permanent monument to all those twonks who always knew best and never felt the need to listen to the people who really mattered - us.
Always Grumpy
says...
12:47pm Wed 3 Jun 09
Ardiles wrote:Sadly, I think you're right.
I have suspected as much for a long time - but this is the first time I have seen it written that civic leaders have accepted Swindon will play second fiddle to Bristol and Reading in future. Both of these places stole a march on Swindon, and now Swindon is so far behind that it will never catch up.
For big ticket items, Swindon people will be expected to get in their cars and drive for an hour. I think that's sad, not least because the expansion of Swindon is far from over. Despite the warm words and talk of 'making Swindon special', this simply feels like plans are out there to create the bargain basement town of the future.
The problem has always been the small minded Swindon councillors who cannot see further than the end of their noses, let alone 10 years into the future. There hasn't been anyone with vision since Murray John died years ago. The New Swindon Company certainly doesn't appear to have a clue based on their performance (or lack of it) so far.
The outlook looks grim indeed and I have grave doubts I'll live long enough to see anything change.
Wellfire
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3:35pm Wed 3 Jun 09
johndawson
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5:22pm Wed 3 Jun 09
Come on new swindon company make swindon better than anywhere else so I can be proud of it.
Kineasy
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5:39pm Wed 3 Jun 09
Janais is back
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5:45pm Wed 3 Jun 09
bilzinuk
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6:38pm Wed 3 Jun 09
oooerr UPPER Penhill ?
Twinned with Rio instead of Beirut eh ?
IMO
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8:40pm Wed 3 Jun 09
Swindon_AOK
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11:12am Thu 4 Jun 09
A week ago we were talking about signing a supermarket to the Regent Circus scheme - what has happened to that?
Now we are talking about a major food store on granville street car park. What a joke that is! A supermarket with a few fast food outlets attached - just the thing to regenerate the hole that it is our town centre.
They have not got a clue what they are doing, the lot of them! It sounds like we are COMPLETELY back to the drawing board - suddenly its food stores, concert halls, any random idea whici we could put on the car park site. Hell, why not build small shops to replace the small shops which we were going to demolish on Morley Street and Havelock street, great idea! How visionary!
NSC HAVE FAILED AND PETER JAMES MUST RESIGN!
Kineasy
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3:49pm Sat 6 Jun 09
localgirl80 says...
9:52am Wed 3 Jun 09