According to the Sentinal newspaper, a new shopping centre namedCity Sentral, will be built in Hanley, Stoke-on-Trent. 
This £350 million commercial property will be located on the site of the city’s old bus station, which had previously been known as the East West Centre.
The shopping centre is set to be completed by 2015, and will consist of the total space of 650,000 sq ft, which will be filled with various commercial properties including, a multi screen cinema, an 80 bed hotel, a department store, and a large number of retail stores, cafes and restaurants, as well as a 1000 space car park.
The developer, Realis said “We have continued to push forward with this project through the UK’s economic downturn, as we believe there is a real need for a new regional retail and leisure destination that brings shoppers back to Stoke-on-Trent from the city’s competitors, Manchester and Birmingham. This will transform the city of Stoke-on-Trent into a top 30 retail destination in the UK.”
It has been reported that Realis will also be providing a new bus station in Hanley, which has been designed by Grimshaw Architects and is due to open in 2012.
Richard Day, City Centre Partnership Spokesman said “We have been waiting a long time for this retail development and it is a great that things are starting to progress. It will show that Stoke-on-Trent is open for business and hopefully prove a catalyst for the wider development and new investment that is long overdue.”
The development of this large commercial property appears to be a positive move for the city of Stoke-on-Trent as it will, for sure, create numerous new jobs for the local people, and will therefore contribute to the improvement of the economy. But could this create uncertainty for the Potteries Shopping Centre, the city’s current major indoor shopping mall? The Potteries Shopping Centre is situated within walking distance from the development site, which has a total space of 561,000 sq ft, consisting of a number of major retail shops including, Next, HMV, River Island, Gap, Disney Store, Primark, H. Samuel, with a key department store, Debenhams.
There are two possible effects that the development of City Sentral could have on Potteries Shopping Centre:
No one knows at this point how this could turn out, but it will certainly be a new chapter for the city of Stoke-on-Trent and its economy.
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