intu’s commitment to bringing customers the most compelling shopping experience is underlined by the £1.3 billion development pipeline which is set to transform much of its estate over the next decade.
This week, the group has submitted a planning application which will see progress at its Nottingham centre speed up greatly, bringing a new wave of retailers and leisure operators to the city.
Following several months of public consultations and discussions with planning chiefs, intu has settled upon a number of areas earmarked for improvement at intu Broadmarsh and submitted a detailed planning application to Nottingham City Council – the local authority which also owns one third of the centre thanks to its ownership of the freehold of the site.
If approved, the ensuing redevelopment programme is expected to cost around £150 million and will place a high emphasis upon diversifying the existing dining and leisure offering within the centre.
One of the major changes to the centre will be an overhaul of the southern gateway from Nottingham main line train station, which will provide improved accessibility for consumers. In addition, pedestrian routes within the development will be upgraded and improved whilst new connections will be forged with surrounding shopping streets and with the city centre itself.
Furthermore, intu will add a multi-screen cinema to be operated by a national brand as an anchor tenant within a new leisure quarter. As part of this target, space will be created for a wider range of restaurant and eatery brands, with everything from grab and go sandwich bars to sit-down restaurants expected to be catered for.
Regional director at intu, Martin Breeden, believes that the investment underlines the group’s commitment to providing Nottingham’s consumers with top class retail and leisure facilities.
He says; “Nottingham has always been a top 10 retail city but, in the last couple of years, it’s really had the sense of a place on the way up – there’s the massive extension to the tram system, improvements to the railway station, increasing amounts of urban living and new independent stores and restaurants popping up and, of course, our own improvements to intu Victoria Centre.
“Our plans for intu Broadmarsh will build further on that progress, bringing new streetscapes, a new cinema and a wider retail and catering offer.
“We have been in the city for over 40 years with intu Victoria Centre and are fully committed to creating something special for Nottingham.”
The plans, drawn-up by architect Benoy, have already garnered an approval rating of 89 per cent during a public consultation process involving 1,600 respondents
intu now hopes that this positivity will be shared by Nottingham City Council’s planning department as, if approval is granted soon, work could begin as early as the first half of 2016 enabling completion by December 2018.
