More than three years after it first floated plans for the upgrade of a south-east London retail scheme, once dubbed the UK’s ‘worst shopping district’, regeneration specialist St Modwen has finally submitted a detailed planning application.
Early in 2012, the Birmingham-based property owner and developer received overwhelming support for its £40m scheme to revive Leegate Shopping Centre at Lee Green, between Lewisham and Blackheath. Under the original plans parts of the 1960s built centre would have been retained and refurbished, with other parts of the 3.5-acre site redeveloped with a mix of new shops, leisure facilities and housing.
Key to the scheme would have been attracting a major food retailer and the conversion of an existing office block into a four-star hotel. At the time St Modwen’s senior development manager, Killian Morris, admitted: “We are currently in negotiations with Asda as its preferred operator for the new foodstore which will act as the main retail anchor for the scheme.
“We are also eager to continue to work with the local community on the plans to regenerate Leegate Shopping Centre and bring a vibrancy back to the centre of Lee Green as well as providing major new employment opportunities with training in an area of high unemployment,” he added.
Asda’s involvement in the scheme — designed by award-winning Maccreanor Lavington and Campbell Architects — has now been firmed up and the retailer has confirmed it will be opening a 35,000 sq ft foodstore at Leegate, anchoring up to 25,000 sq ft of smaller independent shops, restaurants and cafés.
A 2,000 sq ft gym, a new community centre and an education centre will complete the line-up of local facilities, together with almost 230 residential units located over 115,000 sq ft of Grade A office space.
Subject to planning consent, St Modwen hopes to start work on the site within the next two years. “These plans will see the comprehensive regeneration of this tired 1960s shopping centre and the delivery of a truly mixed-use scheme of high design quality,” said Morris this week.
“Our aim is to retain local shoppers within the Lee Green catchment, with our proposals illustrating how retail, leisure and community facilities can be integrated successfully side-by-side with good quality housing and in a constrained urban setting.”
