Croydon Council welcomes £1bn town centre development (From Croydon Guardian)

Croydon Council welcomes £1bn town centre development

3:00pm Thursday 17th January 2013 in News By Hannah Williamson and Chris Baynes

Croydon Council has welcomed the move by Hammerson and and Westfield to break the deadlock over the redevelopment of the Whitgift Shopping Centre.

The council said it has been in discussions with interested parties, including Hammerson PLC and Westfield Shoppingtowns Ltd, and was seriously considering intervention if the impasse between the two over who would redevelop the centre could not be overcome.

The announcement today that the two developers will work together to proceed with proposals to develop the Whitgift Centre as well as the Centrale shopping centre follows a series of pre-application presentations to the council from both developers.

Council leader Mike Fisher said: "We’re delighted that the developers have listened to our concerns and have come together in the best interests of Croydon.

"The council’s aim has always been to ensure that the redevelopment of the Whitgift Centre was resolved as soon as possible and we’ve worked hard towards achieving this.

"There is still a planning process to go through, but this is a significant breakthrough which is bound to be a catalyst for further investment and economic growth in the town centre and the borough.

"It is a major part of the council’s wide-reaching regeneration schemes for Croydon.

"This has placed Croydon in the position of having two significant and experienced developers jointly wanting to invest in the town, confirming its position as one of the top places in the south, outside of central London, for retail and commercial investment."

Labour leader Tony Newman added: "This is great news for Croydon and a real vote of confidence in our town.

"The challange now is to ensure local people get the maximum oppurtunity to benefit in terms of jobs and training so we can kick start our local economy."