THE Colonnades has been given a timely boost, a week after it was revealed a major part of the leisure park will close next month.

It was confirmed this week that the site has been earmarked by coffee giant Costa for its first ever drive-through café.

Planning permission has been approved and the company says it is "concluding negotiations".

It is hoped the new addition could be open as early as next spring.

Ian Jones, speaking on behalf of Europa, which owns the leisure park, said: "We are delighted Costa has chosen The Colonnades as their flagship project.

"It has been in the pipeline for some time and we have been having discussions for over a year.

"The store will be about 2,000 square feet, on the right-hand side as you walk into the estate off the Purley Way.

"It will be a drive-through, but there will also be a seating area inside like normal coffee houses.

"This is great news for The Colonnades and for Croydon – and it is something completely new to the UK.

"Building works are due to start by the end of the year."

Costa is the largest coffee chain in the UK, with about 1,000 stores, but the drive-through is a first for the company.

In the UK there is only one other drive-through café – a Starbucks in Cardiff.

There is already a drive-through McDonald's off Purley Way.

One of its customers, Teresa Bonanno, who drives from Coulsdon to Thornton Heath each day, believes the Costa drive-through will prove popular.

She said: "I think it is a fantastic idea and I can't wait for the coffee shop to open.

"Like a lot of people I know, the morning drive is always a bit of a rush so we all stop off to grab something to keep us going in the rush hour traffic."

Last week the Advertiser revealed that City Limits Bowling, Laser Quest Croydon and Gymboree have been told they will have to leave The Colonnades by August 7, when their unit will be shut.

A spokeswoman from Whitbread, Costa's parent company, said: "We can confirm that we are concluding negotiations to secure the site in Croydon.

"We are excited about the project and will be releasing more details in early autumn once the planning process is complete."