Park Place plans falter once more

By Ian Austen

ian.austen@essnmedia.co.uk

Croydon's flagship Park Place development will be delayed yet again and radically rethought, it has emerged this week.

Instead of this autumn, it will now be next year before any revised application emerges for the massive town centre scheme - and it looks set to be very different to previous plans.

Big changes have been hinted at, including ditching the idea of a covered retail complex and replacing it with squares and plazas surrounding by shops, including a stand alone department store.

It is also suggested the bus interchange proposals will be dropped and the number of shops reduced from 130 to 100.

This would allow instead the provision of up to 400 homes as part of the development.

However, developers Minerva are still confident John Lewis will take the tenancy of the department store.

Last week, a £258m offer from Dubai to buy Minerva collapsed, sending its share prices plummeting.

But director Steven Yewman insists this is not the reason its plans have been delayed.

It is, he claimed, a sensible decision to gauge the effects on its scheme of the council's Urban Regeneration Vehicle - which involves other town centre sites such as the council's Taberner House headquarters and College Green - and the council-organised competition for the redevelopment of the Wellesley Road area which borders the Park Place site.

Cllr Tim Pollard, the council's cabinet member for regeneration, said he was aware that the revised application was likely to be put back until March or April next year.

He saw some logic in Minerva looking at linking the timing with other developments.

But he said: "It would be a concern if the revised application slipped to the beginning of the second quarter of next year.

"We can't have St George's Walk laying empty and decaying for much longer."

The delay is trying the patience of the remaining traders in St George's Walk.

Alan Hemmings, Managing Director of Alan D Hairdressers which is on the corner of St George's Walk, says he is losing business from the desolated area.

He said: "I'm losing hundreds of pounds a week, I can't get new staff because we are being cut off.

"It's been going on for 15 years, and new planning could take another couple of years, while the rest of us pay rents and rates."

Lorraine Simpson, from spiritual centre Violet Moon Cavern on St George's Walk, said: "There are not many of us left here, and I'm disappointed with all the stopping and starting.

"There are signs for shops to let, so you know they're not going to develop for at least a year or two."

The collapse of the Limitless offer from Dubai at the weekend saw Minerva's shares slump by more than half to just under 35p.

But Mr Yewman stressed that share prices did not reflect the financial strength of the company.

The intention is to push on and Mr Yewman said: "We are continuing to have joint venture negotiations with third parties over Park Place."