Town centre facelift set to go ahead


SWINDON council has given the go ahead for work to begin on transforming part of the town centre.

The council's planning committee has given outline permission for work on the new Granville Street development.

The permission is not for the final plans, but allows developers access to the development and defines key areas such as vehicle access and the main points of pedestrian access.

Outlining the proposals, Catherine Ashby, senior planner, said it was a major regeneration project for the town centre.

"It will provide mixed use development comprising retail, leisure, food and drink, hotel, residential, car parking, serving and access arrangements," she said.

"And there will be substantial demolition work to the existing site."

The total gross floor space once the building work has been completed will be 86,000sq metres, with 81,000sq metres of it dedicated to commercial use.

There will be a number of tower blocks, which will range from 17-24m in height, and a residential tower block, which will measure no more than 79m tall.

As well as the tower block at the Granville Street site, there will also be two separate residential blocks at Davis Place and Regent Mews.

They will provide 300 new dwellings, including affordable housing.

Ms Ashby added that the new scheme will also create 870 new car parking spaces. "Eighty per cent will be public, and 20 per cent will be private," she said.

"This will result in an approximate net increase of 447 new public spaces."

The new development will include a 100-bed hotel, a multiplex cinema, a new central square and will reinstate the Baptist Tabernacle façade.

Coun Phil Young (Con, Covingham and Nythe) said it was a long overdue project.

"Swindon town centre at the moment, to put it kindly, is not very nice," he said.

"We are bringing Swindon's heritage back to the town.

"There are still some challenges to overcome but hopefully they will be resolved as we move forward."

Coun Andrew Bennett (Con, Ridgeway) said he welcomed the plans.

"I am delighted to see what we have all hoped for, for quite some time," he said.

"And I am delighted to see we have reached this stage."

Outline permission for the development was granted, along with outline permission for the developments at Davis Place and Regent Street.