Stoke-on-Trent City Council has confirmed its commitment to deliver a business district in the city centre.
At a meeting of the cabinet on Thursday, 29th July, councillors approved to sign a development agreement for the 1.2million square foot proposed Central Business District.
Mohammed Pervez, leader of Stoke-on-Trent City Council, said the move was an important milestone in the progress of the project.
He said: “Today’s decision is a significant step in the creation of a new Central Business District in Stoke-on-Trent.
“The proposed development is of the highest quality and one the city council is firmly committed to delivering with its partners. It will help to transform not only Stoke-on-Trent city centre but also the wider North Staffordshire region into a more prosperous and successful place.
“It will create more than 4,000 jobs for local people and provide career opportunities for students from our new University Quarter.”
Stoke-on-Trent City Council is currently under going a strategic property review which will help to determine whether it may be financially viable to house some council staff from a variety of locations across the city to a central location. Other options for an anchor tenant for the first phase are also being reviewed with an agreement in place between developer Genr8 and the city council to aim for progress by July 2011.
Councillor Mervin Smith, Stoke-on-Trent City Council cabinet member for city development (regeneration), said: “It is important that we carry on exploring all options for the Central Business District. We are in challenging economical times and it is important that we make the right decisions for the residents of our city. The Central Business District will attract investment and businesses to the city centre. This in turn will help to boost other projects such as the East West Centre helping to create a thriving city centre with extra opportunities and footfall.”
John Early, Genr8 chairman, said: “We are working with the NSRP and its partners to create a Central Business District that will put Stoke-on-Trent firmly on the national map as a location to do business.
“To do this we are focussing on quality, design excellence and integrating the Central Business District with the city’s other regeneration plans. This will ensure that Stoke-on-Trent is well placed to take advantage of the economic recovery.
“We are now working extremely hard with our partners to identify and realise pre-lettings for the scheme that will underpin the first phase of development and be the catalyst for further expansion and growth”
The agreement means that a planning application is now expected to be submitted by the end of the year with the aim of securing an anchor tenant in the next 12 months.
Proposals for the Central Business District include:
- 750,000 square feet of “grade A” office space
- 60,000 square feet of leisure and retail space
- 250 hotel beds
- 80 apartments
- 230,000 square feet of high quality public space
The design will integrate with the rest of Stoke-on-Trent city centre and the wider North Staffordshire conurbation helping to create a city centre that is strong and able to compete nationally.
Public open space will be designed to provide strong connections to the rest of the city centre, including the main shopping area, the planned new Realis Estates £285 million East West Centre, the Cultural Quarter and University Quarter.
