A prime shopping centre in the centre of Exeter has been acquired by the city council.
The authority has confirmed that it is the new owner of the Guildhall Shopping Centre that in recent years has become the dining quarter of the city.
It wants to create retail units and restaurants alongside residential housing.
The shopping centre, currently managed by Cushman & Wakefield, was advertised for sale by Knight Frank with offers of more than £34m being sought,
The decision to acquire ownership of the centre was approved by the council’s executive at full council.
Cllr Phil Bialyk, leader of the council, said: “We’ve now got a great opportunity to bring the Guildhall Shopping Centre under the control of the people of Exeter. We see it as a golden opportunity and we want to invest in it.
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"We want to maintain and improve its current use. Eventually, in the future, it could come forward for some residential use, and when that happens we want it under the control of the council. We want a thriving city centre for people to enjoy, with great shops and restaurants together with urban and sustainable living to support the vibrancy and sustainability of our fantastic city centre.”
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The council has said it will continue as a key retail and food and drink destination for Exeter, and that it will invest in improvements. However, purpose-built student accommodation has been ruled out by the council.
The council already owned the freehold interest in the 300,000 square feet shopping centre. The purchase involved the leasehold interest, which includes the 440-space multi-storey Paul Street car park.
The centre, which opened in 1976, underwent a £13.5m refurbishment in 2016 which saw the opening of Queen Street Dining Quarter, with key tenants including Brewdog, Comptoir Libanais, Turtle Bay and The Botanist.
In 2019, pre-Covid, annual footfall stood at 9.9 million people per annum. The semi-covered mall is arranged over two floors and retailers currently trading in the shopping centre include Primark, Wilko, Sainsbury’s and WH Smith.