º£½ÇÊÓÆµ

Oops.

Our website is temporarily unavailable in your location.

We are working hard to get it back online.

PRIVACY
Economic Development

Impact of pandemic causes Rochdale shopping centre to close for good

All staff and tenants have been told about the 'difficult decision' to close the centre

The Wheatsheaf Shopping Centre in Rochdale(Image: STEVE ALLEN)

The Wheatsheaf Shopping Centre in Rochdale is to close as a result of the impact of the coronavirus pandemic.

The shopping centre's bosses today confirmed it will close on December 2, the Manchester Evening News , at the end of the second lockdown.

Non-essential shops that have already shut will not reopen, while essential businesses currently open in the two-floor centre on Baillie Street will close in less than two weeks.

All staff and tenants have been told about the 'difficult decision' to close the centre.

Owners MCR Property Group bought the complex in 2017 and said they hoped to 'attract fresh leisure, commercial and new retail operators to complement the existing occupiers'.

But a 'nationwide shift in shopping habits' means people have stopped shopping in town centres, bosses said.

The coronavirus pandemic has 'expedited this migration from traditional shopping habits and the impacts on the retail sector have been significant', they added.

The centre, which houses local stores such as Fizz Bomb and Russell's Cafe, has lost a number of key tenants since 2017 including Wilko's, Ryman's and New Look.