The Crown Estate has revealed the opening date for the £168 million extension to Fosse Park shopping centre in Leicestershire.
The doors to some of the new shops and food outlets will open on April 12 – the same day that non-essential stores, hairdressers, outdoor attractions and outdoor pubs and restaurants should be able to open in England.
Work on the Fosse Park extension – close to junction 21 of the M1 – began in April 2019 after the Crown Estate bought the neighbouring site off Everards Brewery.
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The 140,000 sq ft extension has expanded capacity at the shopping park by 40 per cent.
Everards, meanwhile, is weeks away from opening a new plant, offices and beer hall on land it owns across the road.
The Crown Estate – which shares ownership of Fosse Park with a Chinese investment company – said the new outlets will open in phases, while some will be able to open for collection only on April 1.
Shops in the new Fosse Park West area will include a Frasers Group megastore split between Flannels and Sports Direct, a big Next store, TK Maxx, Clarks and H&M.
A new Food Central area linking the old and new halves of the retail park will include The Perfume Shop, Soho Coffee, Costa Coffee, Nando’s, KFC, Greggs and EE.
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The extension also includes:
16 electrical vehicle charging points;
172 cycle spaces;
500 photovoltaic panels (the equivalent of powering 31 homes per year)
54,000 sq ft of greenery, including green walls, hedgerows, trees, insect hotels and wildflower areas
The work has been delivered in partnership with contractors Bowmer + Kirkland, which helped build the original Fosse Park 30 years ago.
Employment opportunities created during construction included 12 apprenticeships and 27 work placements for young people.
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The Crown Estate said the whole site supports more than 2,000 jobs and the new-build saw almost £2.5 million of contracts given to local suppliers – including Mellor Bromley, Premier Surfacing, System Fencing and WB Simpson & Sons.
Fosse Park is already one of the 海角视频’s most successful shopping parks, with 11 million visitors a year, pre-lockdown.
The Crown Estate oversees a £13 billion portfolio of commercial property including the entire freehold to Regent Street, as well as regional retail sites and offshore wind farms.
It also owns royal assets such as Windsor Great Park.
It returns 100 per cent of its annual profits to the Treasury for the benefit of the public finances – said to total of £2.9 billion over the last 10 years.
Michael Bell, senior asset manager at The Crown Estate, said: “I’m so pleased to announce the completion of our development at Fosse Park.
“The last year has been a challenging period for us all, but our team have worked hard to achieve our ambitions. I’m delighted that we’ve still been able to involve the local community in aspects of the design, by using virtual forums to bring those discussions together.
“Fosse Park has been a much loved destination in the Leicester area over the last 30 years, and everyone at Fosse Park looks forward to welcoming visitors, when it is safe to do so, to enjoy the enhanced destination.”
John Richardson, strategic director at Blaby District Council, which is the local planning authority, said: “We are delighted to see the opening date for the extension of Fosse Park getting closer.“
South Leicestershire MP Alberto Costa said: “I am really delighted to see the new extension at Fosse Park completed ahead of its phased opening in early course.
“Fosse Park is already the nation’s premier out-of-town shopping park, but this new, very welcome £168 million investment will help increase footfall and bring new levels of economic benefits and employment to South Leicestershire and the wider region.
“The Crown Estate have worked exceptionally hard to ensure that local people gain from new job opportunities as well as apprenticeships and work placements for young people.”